Construction Accountant/Controller

We are seeking an experienced, hands-on Construction Controller / Senior Accountant to manage the day-to-day accounting and financial functions of a growing commercial construction company.

This is not a purely supervisory Controller position. We are looking for someone who is comfortable working directly in QuickBooks, processing and reviewing accounting transactions, managing payroll and billing, preparing WIP schedules, reconciling accounts, and working closely with project managers and company leadership.

The ideal candidate has direct accounting experience with a general contractor, subcontractor, roofing contractor, specialty trade contractor, or similar construction company and understands how construction accounting differs from traditional corporate accounting.

This position will have responsibility for maintaining accurate financial records, strengthening internal controls, improving financial visibility, and supporting the continued growth of the company.

Requirements

Construction Accounting & Job Costing

• Maintain accurate job-cost accounting across active construction projects.
• Review project costs, cost codes, commitments, billings, change orders and financial performance.
• Prepare and maintain monthly WIP schedules.
• Understand and apply percentage-of-completion and appropriate construction revenue-recognition principles.
• Work directly with Project Managers and Operations to reconcile actual project activity with accounting records.
• Identify job-cost discrepancies, margin erosion, over/under-billing and other financial issues early.
• Maintain accurate project-level profitability reporting.

AIA Billing & Accounts Receivable

• Prepare and/or review AIA G702/G703 pay applications and other construction billing.
• Manage progress billing, retain, change-order billing and supporting documentation.
• Ensure pay applications are accurate, complete and submitted according to contractual deadlines.
• Maintain AR aging and actively support collections.
• Track outstanding receivables, retain and payment status by project.
• Coordinate with Project Managers and clients to resolve billing discrepancies.

Accounts Payable & Subcontractor Accounting

• Manage and review vendor and subcontractor invoices.
• Ensure costs are coded to the correct projects and cost codes.
• Maintain subcontractor/vendor documentation, including W-9s, insurance information and other required records.
• Support lien-waiver and subcontractor payment documentation processes.
• Review vendor statements and resolve discrepancies.
• Maintain appropriate controls over vendor creation and vendor banking-information changes.
• Assist with 1099 preparation and year-end vendor reporting.

QuickBooks & Payroll

• Maintain accurate accounting records in QuickBooks Enterprise.
• Process and/or oversee QuickBooks Payroll.
• Maintain payroll records and reconcile payroll-related accounts.
• Reconcile bank accounts and company credit cards.
• Prepare and review journal entries.
• Maintain the general ledger and supporting schedules.
• Ensure transactions are properly classified between project costs, overhead and other accounts.

Financial Reporting & Month-End Close

• Own and execute the monthly financial close.
• Prepare monthly P&L, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow reporting.
• Reconcile balance-sheet accounts and maintain supporting schedules.
• Review project profitability and company financial performance with leadership.
• Maintain accurate WIP and revenue-recognition reporting.
• Assist with annual budgeting, forecasting and financial planning.
• Monitor cash flow and provide short-term cash-flow forecasting.
• Coordinate with outside CPA, tax advisors, banks, insurance providers and other financial partners.

Internal Controls

• Establish and maintain strong accounting and financial controls.
• Maintain appropriate segregation of duties around vendor setup, payment approval, payment processing and bank reconciliation.
• Maintain supporting documentation for financial transactions.
• Monitor company credit-card usage and expense documentation.
• Maintain appropriate accounting-system permissions and audit trails.
• Support financial reviews and audits.
• Identify unusual transactions or accounting discrepancies and escalate them promptly to leadership.

Office & Accounting Administration

• Help maintain an organized and efficient accounting/administrative function.
• Maintain accounting records and documentation.
• Coordinate accounting-related communication with employees, vendors and subcontractors.
• Support payroll, insurance, banking, licensing and other administrative functions as needed.
• Help improve accounting procedures and create scalable processes as the company grows.

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years of accounting/bookkeeping experience, with significant hands-on responsibility.
• Direct construction accounting experience is required.
• Experience working for a general contractor, subcontractor, roofing company, specialty trade contractor or similar construction business strongly preferred.
• Strong working knowledge of QuickBooks, preferably QuickBooks Enterprise.
• Hands-on payroll experience; QuickBooks Payroll experience preferred.
• Strong understanding of construction job costing and WIP.
• Experience with construction progress billing and AIA G702/G703 pay applications.
• Working knowledge of AP, AR, payroll, bank reconciliations, credit-card reconciliations and general ledger accounting.
• Ability to perform and manage month-end close.
• Strong Excel skills.
• Strong attention to detail and organizational ability.
• Ability to work independently while communicating effectively with Project Managers, Operations and executive leadership.

Preferred Qualifications

• Accounting degree or equivalent practical accounting experience.
• Controller, Accounting Manager, Senior Accountant or Full-Charge Bookkeeper experience within construction.
• Experience with commercial general contracting.
• Experience with construction contracts, retain, change orders, lien waivers and subcontractor billing.
• Experience supporting multiple construction projects simultaneously.
• Experience improving accounting procedures and internal controls.

CPA certification is welcome but not required. Direct, hands-on construction accounting experience is more important for this position.