Tax Technology Senior Associate

Location: Houston, TX (Hybrid)
Job Title: Senior Associate
Reports To: Senior Manager
Status: Part-Time or Full-Time
CE Requirement: 40 hours of continuing education per year
Travel: 0-15%
Assignment: Member of Staff Pool (1-2 clients and/or tasks); acts as Scheduling Partner

Company Profile

KSM specializes in motor fuels tax issues and questions. KSM has experience in motor fuels tax return preparation across all 50 states and at the federal level, including ExSTARS reporting. KSM has addressed a variety of motor fuels tax issues for Clients including motor fuels tax licensing, tax determination, and audit support. Our focus and commitment to this specialty area provides a depth of knowledge in the motor fuels tax area not typically found in other accounting, law, or consulting firms. KSM also provides sales and use tax compliance and consulting services related to fuel activities for oil and gas clients.

Tax Technology Team

KSM’s Tax Technology Team provides services to both external and internal clients. We assist clients with the implementation and maintenance of various software applications that support tax compliance, determination, and automation activities. These activities include data preparation, electronic reporting, and verification/reconciliation tasks.

We provide clients with the following types of assistance across a variety of Federal, state, and local taxing jurisdictions and their corresponding motor fuels tax return filings depending on the client’s operational footprint:

• Implementation and maintenance of client-selected tax determination or reporting software such as Avalara Returns Excise (“ARE”), AvaTax, AvaTax Excise, IGEN, AKORE FTPlus, and others

• Implementation and maintenance of Alteryx and other data analytics and business intelligence technologies

• Internal technical support and training for KSM users of client-licensed software applications

• Full range of information technology consulting services, including requirements gathering, solution design, software configuration, system testing/troubleshooting, and project documentation

• Support of electronic filing activities, including registration, testing, and error handling

Various special projects requiring advanced technical expertise in the areas of data processing/analysis

Position Summary

Members of the Tax Technology Team will perform the following functions to address the types of issues listed above under Team Profile and other issues that may arise depending on our clients’ needs:

• Complete a Compliance Team rotation involving return preparation and/or review in order to “step into the shoes” of the client and understand how data is gathered and analyzed and ultimately filed with the taxing jurisdiction

• Configure and test various elements of the ARE application, including

  • Schedule Scenarios and Profiles

  • Custom Master Data, including schedule codes, products, transportation modes, etc.

  • Locations and Business Entities/Accounts

  • Data processing, including file preparation, transaction import, validation, form generation, e-filing, and query

• Configure and test various elements of the IGEN application, including

  • Schedule Assignment Widgets (ASW), Cleanse/Harmonize/Validate, and other data processing tools

  • Custom Master Data, including schedule codes, products, transportation modes, et

  • Locations and Companies

  • Data processing, including validation, form generation, e-filing, and query

  • Configure IGEN workflows to manage end-to-end data processing

• Define, design, develop, debug, and deploy Alteryx workflows that perform a variety of data processing and data analytics tasks:

  • Data Preparation and Cleansing

  • Schedule Assignment

  • Gallon Reconciliation and G/L Reconciliation

  • Data Validation

  • Data Export to Excel for analysis/reporting

  • Other Data Analysis/Reconciliation Projects

• Document configuration details, test results, and solution designs; prepare training materials as needed

• Communicate with clients as needed to gather requirements, resolve issues, and provide status

• Develop and improve best practices for the various technologies supported

• Develop/maintain firm reference tools and internal process documentation

• Develop external/internal training presentations with guidance

• Participate in external/internal training opportunities with guidance

Experience and Technical Skills

• Excellent problem-solving skills and ability to innovate (“outside the box” thinking)

• Curiosity in learning and adapting to new software and technologies

• Strong ability to understand “the big picture”

• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel

• Strong knowledge of relational database principles

• Strong documentation skills

• Strong verbal communication skills for teaming efforts and client interaction when needed

• Aptitude to quickly learn and understand new software applications

• Ability to develop and apply best practices

• Ability to manage shifting priorities across multiple clients and projects

• Preferred: Exposure to Microsoft Access and/or SQL Server

• Preferred: Advanced knowledge of the ARE platform

• Preferred: Advanced knowledge of the IGEN tax reporting application

• Preferred: Advanced knowledge of tax return processing, including data analysis and reconciliation

Education Required

• Minimum: Bachelor’s degree in accounting, information technology (IT) or management information systems (MIS) or a Master’s degree in accounting

• Preferred: Bachelor’s degree in accounting with qualifications to pass the CPA exam or a Master's degree in accounting