Karlon L. James
Accounting / Education
Edmond,Oklahoma
Summary
- Meticulous accounting and management professional with 31 years of combined experience in the application of accounting practices, leadership principles, and analyzing company fiscal procedures, departmental budgets and company benefits to streamline business procedures and improve efficiencies in business operations.
- Budget development and management, policy and procedure development and implementation through leadership and team building project management, planning, and implementation, directing financial operations, guiding staff in analyzing and reporting accounting data to implement optimal budgets and policies.
- Identifies and remedies areas of concern in accounting practices while managing budgetary planning and administration.
- Proficient in Microsoft Office suite Planning, organizing, and facilitating employee events
- Experienced in PeopleSoft, COGNOS, Banner, and Intuit QuickBooks.
Overview
31
31
years of professional experience
3
3
years of post-secondary education
Work History
Comptroller
Langston University
02.2019 - 08.2022
Fin. Manager II
Oklahoma Healthcare Authority
11.2018 - 01.2019
Contract Accountant
Robert Half
10.2016 - 08.2018
- Prepared working papers, reports and supporting documentation for audit findings.
- Collected and reported monthly expense variances and explanations.
- Collaborated with accounting manager to comply with governing bodies and limit regulatory risks.
Employee Benefits Manager
Oklahoma City Public Schools
12.2015 - 08.2016
Employee Benefits Personnel Analyst
The City of OKC
01.2004 - 11.2015
Total Loss Adjuster
Farmers Insurance
01.2004 - 06.2004
Oil & Gas Industry
05.1991 - 12.2003
Education
Ed. D, Doctoral Candidate - Leadership In Higher Education
05.2021 - Current
Master of Human Relations -
08.2007 - 05.2009
Bachelor of Bus. Admin - Accounting
Skills
Financial analysis and reporting
Process implementation
Human resources knowledge
Strategic and financial planning
Relationship building and management
Staff Management
Budget forecasting
Teambuilding
Critical Thinking
Reporting familiarity
Accomplishments
- Supervision of budget requests, operating budgets, and financial document management within government and higher education sectors
- Planning, organizing, and facilitating employee training and annual events
- Team building exercises to create and maintain team cohesiveness
- Employee benefits administration comprised of health, dental, vision, and flexible spending accounts for over 10,000 plan participants including the transfer of knowledge about plan designs including Medicare and Medicaid plans
- Program design and implementation which included the annual compilation of employee benefits and health and welfare plan designs booklet in addition to organizing and hosting the annual wellness fair for employees and retirees
- Intercompany and Interagency account reconciliations in addition to healthcare vendor account maintenance entailing, plan participant data, expenditures for both the employer and employee premium costs
- Supervision of requests for proposals including review and selection processes
- Planning, organization, and coordination of employee events and professional development training courses
- Facilitation of communication between departments, outside vendors, partner agencies, and personnel
- Design and implementation of program and procedure audits to ensure compliance with agency, state, and federal guidelines
- Periodic policy and procedural operations audits, audit research, and document compilation for annual internal and external audits
- Supervised team of 16 staff members.
- Used Microsoft Excel to develop budget and expenditure tracking spreadsheets.
Additional Information
- Managed fiscal operations for a $38M annual budget which included tracking expenditures and revenues to identify trends allowing leadership to make informed financial decisions and create attainable financial goals and objectives Cleared three years of internal audit findings by updating policies and implementing new budget management procedures
- Restructured the Accounts Payable and Accounting Division to reduce accounts payable backlog and the need for budget transfer journal entries
- Developed and implemented financial reporting procedures by mapping the process to improve timeliness in preparing financial reports, tracking costs, and ensuring the accuracy of data
- Created departmental annual and monthly budget reports to enable department heads and budget managers to make informed decisions about expenditures and revenues within their respective departments using COGNOS and advanced features in excel
- Streamlined and documented the annual budget process and preparation to better maintain the history of financial operations
- Created an in-depth statistical report for awarding over $23M of HEERF funding to students affected by COVID-19
- Developed and updated existing accounting procedures to improve efficiency and transparency of transactions for normal and grant related fiscal operations
- Trained fiscal staff to ensure compliance with state and federal guidelines and technological advancements thereby effectively managing productivity and accuracy of staff work product improvements and continuity of fiscal operations.
- Implemented new and updated the existing standard operating procedures for reconciling interagency transactions, accounts payable and receivable transactions, monthly vendor invoices, and retirement savings contribution reports.
- Improved tracking and reporting efficiencies by creating pivot tables, macros, formulas, source hyperlinks and other advanced features in excel.
Affiliations
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Timeline
Northcentral University - Ed. D, Doctoral Candidate, Leadership In Higher Education
05.2021 - Current
Comptroller - Langston University
02.2019 - 08.2022
Fin. Manager II - Oklahoma Healthcare Authority
11.2018 - 01.2019
Contract Accountant - Robert Half
10.2016 - 08.2018
Employee Benefits Manager - Oklahoma City Public Schools
12.2015 - 08.2016
University of Oklahoma - Master of Human Relations,
08.2007 - 05.2009
Employee Benefits Personnel Analyst - The City of OKC
01.2004 - 11.2015
Total Loss Adjuster - Farmers Insurance
01.2004 - 06.2004
- Oil & Gas Industry
05.1991 - 12.2003
Langston University - Bachelor of Bus. Admin, Accounting