The posting
We’re People People. Are you?
We’re Sonesta International Hotels—the 8th largest hotel company in the U.S. (and growing fast 🚀).
With a dynamic mix of full-service and focused hotels across major cities, our diverse portfolio of owned, managed, and franchised properties means we’re everywhere our guests need us to be.
But here’s the thing—we’re not just in the business of hotels, we’re in the business of people. We bring service with passion, loyalty with purpose, and create experiences that genuinely connect—delivering quality, value, and memorable stays across 1,000+ properties in eight countries (and counting).
What this role is all about
The Manager, Portfolio Accounting & Transitions is responsible for the general accounting activities that sit above the individual property and for the transaction accounting associated with hotel acquisitions and dispositions, including proration schedules, closing and settlement entries, and buyer and seller coordination through closing. The position additionally provides portfolio-level governance over receivables results, including credit policy administration, aged balance and bad debt risk analysis, and resolution of escalated matters.
* 3 days in office Tues/Wed/Thurs and 2 days remote Mon/Fri
What you’ll be doing
Primary Responsibilities:
The responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
Transition Accounting: Dispositions and Acquisitions
- Own proration accounting for hotel dispositions and acquisitions, including preparation and review of schedules for real estate taxes, utilities, advance deposits, accrued payroll, inventory, and other closing-date items.
- Reconcile pre-closing and post-closing balance sheet activity, ensuring accurate cutoff between seller and buyer periods, and post related closing, true-up, and settlement entries.
- Serve as the finance point of contact for buyer, seller, and transition counterparties, assisting with proration disputes and settlement inquiries with supporting documentation.
- Coordinate with Legal, Asset Management, Treasury, and corporate accounting through closing to ensure financial terms are accurately reflected and timing requirements are met.
- Track open post-closing items to resolution, including holdbacks, escrows, and final settlement true-ups.
General Accounting, Close and Controls
- Own portfolio-level and corporate-level journal entries above the individual hotel, including accruals, adjustments, intercompany, and recurring monthly entries.
- Own the accounting for management and incentive fees, intercompany activity, and other portfolio-level transactions that are not recorded at the hotel level.
- Prepare and review balance sheet reconciliations for assigned accounts, reviewing aged items and ensuring proper research and clearing procedures.
- Review and approve financial transactions for accuracy and compliance with GAAP and USALI standards, and ensure assigned deliverables meet corporate close deadlines.
- Maintain strong internal controls, documentation standards, and audit trails; identify and remediate process or control gaps.
- Serve as the finance owner for internal and external audit requests related to portfolio-level accounting and hotel transaction activity, including preparation and review of supporting schedules.
- Research and document technical accounting conclusions for non-routine transactions, including purchase accounting, asset disposition treatment, and held-for-sale classification, in accordance with GAAP.
Portfolio Receivables Governance and Risk
- Own portfolio-level receivables performance analysis, including aged balance review, trend and outlier identification, KPI reporting, and escalation to Area Directors of Finance and General Managers.
- Own portfolio credit policy and direct bill program standards, including credit limit frameworks, approval thresholds, and periodic review of portfolio credit exposure. Application intake and routine credit checks are executed by property and centralized teams.
- Own bad debt reserve analysis and portfolio credit risk assessment, approving or recommending write-offs within delegated authority and documenting the basis for each conclusion.
- Act as escalation point for complex, aged, or high-impact AR matters requiring cross-functional coordination across property teams, Hotel Support, Sales, and Operations.
- Monitor third party commission reconciliation outcomes across the portfolio and resolve systemic or recurring payment issues. Routine reconciliation and submission is performed by property and centralized teams.
- Establish and maintain receivables policy, procedure documentation, and control standards for the portfolio.
Leadership and Continuous Improvement
- Lead, develop, and mentor assigned general accounting staff as the team grows, including goal setting, performance management, and technical and professional skill development.
- Set priorities and ensure team alignment with departmental goals and close timelines, reviewing and approving work prepared by junior resources.
- Influence outcomes and drive accountability across property and centralized teams that do not report directly to this position.
- Drive process improvement, automation, and efficiency initiatives, including the adoption of future focused technology and tools.
- Partner with corporate accounting, property teams, and external stakeholders to enhance service delivery and scalability, and support special projects as assigned.
Additional Responsibilities:
- Performs special projects as needed
Travel:
- Less than 25%
Key Competencies Required
- Experience considered in the following areas:
- 5+ years of directly related accounting or finance experience, preferably working for hotels in a similar capacity; 4+ years if in a shared service setting supporting 7+ properties/entities
- 3+ years of experience in credit management, collections oversight, or receivables risk analysis at a portfolio or multi-entity level
- Full cycle accounting and balance sheet reconciliation experience required
- Oversite of junior resources required; direct people management experience preferred
- Hotel or real estate acquisition, disposition, or transaction settlement accounting experience, including proration and closing schedules, required
- Experience with accounting systems such as Sage, M3, MS Dynamics, Oracle, Workday or relevant system required; OneStream or similar consolidation platform preferred
- Knowledge of Opera PMS or a similar platform, the D&B portal, and the TACS portal preferred
- Ability to manage performance within a team positively and influence outcomes outside the direct reporting line
- Proven ability to work with complex Excel spreadsheets and reconcile data across multiple systems with high accuracy
- Self-directed and well-organized, with strong follow-up on a high volume of open items
- Strict adherence to confidentiality requirements, including sensitive transaction and personnel information
- Strong organizational, interpersonal, problem solving and planning skills; adaptable to an environment of constant change and able to meet recurring deadlines
- Must be able to effectively communicate both verbally and written, with all levels of employees in an attentive, friendly, courteous and service oriented manner
- Strong understanding of general ledger accounting with demonstrated knowledge of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry (USALI) standards required, including the ability to research and recommend actions on complex scenarios
Anticipated Pay Range & Additional Job Information
Pay Range: $100k to $125k. Base pay offered may vary depending on various factors including but not limited to job related knowledge, skills, and job specific/overall experience.
How we reward you
At Sonesta, we know showing up for our guests starts with showing up for our people. That means supporting your health, your financial future, and everything in between.
Here’s a snapshot of what we offer:
- Medical, Dental & Vision Insurance
- Health Savings Account (HSA) with Company Match
- 401(k) Retirement Plan with Company Match
- Paid Vacation & Sick Time
- Paid Parental Leave
- Company-Paid Life Insurance
- Company-Paid Short-Term & Long-Term Disability
- Hospital Indemnity, Critical Illness & Accident Insurance
- Educational Assistance
- Sonesta Hotel Discounts (yes, you’ll want to use these ✈️)
- Additional Perks & Employee Discounts
Our Commitment to You
Sonesta is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Before You Apply
To be considered, please complete the full application in addition to submitting your resume. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.
