JOB DESCRIPTION:

Specialist, Financial Operations

Job Family: Enterprise

Job Category: Finance Operations

Department: Finance Operations - Global Rights & Royalties (GRR)

Business Division / Function: Corporate Finance

Reports to: Manager

Country: India

Workplace: Hybrid

Work Location: IN-Noida-Berger Tower

Employment Type: Individual Contributor

ABOUT THE ROLE:

The Specialist, Financial Operations is an experienced individual contributor within Pearson's Global Rights & Royalties team in India. The team delivers royalty services to royalty management teams across the US, UK, Canada, India, APAC and DACH regions.

In this role, you will own complex day-to-day royalty operations, including the preparation and review of royalty statements, advances, scheduled and off-cycle payments, manual statements, reconciliations, adjustments and author inquiries. You will work with large and high-value data sets, investigate discrepancies, apply financial and contractual requirements, and help ensure that authors are paid accurately and on time.

You will also turn operational data into clear insights for management and business stakeholders, strengthen controls, support audits and contribute to process improvement, reporting and technology initiatives.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE:

- Royalty statements, advances and payments are accurate, complete and delivered in line with author contracts and agreed timelines.

- High-profile and complex author accounts receive thorough preliminary review, clear documentation and timely resolution of exceptions.

- Author and stakeholder inquiries are handled professionally, with evidence-based responses and a strong customer focus.

- Large data sets are analysed effectively to identify discrepancies, trends, unusual activity and payment risks.

- Work papers, approvals, controls and audit trails are complete, reliable and review-ready.

- Risks and unusual circumstances are escalated early, with clear impact assessment and practical recommendations.

- Operational reporting is accurate and helps management make informed decisions.

- Process, control and system improvements deliver measurable gains in accuracy, efficiency and author experience.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Royalty Statements and Payment Operations:

- Prepare, review and support the timely delivery of royalty statements in accordance with author contracts, business schedules and operating procedures.

- Process and review advance payments, scheduled payment runs, off-cycle payments, manual payments, adjustments and manual statements.

- Maintain accurate workflows, supporting evidence and approval records for royalty statements and payments.

- Apply enhanced review and control procedures to high-profile authors, complex agreements and material-value transactions.

- Coordinate with relevant teams to resolve payment holds, vendor issues, missing information and other operational dependencies.

2. Analysis, Reconciliation and Issue Resolution:

- Analyse large and complex financial and royalty data sets involving substantial values and transaction volumes.

- Perform reconciliations, variance analysis and detailed research to identify calculation, statement, payment, vendor and account-level discrepancies.

- Use experience, judgement, documented procedures and available evidence to determine appropriate operational action within defined authority.

- Document findings clearly and escalate material, unusual or unresolved issues with facts, impact and recommended next steps.

- Identify patterns and root causes in recurring defects and contribute to preventive actions.

3. Author and Stakeholder Support:

- Respond to author, agent and internal stakeholder inquiries with clear, accurate and customer-focused communication.

- Provide financial analysis and reporting to Portfolio, Editorial, Finance and royalty management teams.

- Support vendor record updates and coordinate with accountable teams to ensure payment information is current and complete.

- Respond to operational tax-related inquiries, support the generation of required tax documentation and route specialist tax matters to the appropriate owner.

- Build effective relationships across Royalty Operations, Portfolio, Editorial, Finance, Tax, Accounts Payable, Technology and other partner teams.

4. Controls, Compliance and Audit:

- Follow company policies, standard operating procedures, approval requirements, contractual obligations and applicable regulatory standards.

- Prepare and maintain complete work papers and evidence for internal reviews, external audits and author audits.

- Ensure appropriate approvals are obtained and retained for manual payments, adjustments and exceptions.

- Protect confidential author, contractual and financial information and follow data privacy and retention requirements.

- Support control testing, audit remediation and implementation of stronger preventive and detective controls.

5. Reporting, Projects and Continuous Improvement:

- Prepare accurate operational metrics, exception reporting and management information, highlighting trends, risks and unusual circumstances.

- Collaborate across teams on operational issues, system defects, reporting-tool development and data-quality improvements.

- Present findings and recommendations clearly to relevant stakeholders with minimal supervision.

- Contribute to special projects, system testing, process redesign, automation and standardisation initiatives.

- Use deep operational knowledge to compile data and prepare manual statements where required to meet contractual obligations.

- Share knowledge, provide peer support and help strengthen team capability without formal people-management responsibility.

IC20 ROLE PROFILE:

Expertise:

Applies specialised knowledge of royalty operations, financial controls, royalty calculations, reconciliations and data analysis. Understands how work connects to adjacent teams and author outcomes.

Accountability:

Performs complex or varied work with minimal supervision and takes ownership for accurate, timely and controlled delivery.

Judgement:

Analyses options using experience, formal education, precedent and policy. Escalates matters outside delegated authority.

Leadership:

Provides subject-matter support, quality guidance and knowledge sharing. Influences through expertise rather than formal line management.

Influence:

Communicates moderately complex information to internal and external customers and develops effective relationships across the function.

Adaptability:

Adjusts approach in new or ambiguous situations and proactively obtains the information required to deliver the correct outcome.

WHAT YOU BRING:

Essential Qualifications and Experience:

- Degree from an accredited college or university in Finance, Accounting, Commerce, Business Administration or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant experience.

- Minimum 4 - 5 years of relevant experience in financial operations, royalty operations, publishing, rights administration or a comparable high-volume transaction environment.

- Experience working with financial data, reconciliations, payment processes, operational controls and complex issue resolution.

- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver accurate work to deadlines with limited supervision.

- Strong written and verbal English communication skills and experience working with internal or external customers.

Preferred Experience:

- Experience in publishing, rights or royalties.

- Understanding of accounting principles, financial reporting standards, author agreements or royalty calculations.

- Experience supporting audits, control testing, reporting-tool development, automation or system change.

- Advanced Microsoft Excel capability and familiarity with ERP, royalty, workflow or reporting systems.

CORE CAPABILITIES:

Analytical thinking:

Interprets complex financial data, investigates discrepancies and identifies meaningful trends and risks.

Accuracy and control:

Works with high attention to detail and maintains complete, audit-ready evidence and approvals.

Problem solving:

Combines data, process knowledge and judgement to resolve operational issues and recommend practical action.

Customer focus:

Communicates clearly and professionally, recognising the impact of royalty operations on authors and business stakeholders.

Ownership:

Takes responsibility for outcomes, follows through on actions and escalates risks early.

Collaboration:

Works effectively across teams, geographies and functions to deliver shared outcomes.

Adaptability:

Responds positively to changing priorities, peak cycles and ambiguous situations.

Continuous improvement:

Looks beyond task completion to strengthen process, controls, reporting and efficiency.

WHY THIS ROLE MATTERS:

Accurate royalty operations protect author trust, contractual compliance and Pearson's financial integrity. This role directly influences the quality and timeliness of statements and payments, the strength of operational controls, and the experience of authors and internal stakeholders across global markets.

KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS:

Royalty Management Teams | Portfolio and Editorial | Finance and Controllership | Tax | Accounts Payable | Technology and Transformation | Internal and External Audit | Authors and Agents | Other approved business stakeholders