Accounting Manager

Catalyst Brands is a leading U.S.-based retail organization formed in 2025 through the merger of JCPenney and SPARC Group, combining multiple iconic fashion brands under one umbrella. The company manages a diversified portfolio of well-known brands including Aéropostale, Brooks Brothers, Nautica, Lucky Brand, and JCPenney. Headquartered in Plano, Texas, Catalyst Brands focuses on delivering modern retail experiences while leveraging the heritage of established global brands. With a workforce of over tens of thousands and multi-billion-dollar revenue, the organization operates at a large scale across retail, e-commerce, and supply chain domains. The company emphasizes innovation, digital transformation, and customer-centric strategies to enhance brand value and consumer engagement. Catalyst Brands is expanding its global presence, including a growing capability centre in India that supports technology, digital operations, and analytics. It aims to drive operational excellence and business growth by integrating technology, data-driven insights, and efficient retail practices.

Accounting Manager

Purpose / Role Summary:

Lead and scale the Bangalore based Accounts Payable team supporting the US organization. Ensure accurate, timely, and well controlled AP operations (invoice processing, vendor query management, payment runs, and month end AP close), while driving continuous improvement, stakeholder confidence, and measurable service levels. Maintain a strong control posture and deliver a disciplined execution rhythm with SLC/US stakeholders.

Core Responsibilities:

People Leadership & Operations • Lead a team of AP associates; recruit, onboard, coach, and develop talent; drive engagement, performance management, and succession depth. • Act as the single point of contact for US/AP stakeholders (SLC and business partners) on SLAs, cadence, and escalations; run day to day operations with clear SOPs and ownership. • Establish the weekly/monthly governance rhythm (dashboards, KPIs, issue logs) and present progress to leadership with actionable summaries.

AP Process Ownership:

• Oversee end to end AP operations: intake/3 way match, exception handling, vendor master hygiene, payment proposal & run governance, credit/debit memos, and GR/IR review cadence. (Grounded in your Analyst/Sr Specialist scopes around handling vendor inquiries, complex issue resolution, and leading AP tasks/projects.) • Drive root cause analysis and process streamlining to reduce rework and cycle times; translate recurring issues into preventive controls or standard work updates. • Ensure month end AP close activities (sub ledger review, accruals inputs, reconciliations hand off to GL) are timely, accurate, and evidenced for audit. • Govern vendor query management with clear SLAs and communication templates; ensure consistent stakeholder/vendor experience across channels.