Financial and Payroll Assistant

About us:

The Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering is home to about 70 professors leading research on a very broad range of topics. On the Industrial Engineering side, research areas include Operations Research, Information Engineering, Human Factors, and Applied Machine Learning, all of which seek to improve the systems we as humans rely on to navigate our world. On the Mechanical Engineering side, research areas include Robotics, Mechanics & Design, Materials, and Thermofluids, topics that are applied to applications including manufacturing, energy production, and bioengineering.

We are also home to about 2,000 very talented students: about 1,300 undergraduates are enrolled in the Industrial Engineering and in the Mechanical Engineering BASc programs. We have about 350 Master of Engineering (MEng) students, a professional program for students taking courses with us for a year or two. And we have about 350 MASc and PhD students, who work individually on research projects with a particular professor.

The Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering prides itself on being a good place to work: respectful, accepting of difference and professional.

We value employees who are goal-oriented and self-motivated, and who are constantly looking to improve how we serve our students and faculty. We believe in teamwork, in working together for the greater good, and yet doing so in a way that respects each employee's work-life balance.

Finally, we value each employee as an individual, and look for opportunities to recognize each contribution.

Your opportunity:

Reporting to the Manager of Research and Finance Administration, the Financial and Payroll Assistant will be responsible for supporting the research and financial management at the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (MIE) by working independently and as part of a team. The Financial and Payroll Assistant acts as the first point of contact for general enquiries, and supports the team by reviewing and processing invoices, expense reimbursements and payroll. The incumbent will apply the University Guide to Financial Management and other applicable policies, agency and regulatory requirements to verify the accuracy and completeness of information and reconcile both salary and non-salary expenses.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Preparing and/or processing journal entries.
• Reconciling accounts & purchasing card statements.
• Processing payroll & reconciling payroll distribution.
• Processing invoices & expense reimbursements, and verifying that supporting documentation is attached to financial records before processing in FIS.
• Checking that proper approvals are obtained prior to processing transactions.
• Generating standard financial reports.
• Keeping well-informed on changes to policies, procedures, collective agreements, and applicable legislated requirements.
• Recording detailed transactions for many accounts and maintaining a database.

Essential Qualifications:

• Advanced College Diploma (3 years) with training in accounting and/or business or acceptable combination of equivalent experience.
• Minimum three years of recent and relevant experience in payroll processing, accounting, and finance.
• Experience processing accounts payable (e.g. invoices, expense reimbursements, purchase orders) and accounts receivable (e.g. deposits).
• Experience working with and processing data in the University's Financial Information System (FIS) and Human Resource Information System (HRIS) or equivalent systems.
• Experience checking that proper approvals are obtained prior to processing transactions.
• Ability to accurately interpret and apply guidelines, procedures, and regulations in a variety of situations.
• Ability to work independently, with direction, and as a member of a team.
• Advanced/Intermediate skills with Microsoft Office suites (e.g. Word, Excel, Outlook).
• Strong organizational and time-management skills, with the ability to multi-task and adapt to changing priorities while still meeting deadlines.
• Demonstrated ability to exercise a high level of confidentiality, professionalism, good judgement, initiative, tact and discretion.
• Proven ability to demonstrate excellent interpersonal skills, customer service skills, and attention to detail ensuring accuracy in work.
• Strong oral and written communication skills and the ability to communicate complex financial procedures to a range of audiences with varying levels of financial knowledge.
• Demonstrated commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion and the promotions of a respectful and collegiallearning and working environment.

Assets (Nonessential):

• Knowledge of RIS (system)

To be successful in this role you will be:

• Accountable
• Approachable
• Efficient
• Multi-tasker
• Organized
• Proactive

Closing Date: 04/09/2025, 11:59PM ET
Employee Group: USW
Appointment Type: Budget - Continuing
Schedule: Full-Time
Pay Scale Group & Hiring Zone:
USW Pay Band 09 -- $66,715. with an annual step progression to a maximum of $85,319. Pay scale and job class assignment is subject to determination pursuant to the Job Evaluation/Pay Equity Maintenance Protocol.
Job Category: Finance/Budget/Planning/Audit

Lived Experience Statement
Candidates who are members of Indigenous, Black, racialized and 2SLGBTQ+ communities, persons with disabilities, and other equity deserving groups are encouraged to apply, and their lived experience shall be taken into consideration as applicable to the posted position.