Controller

Controller

CONTROLLER
MONTGOMERY, AL

Position Summary: The Controller is responsible for the financial management, accounting operations, reporting, and internal controls of the company. This position plays a key role in ensuring accurate job costing, timely financial reporting, effective cash management, and strong financial controls while supporting the President/CEO and operational leadership in making informed business decisions.

Because the company operates in the commercial construction industry, the Controller must understand construction accounting, including work-in-progress (WIP) reporting, percentage-of-completion accounting, job costing, retainage, contract billing, change orders, subcontractor management, and project profitability.

The Controller will oversee the day-to-day accounting function and work closely with project managers, estimators, operations, payroll, and executive leadership.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or related field required.
• Minimum 5-10 years of progressive accounting experience, preferably within construction or specialty contracting.
• Strong knowledge of construction accounting and job costing.
• Experience preparing and managing WIP schedules and percentage-of-completion accounting.
• Strong understanding of GAAP and financial statement preparation.
• Experience managing accounting personnel and financial processes.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to communicate financial information effectively to non-financial managers.
• Advanced Excel skills and strong experience with accounting/ERP systems.
• Experience with Sage 300 Construction and Real Estate (Timberline) is highly desirable.
• Experience with payroll/timekeeping systems such as HH2 is a plus.

Key Responsibilities:

Financial Reporting & Accounting

• Manage all accounting operations, including general ledger, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll accounting, fixed assets, and cash management.
• Prepare accurate monthly, quarterly, and annual financial statements.
• Manage the monthly and year-end closing processes and establish appropriate closing deadlines.
• Maintain the company's chart of accounts and ensure consistent accounting practices across departments and divisions.
• Prepare financial reporting packages for executive leadership.
• Analyze actual financial performance against budget, forecast, and prior-year results.
• Identify significant financial trends, variances, risks, and opportunities and communicate them clearly to management.
• Coordinate annual financial statement reviews, audits, and tax preparation with outside CPA firms.

Construction Accounting & Job Cost

• Maintain accurate job-cost accounting for all active projects.
• Prepare and review monthly WIP schedules.
• Monitor estimated costs to complete, earned revenue, over/under billings, gross profit, and projected final margins.
• Work with project managers to ensure cost projections are updated accurately and consistently.
• Review job profitability and identify projects experiencing margin deterioration.
• Monitor labor, material, subcontractor, equipment, and other project costs.
• Ensure approved change orders are properly reflected in contract values, billing, and job-cost projections.
• Reconcile job-cost reports to the general ledger.
• Monitor retainage receivable and payable.
• Assist management in analyzing completed-job profitability and historical estimating performance.

Billing, Accounts Receivable & Cash Flow

• Oversee contract billing, including progress billings and AIA-style applications for payment.
• Monitor accounts receivable aging and coordinate collection efforts.
• Maintain visibility into expected cash receipts and significant upcoming cash requirements.
• Prepare short-term cash-flow forecasts for executive management.
• Monitor customer payment trends and identify collection risks.
• Ensure lien waivers, releases, and required billing documentation are properly maintained.
• Monitor retainage and ensure timely collection following project completion.

Accounts Payable & Subcontractor Controls

• Oversee accounts payable processes and payment controls.
• Ensure vendor and subcontractor invoices are properly coded and assigned to the correct projects and cost codes.
• Maintain appropriate approval processes for purchases and payments.
• Monitor subcontractor documentation, including W-9s, certificates of insurance, contracts, lien waivers, and other required compliance documentation.
• Coordinate subcontractor payments with project billing and cash-flow requirements.

Payroll & Labor Cost

• Oversee payroll accounting and reconciliation.
• Ensure payroll expenses are accurately allocated to projects, departments, and overhead.
• Monitor labor-cost reporting and provide management with information regarding labor efficiency and overtime.
• Coordinate with payroll and HR personnel regarding payroll taxes, employee deductions, benefits, and reporting requirements.

Budgeting, Forecasting & Management Reporting

• Lead the annual budgeting process.
• Develop rolling forecasts for revenue, gross profit, overhead, operating income, and cash flow.
• Maintain company and divisional financial scorecards.
• Provide management with meaningful KPIs, including:
• Revenue and gross profit
• Gross margin percentage
• Backlog and expected backlog margin
• WIP and over/under billings
• Accounts receivable and DSO
• Cash position and projected cash flow
• Overhead as a percentage of revenue
• Job profitability and margin fade/gain
• Labor and production cost trends
• Assist executive leadership with scenario planning and financial modeling.

Internal Controls & Risk Management

• Develop and maintain effective accounting policies, procedures, and internal controls.
• Maintain appropriate separation of duties and approval authority.
• Protect company assets through strong cash, purchasing, payroll, and payment controls.
• Monitor compliance with contractual, financial, tax, licensing, and reporting requirements.
• Assist with bonding-company financial reporting and information requests.
• Coordinate financial information required by banks, sureties, insurance providers, and other external partners.
• Maintain appropriate financial records and documentation.

Systems & Process Improvement

• Maintain the integrity of the company's accounting and construction-management systems.
• Improve accounting workflows and reduce unnecessary manual processes.
• Establish consistent procedures for job setup, cost coding, purchasing, billing, change orders, and job closeout.
• Work with operations and project management to improve the accuracy and timeliness of project financial information.
• Develop dashboards and reporting tools that provide management with actionable financial information.

Leadership Responsibilities

• Manage and develop accounting department personnel.
• Establish clear responsibilities, deadlines, and performance expectations for the accounting team.
• Promote accuracy, accountability, confidentiality, and continuous improvement.
• Build strong working relationships with project managers, estimators, operations personnel, and executive leadership.
• Serve as a financial resource to managers while maintaining appropriate financial controls.