Sr. Project Manager, Royalty & Participation Audit

Get to know the role

• Job Title: Sr. Project Manager, Royalty & Participation Audit

• Job Summary: The Sr. Project Manager, Royalty & Participation Audit will work with process owners to document, assess, and test licensing internal controls and business processes. The position will focus on the end-to-end licensing process, from licensee contract compliance to final royalty reporting to IP rightsholders.

• FLSA Classification (US Only): Exempt

• People Manager: No

What you’ll do

• General

  • Consistently deliver quality project management by monitoring progress, following up on outstanding tasks, and providing status updates to senior management.

  • Demonstrate in-depth technical capabilities and professional knowledge.

• Licensing Internal Audits

  • Design and develop licensing internal audit framework grounded in risk management and business strategies.

  • Perform internal audits over the end-to-end licensing process, such as:

    • Licensee contract compliance

    • Data accuracy within royalty system, ERP, business intelligence software

    • Integrated data

    • Licensee royalty statements

    • Royalty revenue

    • Cash reconciliations

    • Rightsholder royalty reporting, etc.

  • Facilitate SKU IP accuracy reviews with Licensing, Publishing, Media, and Brand Services teams.

  • Support process owners with inventory of rightsholder contracts.

  • Analyze data and collaborate with Data & Analytics to build licensee compliance dashboards to proactively identify issues and help prioritize areas of improvement through trends.

  • Prepare formal written reports, backed by adequate evidence, to support licensing audit conclusions on the adequacy and effectiveness of internal control systems.

  • Report licensing audit findings and recommendations to management.

  • Monitor licensing audit finding remediation status and hold assigned staff accountable to ensure timely validation.

  • Evaluate the corrective actions taken by management to ensure licensing audit findings are effectively addressed and resolved.        

• Risk Advisory

  • Effectively partner with cross-functional teams to facilitate risk assessments by identifying, measuring, and analyzing risks.

  • Advise process owners to understand and manage their business risks, particularly with new licensing processes and royalty systems.

  • Partner with management to develop risk-based tools and techniques to strengthen operational programs, processes, and controls.

• Information Technology

  • Advise senior management on risks associated with logical access, significant configuration changes, and approval workflow changes within royalty system and ERP integrations.

  • Collaborate with IT department to design and implement IT general controls related to royalty system and ERP integrations.

• Policies & Procedures

  • Collaborate with process owners to document and refine royalty policies, procedures, and internal controls.

• Controls & Compliance Framework

  • Develop assurance framework with Financial Controls & Compliance Manager.

  • Implement risk management/internal audit system(s).

What you’ll bring

• Eight (8) to eleven (11) years of relevant professional experience or a demonstrated equivalent level of expertise.

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or related discipline required.

• Knowledge of general financial accounting and control environments.

• Experience auditing royalty/licensing processes, particularly in the entertainment or merchandising industry.

• Understanding of and ability to adhere to generally accepted accounting principles.

• Proficient with accounting and royalty software.

• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills enabling effective communication with all levels of the organization, particularly senior leadership.

• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite or similar software.

• Ability to travel up to 4 times per year domestically and internationally.

Base Salary Range: For this role, new hires generally start between $104,000.00 - $139,000.00 per year. The full range is $104,000.00 - $188,000.00 per year. This range is applicable for the labor market where the role is intended to be hired. The final base salary is directly related to the candidate’s qualifications and professional experience uniquely.

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