Senior AP Specialist, Vendor Management

The Role

The Senior Accounts Payable Specialist, Vendor Management plays a critical role in governing the integrity and scalability of vendor data across all Fanatics business units. This senior-level individual contributor serves as a subject matter expert in vendor management, driving operational excellence, compliance, and continuous process improvement across the AP function.

The Senior Specialist will provide vendor support in alignment with established policies and procedures, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and efficiency in all activities. This role serves as a trusted cross-functional partner to Finance, Procurement, Accounts Payable as well internal and external stakeholders. The Senior Specialist proactively identifies risk, champions automation while elevating the AP function.

What You'll Do

• Own and govern the full vendor lifecycle across all Fanatics business units, ensuring accuracy, completeness, and compliance with internal controls and company standards
• Subject matter expert for vendor setup, maintenance, and data integrity
• Serve as the primary escalation point for complex vendor inquiries, resolving issues with urgency, professionalism, and minimal disruption to operations
• Act as a strategic liaison between Vendor Maintenance and cross-functional partners including Procurement, Legal, Tax, and Business Units to resolve vendor and payment-related matters
• Collect, review, and update vendor W-9, W-8 and other required documents periodically in accordance with established procedures
• Support 1099 reporting and assist with related projects and year-end activities
• Manage vendor inquiries through the vendor help desk, ensuring questions and concerns are addressed efficiently
• Lead and assist the AP team in obtaining required documentation for internal and external audits.
• Adhere to and promote strong internal controls within vendor management and AP processes.
• Partner with key stakeholders to identify opportunities for process improvement, automation, and increased efficiency
• Perform administrative duties and support special projects as assigned
• Ensure all inquiries from internal business partners and external suppliers are handled accurately and in a timely manner
• Work cross-functionally with internal teams and external vendors to resolve invoice or payment discrepancies
• Support stakeholders with ad hoc analyses, reporting, and data requests
• Collaborate with business units to enhance reporting tools and AP processes
• Generate and deliver AP reports and insights to business partners as requested
  
  

What We're Looking For

• Four-year degree in Accounting or Finance preferred or 5+ years of progressive accounts payable or finance operations experience (with a minimum of 2 years in a vendor management or AP specialist capacity)
• Demonstrated experience owning end-to-end vendor lifecycle processes in a large, complex, or multi-entity organization
• Strong organization and analytical skills required
• Strong working knowledge of accounting practices and principles
• Ability to handle multiple tasks and stringent deadlines within a fast-paced environment is a must
• Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy in a high-volume environment
• Ability to organize and prioritize
• Work independently to resolve issues with little assistance
• Must have excellent communication skills - verbal and written
• Collaborative, team-oriented approach with a track record of cross-functional partnership and informal leadership
• Continuous improvement mindset; experience driving or participating in process automation or digital transformation initiatives
• Oracle Cloud (ERP, EPM) experience a plus
• Candidate must be in-office 4 days per week

Achieving our goals requires strong collaboration and partnership between our teams and our internal stakeholders. To best support this, the person who accepts this role is expected to be on site, in office four days per week. To provide our employees with flexibility, we offer a unique benefit where employees at Fanatics' corporate entity can work remotely for up to four weeks per year, which can be taken in daily or weekly increments.