Financial Applications Engineer

Mayer Brown is an international law firm positioned to represent the world’s major corporations, funds, and financial institutions in their most important and complex transactions and disputes. We are recognized by our clients as strategic partners with deep commercial instincts and a commitment to creatively anticipating their needs and delivering excellence in everything we do.

We are a collegial, collaborative, and diverse firm where highly motivated individuals with an unwavering commitment to excellence receive the opportunity, support, and development they need to grow, thrive, and realize their greatest potential all while supporting the Firm’s client service principles of excellence, strategic partnership, commercial instinct, integrated strengths, innovation, and collaboration across our international firm.

If you enjoy working with team members whose defining characteristics are exceptional client service, initiative, professionalism, responsiveness, and adaptability, you may be the person we are seeking to join our Information Technology department in our Chicago office as a Financial Applications Engineer.

The Financial Applications Engineer supports the Global Financial Applications Manager and is responsible and accountable for Financial and Accounting Applications maintenance and support activities, enhancements to existing functionality and development and/or implementation of new modules or packages. This position is accountable for developing and managing a global portfolio of applications and works closely with various IT and Accounting/Finance areas to ensure alignment with firm and client business requirements.

Essential Functions: 

• Ensures financial applications meet the needs of the business
• Ensures the evolution of financial applications and needs of the business continue to be met in the future
• Prioritizes and successfully delivers assigned projects working with the Global Financial Applications Manager
• Supports software related to department’s customized or packaged financial applications
• Performs relevant telephone and desk side support to all staff on all financial applications supported by the Firm
• Responsible for multiple concurrent large and complex projects
• Maintains a high level of responsiveness to customer calls and inquiries
• As required, liaise between Firm management, sponsors, users and other IT personnel to communicate issues regarding overall operations status, operations strategy and plans
• Where appropriate, attends user groups independently or with senior managers
• Develops written and oral communications that clearly explain technical concepts using non-technical language; effectively communicate to management and users technology and process pros/cons, IT strategies and trade-offs
• Evaluates new financial products/applications deemed to be appropriate for the Firm’s business
• Recommends improvement on the use of all Firm financial applications
• Complies with the IT Department’s change request system
• Ensures preventative maintenance in your field of expertise is regularly planned and implemented
• Contributes to financial applications user and systems needs analysis and requirements definition projects
• Engages appropriate constituencies for input into initiatives with wide-ranging impact
• Develops and reviews data design, interface, user, functional and technical design documentation
• Devises or modifies procedures to solve complex problems considering computer equipment capacity and limitations, operating time and form of desired results
• Designs, codes, tests and debug programs
• Ensures that the software development goals support the organizational and business goals
• Participates in the development, analysis and recommendation of vendors based on prioritized evaluation criteria
• Works with the IT management and staff to integrate and continually evolve operations program/project management methods and practices
• Ensures a good proactive working relationship is maintained with others within the IT Department as well as with the users
• Ensures all downtime, regular preventative maintenance, security patch updates and software upgrades are communicated to all teams
• Effectively communicates information to next supervisory level through appropriate reporting mechanisms
• Contributes to financial applications user and systems needs analysis and requirements definition projects
• Documents and distributes input back to user constituencies for quality-assurance and content
• Performs other duties as assigned or required to meet Firm goals and objectives

Education/Training/Certifications: 

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field.  An equivalent combination of education and/or experience may be considered in lieu of the degree when the experience has been directly related to the functions of the job

Professional Experience:

• Minimum 6 years’ experience working in a IT systems applications environment required
• Five+ years managing high-performance back-office and administrative support systems, including Aderant Expert, and other Finance & Accounting custom and packaged applications
• 6 years of IT industry experience, preferably in a professional partnership (e.g. law firm) environment

Technical Skills: 

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office products including Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Visio required
• In-depth knowledge of enterprise level Aderant Expert technology (front and back end) in order to understand and validate requests coming from both the Business and Technical staff
• 6+ years working with relevant client-server and web-compliant development tools and products
• Strong working knowledge of relational databases
• Ability to conduct and direct research into IT issues and products as required.
• Ability to perform general mathematical calculations for the purpose of creating business cases, budgets, etc.
• Strong understanding of technology, architecture, deployment, and quality assurance practices

Performance Traits: 

• Strong written and verbal communication skills, able to communicate effectively and in a professional manner with all levels of the Firm and outside vendors
• Ability to work in a diverse team environment and effectively support the demanding needs of the Firm
• Ability to work under pressure, meet deadlines with shifting priorities
• Must be a self-starter with a high level of initiative and a keen level of attention to detail
• Strong customer service skills, able to anticipate needs and exercise independent judgment
• Strong attention to detail, organizational skills and the ability to handle multiple projects
• Exercises solid strategic thinking and problem-solving skills
• Strong planning, priority setting, and problem solving, especially when responding to unanticipated business requirements
• Resilient and able to handle setbacks
• Willingness to challenge the status quo

The above is a general description of the essential duties associated with this position and does not represent an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all duties.

The Firm may modify and amend this job description at any time at its sole discretion. Nothing herein creates a contract of employment or otherwise modifies the at-will nature of employment.

We offer competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits, including medical/dental/vision/life/and AD&D insurance, 401 (k) savings plan, back-up childcare and eldercare, generous paid time off (PTO), as well as opportunities for professional development and growth.

Thank you for your interest in Mayer Brown. We are committed to providing equal opportunity and reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities and disabled veterans. To request a reasonable accommodation related to the application process and/or job interview, please email uslateralrecruiting@mayerbrown.com. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

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