A growing project-based contractor serving the South Bay and Central Coast is seeking an experienced Controller to lead its accounting and financial operations. This role calls for a strong construction accounting background, hands-on union and prevailing-wage payroll compliance experience, and a proven track record leading ERP implementations and building scalable financial processes.
The ideal candidate is comfortable owning a broad range of accounting functions, strengthening financial controls, and partnering with project managers and executive leadership to drive profitability and growth. Clean energy or renewable energy experience is a plus but not required.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead core accounting operations, including general ledger, AP/AR, project billing, reconciliations, month-end close, and financial reporting.
- Oversee construction accounting, including job costing, WIP schedules, percentage-of-completion accounting, cost-to-complete analysis, and margin tracking.
- Manage union and prevailing-wage payroll compliance, including certified payroll, fringe benefit reporting, and multi-union wage requirements.
- Analyze financial statements, investigate variances, identify financial risks, and communicate findings to leadership.
- Manage intercompany accounting across affiliated entities, including transaction tracking, reconciliations, and eliminations.
- Lead ERP implementations and system transitions, including migration planning, data conversion, testing, integration, and post-launch improvements.
- Establish accounting policies, internal controls, reporting standards, and efficient workflows.
- Prepare budgets, forecasts, cash-flow projections, and financial models to support planning and decision-making.
- Partner with project managers and operations leaders to monitor project costs, billing, cash flow, margins, and profitability.
- Deliver financial analysis and recommendations that inform operational and strategic decisions.
- Identify opportunities to improve reporting accuracy, internal controls, and accounting efficiency.
- Build scalable accounting systems and processes to support continued growth while owning core financial functions.
Requirements
- 5+ years of progressive accounting or finance experience as a Controller, Assistant Controller, or in a comparable senior accounting role.
- Required: direct accounting experience with a construction company or contractor.
- Strong knowledge of construction job costing, WIP reporting, and percentage-of-completion accounting.
- Hands-on experience with union and prevailing-wage payroll compliance, including certified payroll, fringe benefit reporting, and multi-local wage requirements.
- Proven experience leading an ERP implementation, accounting system migration, conversion, or consolidation.
- Experience developing or improving accounting processes, financial controls, and reporting systems.
- Demonstrated ability to manage intercompany transactions, reconciliations, and eliminations.
- Strong financial statement analysis skills, including identifying discrepancies, investigating variances, and explaining performance.
- Experience in a small-to-midsized business and the ability to work independently across a broad range of finance responsibilities.
- Excellent analytical, organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills.
- Ability to collaborate effectively with project managers, operations teams, and executive leadership.
Preferred Experience
- Clean energy or related infrastructure experience (beneficial but not required).
Benefits
- Competitive base salary commensurate with experience.
- Health insurance and retirement plan options.
- Paid time off and company-sponsored benefits.
- The opportunity to build, improve, and lead a growing finance function.
- Direct involvement in strategic financial planning and operational decisions.
- Exposure to complex construction, infrastructure, and clean-energy projects.
- Professional development and long-term career advancement.
- A collaborative environment within a growing clean-energy and infrastructure business.