Controller

Job Description

Job Description

Controller

Finance and Administration - Westminster, Maryland (on-site)

About the Role

Ridge Equipment is a wireless infrastructure contractor. Since 1995 we have built DAS, small cell, and in-building wireless systems for Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Extreme Networks across the Mid-Atlantic. We are about 35 people, privately held, debt-free, and entirely self-funded.

Ridge has grown well past the finance operation supporting it. The processes in place today were built for a smaller company and have never been redesigned. Your mandate is to take the whole thing apart and put it back together: how we bill, how we collect, how we pay, how we close, how we track subcontractor compliance, and how the numbers reach the people who run the work. Nothing is sacred and nothing is off the table.

This is a hands-on seat, not an oversight seat. You will own the general ledger, the monthly close, cash and working capital, and the insurance and risk program that keeps us qualified to work for the carriers. You will inherit a two-person finance team and the authority to restructure how that team works.

This role reports to an owner-principal and works directly with the CEO.

Key Responsibilities

Redesign the finance operation. Assess every existing workflow, decide what stays and what gets rebuilt, and implement the changes. We expect a documented plan in your first 90 days and visible change by month six.

• Own the monthly close and produce accurate, timely financial statements on a published schedule.
• Own the general ledger, chart of accounts, reconciliations, and the accounting policies behind them.
• Manage cash and working capital. Because our top-line pricing is set by carrier agreements, cash velocity is the highest-value lever in the business. You will own DSO on carrier receivables, invoice accuracy so billings do not bounce, retainage release, and the timing of subcontractor and vendor payments against carrier receipts.
• Lead and develop the AP and AR team, and rebuild those workflows on our existing platforms rather than adding new ones.
• Deliver job-level cost visibility that operations leaders actually use to run work, in partnership with our internal operations platform.
• Own the risk and insurance program: general liability, commercial auto, workers' compensation, umbrella, and the annual premium audits. Manage the broker relationship and renewal process.
• Own subcontractor compliance: qualification, master agreements, certificates of insurance and additional-insured mechanics, W-9 and 1099 administration, and lien waivers.
• Manage multi-state registration, tax nexus, sales and use tax, and state payroll tax accounts across our project footprint.
• Oversee payroll processing and the accuracy of deductions, benefits, and multi-state withholding.
• Serve as the primary contact for our outside CPA at year-end and for banking and insurance partners throughout the year.
• Build the internal controls appropriate for a company our size, including workable segregation of duties across a small team.

Requirements

Experience: 5+ years of progressive accounting experience, including at least 2 years owning a monthly close independently. We will consider a strong Assistant Controller, Accounting Manager, or Senior Accountant ready to step into a first Controller seat. Demonstrated progression matters more to us than years served.

Core skills:

• Full-cycle general ledger and month-end close ownership. This is the one thing we cannot teach you here.
• A track record of changing a process, not just running one. Be prepared to walk us through a workflow you rebuilt, why you rebuilt it, how you brought people along, and what it produced.
• Working knowledge of contractor accounting concepts: progress billing, retainage, change orders, subcontractor compliance, and cost by job.
• Strong Excel. You should be comfortable building a model or reconciliation from raw data without waiting on anyone.
• Genuine fluency with modern cloud systems. We run QuickBooks Online, Ramp, QuickBooks Time, BambooHR, Samsara, and Notion, plus an internal operations platform our team builds in-house. Experience with these specific tools matters far less than curiosity and a willingness to work in software that is not a traditional accounting package.
• Exposure to multi-state payroll, registration, and tax compliance.
• Comfort operating in a small company where you are both the person setting the strategy and the person doing the entry.

Strongly preferred:

• Experience in construction, specialty trade contracting, telecommunications, or field services.
• Prior ownership of workers' compensation or commercial auto premium audits.
• Experience supervising or developing a small accounting team.

Certifications: CPA or CMA is a plus but is not required and is not weighted heavily for this role.

Education: Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field preferred. Equivalent experience will be considered.

Other: Must pass a background check. This is an on-site role in Westminster, MD.

Travel: Minimal. Occasional local travel for banking, insurance, or professional obligations.

Compensation

$105,000 to $120,000 annually, depending on experience, plus a discretionary annual bonus based on company performance.

Why Join Us?

• You are not inheriting someone else's system. You are designing the one Ridge runs on for the next decade, with the authority to actually do it.
• Direct access to ownership. No layers, no committees, no waiting a quarter for a decision.
• A financially sound company. Debt-free with no revolving credit line and entirely self-funded working capital. No covenant reporting, no lender pressure, no cash-flow firefighting caused by leverage.
• Real scope for a company our size. Accounting, risk, insurance, and compliance all in one seat.
• A modern technology stack and a leadership team that builds tools rather than adding headcount.
• 30 years of operating history and blue-chip carrier customers.

Benefits

• 401(k) with company matching
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• Health savings account (HSA)
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Paid training and professional development assistance
• Referral program

Schedule

Monday to Friday

Work Setting: In-person, Westminster, MD office

Work Location: In person