Job Title: Accounting Manager
Job Description
The Accounting Manager serves as the key accounting contact for several significant profit, cost-sharing, and royalty collaborations with large pharmaceutical partners. This fully remote role, aligned to Eastern Time working hours, focuses on analyzing shared revenues and costs, reviewing and interpreting complex agreements, and ensuring accurate financial reporting in accordance with partnership terms. The position offers a unique opportunity to work in a dynamic industry with strong potential for career growth while collaborating closely with internal stakeholders and external partners.
Responsibilities
Serve as the primary accounting contact for multiple significant profit, cost-sharing, and royalty collaborations with large pharmaceutical companies.
Participate actively in internal and external cross-functional teams to analyze shared revenues and costs and to resolve collaboration-related issues.
Review collaboration and royalty agreements in detail, working closely with legal personnel to interpret clauses and resolve disputes or ambiguities.
Establish and recommend improvements to processes for sharing profit, cost, and royalty data with corporate partners, focusing on accuracy, timeliness, and clarity.
Prepare and record journal entries related to collaboration, profit-sharing, and royalty activities in the general ledger.
Prepare all invoices and settlements in accordance with the terms of partnership and royalty agreements, ensuring compliance with contractual requirements.
Maintain detailed account and variance analyses for related balance sheet and income statement accounts, including reconciliations and supporting documentation.
Prepare audit schedules and supporting documentation for internal and external audits related to collaboration and royalty arrangements.
Perform cost analysis and other financial analyses to support decision-making and issue resolution within the collaborations.
Identify opportunities for process improvement within accounting workflows and collaboration reporting, and drive implementation of enhancements.
Collaborate effectively with internal teams, including finance, accounting, and legal, to ensure alignment on financial treatment and contract interpretation.
Build and maintain positive working relationships with external partners through clear, professional, and timely communication.
Exercise strong analytical skills and initiative to research issues, develop solutions, and make well-supported recommendations.
Work independently with minimal direction, managing priorities and meeting deadlines in a remote environment.
Essential Skills
Accounting and/or finance experience with demonstrated responsibility for journal entries, reconciliations, and financial analysis.
Hands-on experience with SAP general ledger systems; experience with JDE general ledger systems is highly valued.
Strong knowledge of general ledger accounting, month-end close activities, and account reconciliation processes.
Proven experience in cost analysis and variance analysis related to balance sheet and income statement accounts.
Experience reviewing and interpreting contracts or agreements, including the ability to collaborate with legal personnel on disputed clauses.
Demonstrated process improvement experience and a continuous improvement mindset.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to identify issues, analyze complex data, and propose practical solutions.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to convey complex financial information clearly to both internal and external stakeholders.
Strong interpersonal and organizational skills, with the ability to build and maintain positive working relationships.
Ability to take initiative, work with minimal direction, and operate as a self-starter in a remote setting.
Experience in or strong familiarity with the pharmaceutical industry, particularly in relation to collaborations or royalties, strongly preferred.
Educational background meeting one of the following: Doctorate degree or Master's degree with at least 2 years of experience; Bachelor's degree with at least 4 years of experience; Associate degree with at least 10 years of experience; or high school diploma / GED with at least 12 years of experience.
Additional Skills & Qualifications
CPA or MBA (one of these credentials is required).
Degree in Finance or Accounting or a closely related field.
Experience with SAP general ledger systems in a corporate environment.
Experience with JDE general ledger systems is a plus.
Experience in the pharmaceutical industry, especially with profit-sharing, cost-sharing, or royalty agreements, is strongly preferred.
Experience supporting internal and external audits, including preparing detailed audit schedules.
background in process improvement initiatives within finance or accounting functions.
Master's degree, CPA, or other advanced accounting or finance qualifications are considered strong assets.
Work Environment
This role operates in a fully remote work environment aligned to first-shift Eastern Time hours. You will work primarily with modern accounting and ERP systems, including SAP and potentially JDE, as well as standard office productivity tools for communication and documentation. The position involves frequent collaboration via virtual meetings, email, and shared platforms with internal cross-functional teams and external pharmaceutical partners. The remote setup requires a reliable home office environment that supports focused, detail-oriented work and professional virtual communication.
Job Type & Location
This is a Contract position based out of Thousand Oaks, CA.
Pay and Benefits
The pay range for this position is $38.00 - $46.00/hr.
Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following: - Medical, dental & vision - Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital - 401(k) Retirement Plan - Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available - Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents) - Short and long-term disability - Health Spending Account (HSA) - Transportation benefits - Employee Assistance Program - Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)
Workplace Type
This is a fully remote position.
Application Deadline
This position is anticipated to close on May 7, 2026.
About Aston Carter:
Aston Carter provides world-class corporate talent solutions to thousands of clients across the globe. Specialized in accounting, finance, human resources, talent acquisition, procurement, supply chain and select administrative professions, we extend the capabilities of industry-leading companies. We draw on our deep recruiting expertise and expansive network to meet the evolving needs of our clients and talent community with agility and excellence. With offices across the U.S., Canada, Asia Pacific and Europe, Aston Carter serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® double diamond winner for both client and talent service.
The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.
If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email astoncarteraccommodation@astoncarter.com (%20astoncarteraccommodation@astoncarter.com) for other accommodation options.
