RAJ SHAH496 Washington Square Wood Dale, IL 60626

630-624-7244 ● raj-shah@att.net ● www.linkedin.com/in/rajnshah

ACCOUNTANT / AUDITOR / FINANCIAL ANALYST

Resourceful professional with wealth of experience in recovery auditing, accounting, and financial analysis operations; track record of achievement in managing key account disbursement and recovery audits as part of leadership team. Highly proficient in general accounting, working with accounts payable/accounts receivable (AP/AR), general ledgers, financial statements, quarterly/year-end reporting, reconciliation, and GAAP. Skilled in handling mergers/acquisition and joint venture accounting and financial issues and in preparing concise, accurate reports for use by managers in decision-making. Talented communicator with proven ability to lead and develop accounting teams, as well as building productive relationships with key stakeholder groups. Strong background in working within corporate and global business environments.

Recovery Auditing Expertise AP/AR Team Leadership/Motivation Financial Analysis General Ledger General/Cost Accounting Regulatory Compliance Financial Statements P&L Internal Controls IPOs Policy Development Quarterly/Year-end Reporting Reconciliation Payroll Administration Strategic Sourcing Corporate Governance Budgeting Consulting Change Management International Business Sarbanes Oxley/GAAP Job Costing Talent Management IFRS Forecasting Cash Management Special Projects Taxation Variance Analysis Balance Sheet Benefits Administration ROE/ROI/ROA

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCEHospira – Lake Forest, IL (Contract job assigned by Lucas Group)-09/2014 to PresentSenior Financial Analyst – Rebate – U.S. Commercial and Wholesalers

Contractor assigned by Lucas GroupProcessing rebate payments for end customers, GPO and Trading Partners (Wholesalers)Analyzing rebate programs and related contracts for Accuracy and completenessResponsible for month close related to rebate accounts to ReconciliationMaintain customer’s relations with customers and GPO including timely communications of rebate sales details reportsProducing supporting documentation, sales details reports, rebate payments trends etc for rebate processingGenerating business reports that monitor rebate threshold earning potential and communicate with sales forceProactive ensuring data integrity in Model N and SAP system regarding rebate programs, accurate rates and sales reporting. Justification of assets and reserve balances. Reviewing contracts for accrual requirements, payments proposals for completeness, accuracy, and contract interpretation and continuously improving the rebate identification and payment process. Planning activities for rebates including financial modeling, forecasting, audit, and reporting and analysis for the rebate P&L, and balance sheet. Monthly and quarterly reconciliation for Accruals accounts.

CONSULTING PRACTICE Wood Dale, IL 6/2014-PresentAccounting, auditing, and financial analysis consulting firm.

Accounting, Auditing, and Financial Analysis LeadershipResearched industry leaders and participated in networking events and industry discussions. Tracked industry trends, such as big brand financial accounting and auditing development.

Achievements: Reduced accounting expenses by 30% for small businesses by volunteering to guide their business

operations; generated reductions in accounting expenses for small businesses by 50% by transitioning accounting systems from manual to computerized.

Utilized analytical skills and accounting knowledge to assist 50 banks and insurance firms by volunteering to create targeted seminar.

PRGX GLOBAL INC. Rolling Meadows, IL 1/1994-5/2014International business analytic and information services company and leading provider of recovery audit services to 75% of top 20 global retailers; operates in 30+ countries with 1.6K employees

Auditor/Financial Analyst/Accountant 4/2004-5/2014Charged with daily disbursement and recovery audits for major retail/distribution clientele, such as Ace Hardware, Osco Drug, Walgreens, Ulta, Office Max, and Supervalu; specialized in retail, pharmaceutical, and grocery audits. Identified areas of lost revenue related to pricing, volume rebate, duplicate payments, freight, and deal pricing and analyzed/assessed clients’ claims processes and business and financial operations using accepted auditing concepts/practices. Updated claims management system and coached audit assistants, along with new senior and staff auditors and offshore audit teams. Facilitated design of project tools and communicated with management, IT staff, and team on new processes. Played important role in AP

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PRGX Global Inc. – Auditor/Financial Analyst/Accountant Continued…

invoice audits related to pricing, volume rebates, duplicate payments, and email-capture auditing. Communicated extensively with vendors and clients regarding recovery and claim concepts. Performed daily claims writing and worked with JDEdware and SAP system to monitor vendors’ activities. Contributed to organization-wide financial, compliance, operational, and strategic risk assessments.

Accomplishments: Optimized company’s auditing efforts by recovering $4M within 6 months, facilitating budget achievement

of 300% for fiscal year 2012; exceeded $12M in personal recoveries through audits of $3.5B+ in annual net purchases each audit year. Produced personal recovery rate of 95% vs. industry average of approximately 50%.

Contributed significantly to creation of margin analysis tool that helped to achieve 62% increase in recoveries of claim type due to ease of review and understanding of merchandisers/suppliers.

Identified miscalculated allowances, advertising errors, duplicate payments, pricing and price protection, volume rebates, freight, and vendor findings through meticulous contract review and evaluation.

Reduced staffing requirements by 50%, while recovering 70% of revenue within 4 months through utilization of Auto Audit. Also reduced vendor correspondence timeframes by 70%.

Introduced targeted IT solutions to generate auditing efficiencies, such as new automated auditing process and development/implementation of new auditing software that successfully streamlined audit process to meet external control process, while reducing auditing time by 70%.

Accountant 6/1997-3/2004Facilitated monthly close of domestic general ledger, including preparation of journal entries, reconciliation of inter-company balances, and investigation of discrepancies or unusual activity. Guided data entry of journal entries and ensured production of all required system-generated reports. Held accountable for financial reporting and month-end reports, as well as rebate calculations and reports. Performed all aspects of AP/AR, including reviewing/processing and payment distribution. Prepared financial schedules for monthly management report and reconciled general ledger accounts, general disbursement cash, rebate, bank accounts, and other variable accounts. Prepared journal entries, post, balance, and cost accounting analyses. Interfaced effectively with co-workers, management, vendors, customers, and clients. Processed all federal and state government quarterly tax filings, performing SOX for assigned areas. Balanced various report

systems daily, such as billing, SAP, and data warehouse. Managed expense accounts and income statements and produced/distributed monthly and ad hoc reports for management. Oversaw payroll accounts.

Accomplishments: Reduced AP staffing by 80% and effectively reconciled three complicated accounts, locating $125M error

within 24 hours, through transfer of manual accounting to electronic system. Also orchestrated transfer of month- and year-end manual processes to electronic system.

Supported Accounting department’s goals by meeting month- and year-end deadlines ahead-of-schedule. Trained and coached underperforming co-worker to exceed work expectations within less than one week.

Audit Assistant/Supervisor 1/1994-5/1997Provided exemplary training to support staff on customized computer software system and general administrative processes, as well as auditing AP invoices for clients and entering data for invoices, previous claims, and agreements into software package. Supervised and trained direct claims assistants and other personnel and supervised work and productivity of 50 data entry staff. Updated daily claim management system.

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PRGX Global Inc. – Audit Assistant/Supervisor Continued…

Accomplishments: Generated 75% cost reduction by completing training of 60+ support staff in less than one week. Reduced data entry costs by 65% and achieved expense reduction of 40% by guiding transfer of manual

accounting to electronic system. Recognized for exemplary performance by receiving promotion to Accountant.

FEDERAL LIFE INSURANCE, RIVERWOODS, IL 1990 - 1993SENIOR ACCOUNTING CLERK

Accomplishments and responsibilities:

Built productive internal and external relationships through attentive and professional collaboration, enthusiastic leadership, and effective communication at all levels of the organization.

Assisted external CPA firm with annual audit and tax returns; served as primary point of contact, compiled and submitted year-end records and reports.

Collaborated with management to provide accurate job costing and cost accounting transactions.

Motivated and inspired team members, promoted inter-department cooperation, and collaborated across the organization to utilize all resources available to improve internal performance and efficiency.

Utilized strong analytical and quantitative skills to assist with review of monthly, quarterly, and year-end general journal entries for A/P and A/R accounts

EDUCATION / CERTIFICATIONMBA/Accounting, Harvard University

Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Auditing, Illinois School of Commerce, Chicago, ILBachelor of Science – Master, University of Gujarat, Gujarat, India

Computerized Accounting (CA) Audit Specialist (Internal and External) Microsoft Excel and Access

COMPUTER SKILLSMicrosoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, and Access) GAAP QuickBooks PeopleSoft

JDEdware SQL EpiCor SAP

PRESENTATIONS1K+ Presentations to High Profile Clientele and Vendors Regarding PRGX Services

LANGUAGESFluent in English, Hindi, and Gujarati