Lead Accountant, Royalty & Rights

Responsibilities

• Own Royalty Accounting Framework and Oversight (Excluding Licensee Processing)
• Develop deep subject matter expertise in royalty and rights-related activities, including contractual structures and reporting requirements
• Review and interpret agreements with the relevant stakeholders to ensure accurate application of terms
• Review and validate periodic royalty and participation reports prepared by the team
• Maintain a comprehensive understanding of end-to-end royalty flows, including upstream business activities and licensee processing and reporting
• Partner closely with the team responsible for licensee statements and cash application to ensure alignment and accuracy across processes
• Translate new business arrangements into clear accounting and reporting requirements, and route impacts to the appropriate teams managing licensee transactions
• Establish Processes and Internal Controls
• Design, document, and implement scalable, auditable royalty accounting processes
• Strengthen internal controls to ensure compliance, accuracy, and transparency
• Reduce key-person dependency by creating clear documentation and repeatable workflows
• Support New Business Initiatives
• Partner with business, legal, finance, and systems teams to operationalize new revenue streams
• Ensure royalty implications are identified early and properly integrated into systems and reporting
• Identify gaps and drive solutions to support evolving business models
• Lead Cross-Functional Projects and Issue Resolution
• Project manage ongoing process improvements
• Coordinate with stakeholders to investigate root causes, implement fixes, and prevent recurrence
• Track progress against key milestones and ensure timely delivery of critical initiatives

Requirements

• Accounting & Technical Expertise
• 8+ years of progressive accounting experience, with strong foundation in US GAAP and internal controls
• Demonstrated experience in complex, contract-driven accounting areas (e.g., revenue recognition, royalties, licensing, or similar)
• Proven ability to interpret legal agreements and translate contractual terms into accounting treatment and operational processes
• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or related field (CPA or equivalent certification strongly preferred)
• Process Improvement & Operational Excellence
• Strong background in process improvement, process design, and operational scaling
• Experience with Lean, Six Sigma, or similar methodologies; certification (e.g., Green Belt, Black Belt) preferred
• Track record of designing and implementing standardized, auditable, and scalable processes
• Ability to identify control gaps, inefficiencies, and risks, and implement sustainable solutions
• Royalty & Industry Experience
• Experience in royalty accounting, rights management, or participation reporting strongly preferred
• Background in media, entertainment, gaming, licensing, or similar industries is a plus
• Familiarity with royalty systems, ERP platforms, and reporting tools
• Project & Stakeholder Management
• Excellent project management skills with the ability to drive complex, cross-functional initiatives
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills; ability to influence across Finance, Legal, Business, and Systems teams
• Comfortable operating in ambiguous environments and building structure where it does not exist
• Base Salary Range: For this role, new hires generally start between $1

Additional Information

Get to know The Pokémon Company International The Pokémon Company International manages the Pokémon property outside of Asia and is responsible for brand management, licensing and marketing, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the animated TV series, home entertainment, and the official Pokémon website. Pokémon was launched in Japan in 1996 and today is one of the most popular children's entertainment properties in the world. Learn more online at corporate.pokemon.com and pokemon.com . Get to know the role Job Title: Lead Accountant, Royalty & Rights Job Summary: The role will serve as a key owner of the company's royalty and rights accounting framework, with a strong emphasis on technical accounting rigor and process excellence. This role will focus on the interpretation of contractual arrangements, validation of upstream royalty reporting, and the design of scalable, auditable processes-while partnering closely with teams responsible for licensee statement processing and cash application. While this role does not directly own licensee transaction processing, it requires a comprehensive understanding of end-to-end royalty flows to ensure alignment across teams. The individual will act as a central point of expertise, translating complex business arrangements into clear accounting treatment and ensuring that downstream processes are appropriately structured and executed. FLSA Classification (US Only): Exempt People Manager: No

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