Onboarding Administrator

We’re looking for an Onboarding Administrator to own the first chapter of our clients’ journey with Lighthouse Accounting. From the moment a new client signs their Authority to Act, you’re the person making sure everything is set up cleanly so our accounting team can hit the ground running.

About Us

Our purpose at Lighthouse is to secure Kiwis financial future. We’re passionate about empowering everyday Kiwis with the financial literacy they need and providing the knowledge for our clients to succeed.

Far from just a regular Accounting firm, we have a Mortgage and Wealth team so we can offer holistic financial advice and expertise to our clients. We’re the first full-service financial firm of our kind with a mission to become a household name in New Zealand.

We’re a young and ambitious team, based in the heart of Auckland CBD. Our culture is unique, we care about high performance and provide an epic environment to thrive in.

The Role

We’re looking for an Onboarding Administrator to own the first chapter of our clients’ journey with Lighthouse Accounting. From the moment a new client signs their Authority to Act, you’re the person making sure everything is set up cleanly so our accounting team can hit the ground running.

This is a process-driven, client-facing role that sits between our Accounting Sales Manager and the wider Accounting team. You won’t be doing the accounting work itself – you’ll be the one making sure every new client is set up correctly across our systems, that all compliance is in place, and that the handover to their accountant is seamless. It’s a high-volume role with dozens of onboardings active at any time, and it’s critical to the client experience.

• What a typical day could look like:
  Receiving and reviewing Authority to Act forms from new clients and confirming everything is complete and properly signed.
• Sending welcome emails and being the first point of contact during the onboarding period.
• Completing AML verification and filing the supporting documentation.
• Setting up new clients across our systems – Pipedrive, WorkflowMax, Xero and our document folder structure.
• Linking clients to our IRD tax agency and managing the agent transfer.
• Requesting ethical clearance from prior accountants and following through until documents and Xero subscriptions have been transferred across.
• Setting up new entity structures – companies, trusts and LTCs – including Companies Office name checks, director and shareholder consent forms, and registration on CAS.
• Registering clients for GST with the IRD when required.
• Creating the corresponding deals in Pipedrive (Annual Returns, GST, Xero Setup, etc.) and the matching jobs in WorkflowMax.
• Coordinating with the Practice Manager on Xero billing, recurring GST and payroll setup.
• Allocating completed onboardings to the right accountant and making sure nothing falls through the cracks during handover.

Who we’re looking for

You’ll be someone who genuinely enjoys process and detail. You take pride in getting it right the first time, and you’re comfortable juggling a high volume of work without dropping the ball. You’re a clear, friendly written communicator – our clients hear from you a lot in their first month with us, and how that lands sets the tone for the whole relationship.

You’ll be confident moving between multiple systems (Xero, Pipedrive, IRD myIR, Companies Office and WorkflowMax), and quick to pick up new ones. Some prior exposure to a New Zealand accounting practice or familiarity with AML/CFT processes will be a strong advantage, but isn’t essential – we’ll provide full training on our process and systems.

Ideally, you’re studying toward an accounting qualification or have a genuine interest in moving into accounting work over time. This role is designed as a launchpad – once you’ve mastered the onboarding process, there’s a clear path to take on accounting responsibilities and continue developing.

Success in this role looks like

• Welcome emails go out within 24 hours of an ATA being received.
• Onboardings are completed within our agreed turnaround time, with no compliance gaps in AML, IRD linkage or document filing.
• Ethical clearance and Xero handovers from prior accountants are followed up and closed off promptly.
• Every new client is fully set up across Pipedrive, WorkflowMax and Xero before being handed to an accountant
• Clients feel taken care of from day one and have a clear understanding of what happens next.
• The Accounting team always knows what’s coming through the pipeline, with timely updates in Slack and our internal trackers.

Where this role can take you

We see this role as the first step into our Accounting team. Once the onboarding process is consistently being executed to a high standard, we’ll work with you to move into accounting work and continue developing your skills further – with the goal of becoming a fully-fledged Accountant at Lighthouse.