Billing Operations Analyst

Description

The Billing Operations Analyst is responsible for managing the end-to-end billing process for advertising and related products. This position serves as a key point of coordination between the sales, fulfillment, and finance teams, ensuring that orders are processed correctly, revenue is validated appropriately, and customer requests are handled promptly and professionally.

The Billing Operations Analyst plays a critical role in maintaining the integrity of the order-to-cash process across Crain's full advertising product suite. This role requires strong attention to detail, sound judgment, and the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines independently.

This is a hybrid position and requires in-office work in downtown Detroit 3-days per week.

Responsibilities

• Review Salesforce opportunities and create contracts/insertion orders for the sales team to send to their clients.
• Review signed contracts/agency IOs, notify sales and fulfillment teams of the sale, and close Salesforce opportunities.
• Process and document all order changes in the billing system and communicate changes.
• Support the sales team by retrieving customer account information, researching discrepancies, and assisting with sales reporting.
• Monitor and manage the team's shared inbox and process internal/external customer requests.
• Perform revenue validation and delivery confirmation for all print, digital, event, and custom programs.
• Prepare customer invoices accurately and on time, ensuring charges align with contract terms, pricing, and billing schedules.
• Maintain all records to support order entry and sales invoices in accordance with company policy.
• Prepare, maintain, and reconcile weekly sales bookings reports.
• Develop and maintain working knowledge of Crain's full advertising product suite.
• Collaborate with team members to manage shared workload and support team coverage, ensuring customer requests are completed accurately and within established service expectations.

Basic Qualifications

• Associate's or Bachelor's degree, or equivalent work experience.
• A collaborative, team-first approach to shared workload and customer service.
• Ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to coordinate across various teams.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver excellent customer service that meets the needs and expectations of both internal and external customers.
• Familiarity with Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Word, PowerPoint) and web-based software.
• Ability to work traditional office hours, with the possibility of alternative work schedules to meet business needs.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or related field.
• 1-3 years of experience in billing, order management, sales operations, or a related administrative/financial role.
• Knowledge of Salesforce, Naviga Ad, or similar tools.
• Experience in the media or advertising industry.

Pay Transparency Disclosure

The estimated salary range for this position is $55,000 to $65,000.

The final salary offering will take into account experience, accomplishments and location. In addition to base salary, Crain offers competitive benefits, including retirement plan savings contributions and bonus opportunities based on individual and company performance.

About Crain Communications:

Crain Communications is a leading business news and information company with a portfolio of 24 media brands that provide indispensable coverage and data for professionals globally and across sectors, including advertising, automotive, energy, finance, healthcare, staffing, and workforce solutions. Many of Crain’s brands are the most influential media properties in the industries and communities they serve, including Ad Age, Automotive News, Pensions & Investments, Modern Healthcare, Staffing Industry Analysts, as well as Crain’s regional business brands. For more than a century, our dedication to deep sector expertise and journalistic integrity has enabled us to provide trusted insights across all our platforms, empowering today’s business leaders to make industry-shaping decisions. To learn more about Crain Communications, visit crain.com.

Environmental Demands

Where you work matters. The job posting will provide specific information on where and when your amazing work would be performed. Employee work location is determined by the needs of the specific team and may include on-site, hybrid or remote. Employee work location is subject to change.

• An “in-office” role would require the employee to come into the office most days with occasional flexibility to work remotely if tasks can be performed elsewhere and if the manager approves.
• A “remote” role would allow an employee to work from a home office that is in one of the states Crain does business in. We can only employ a remote / "work from home" employee if they reside in one of these states: AZ, CA, CO, IL, MD, MA, MI, MN, NV, NY, NC, OH, OR, TN, TX, VA, WA, WI, and Washington, DC.
• A “hybrid” role would be a mix of in-office and remote work. There may be a specified schedule for coming into the office or it could be at the discretion of the employee with the manager’s approval, subject to change.
• Employees who live within a reasonable commute distance from a Crain office are expected to work on-site 3 days per week.

Many positions will also include work done in “the field.” Depending on the role, this may include conducting in-person interviews, attending work-related events, meeting with sources or clients. Specifics will be noted in the job posting but are subject to change as a role evolves. Employees may be exposed to adverse environmental conditions, specifically during field work. Other typical job functions are performed under conditions such as those found in general office work.

Travel to cover news stories/events, meetings with clients, and to our geographically separated offices may be required. It is the nature of many positions to experience non-standard working hours and be on-call when needed for responding to email, meeting with clients, attending work-related events, story development or breaking news. Most employees perform work Monday through Friday, although early-morning, evening or weekend shifts may be required. Work schedule and travel requirements are subject to change as a role and needs evolve over time.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of many Crain jobs and are subject to change.

Physical activities will include frequent in-person or virtual interactions. For most positions, it is essential to be able to remain at a desk/computer workstation for prolonged periods, perform computer-related tasks, and create/maintain documents within filing systems. Must have close visual acuity to perform an activity, such as preparing and analyzing reports and information, transcribing, viewing a computer terminal, or extensive reading. The typical physical requirements are light work-exerting up to 25lbs of force occasionally and/or up to 10lbs of force frequently and may include climbing, pushing, standing, hearing, walking, reaching, grasping, kneeling, stooping, and repetitive motion. Some positions will have additional physical requirements, including exerting up to 50lbs of force to move and/or carry equipment, supplies, files, or other materials as the role requires.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions and meet the environmental and physical demands of the role.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)