The Business Analyst will be responsible for assisting the VP of Finance in the company’s annual budgeting, forecasting and variance reporting process. Additionally, this role will be responsible for gathering, compiling and reporting on key performance indicators (KPIs) for the company to ensure that the management team has relevant and timely metrics to properly analyze their respective areas of responsibility.  Accordingly, this position will be required to work closely with the entire management team and others within the organization to ensure they have a proper understanding of the business and what KPIs are required to effectively manage the business.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Responsible for the company’s annual budgeting, forecasting and variance reporting processes.
• Responsible for developing and maintaining long-range financial projections models.
• Oversee the coordination and consolidation of all department and division budgets and forecasts.
• Prepare integrated financial statement projections and related support schedule.
• Responsible for establishing excellent working relationships with all management team members and their teams, including Sales, Operations, Customer Support, etc. in order to identify KPIs that need to be tracked and reported on a regular basis.
• Responsible for preparing forecast and proforma on company’s acquisitions and targets

COMMUNICATION SKILLS:

The candidate will need to demonstrate excellent verbal and written communication skills.  This position will also require the development of strong working relationships with management team members and others within the company.

COMPUTER SKILLS REQUIRED:

The candidate will need to be adept in the use of all Microsoft Office applications, including Excel, Word and PowerPoint.  Microsoft Access and NetSuite experience will also be considered a plus.

Minimum Requirements and Qualifications: 

• BS/BBA in Accounting or Finance. MBA optional.
• 4+ years of financial accounting/reporting experience
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with non-financial departments and personal.
• Outstanding interpersonal skills.

DESIRED SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS:

• Strong written and verbal communication skills with non-financial departments and personnel.
• Outstanding interpersonal skills.
• Strong analytical skills.
• Strong understanding of GAAP.
• Self-starter.
• Microsoft Excel power user.

Responsibilities: 

• Responsible for the Division’s accounting and financial control functions. Supervises the accounting department, coordinates budgeting and planning; develops, implements and maintains appropriate financial and administrative systems and processes throughout the division. Completes timely financial reporting to the corporate office.

• Supervises the accounting department, coordinates budgeting and planning; develops, implements and maintains appropriate financial and administrative systems and processes throughout the division. Completes timely financial reporting to the corporate office.

• Responsible for all accounting and financial control functions in the Division. Supervises the accounting department. Develops, implements and maintains sound accounting methods and systems in accordance with corporate policies and procedures.
• Responsible for the monthly close process. Reviews financial statements, explains variances and presents financial information to management.
• Completes timely and accurate financial reporting and special requests to the corporate office.
• Coordinates the division accounting audits.
• Coordinates and prepares budgets, reviews, updates and analysis. Completes the annual business plan, updates, monthly projections and special project analysis.

Education and Experience Requirements:

• CPA
• Strong accounting/financial background
• Five to seven years related experience, including relevant real estate experience

OVERVIEW:

• Assist in the preparation of company financial reporting requirements.
• Perform monthly close and related journal entries.
• Routinely review of job cost activity ensuring consistent and proper coding.
• Review and manage job closing process.
• Assist in review of month end work-in-process entries (Percentage of Completion.)
• Monitor fixed asset activity in detail.
• Generate month-end depreciation and amortization entries.
• Review the general ledger for discrepancies and/or entry errors, making necessary corrections.
• Reconcile bank accounts on a daily basis, reconcile corporate balance sheet accounts and create other corporate monthly internal management reports.
• Reconcile Credit card and review activity and coding for appropriateness.
• Perform financial analysis and answer questions regarding variances.
• Support with related Party/Affiliates accounting.
• Assist with Sales Tax and other compliance reporting and/or matters.
• Review and manage job closing process.

EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s Degree required
• Minimum of 2 years of Construction Accounting experience
• Experience in Sage 300 CRE, or similar construction ERP
• Attention to detail
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Corporate accounting / General ledger experience
• Solid computer skills

85 to 100K plus bonus

Responsibilities:

• Lead all the closing activities for certain of the companies, including the preparation and distribution of the monthly and annual financial statements, including cash flow.
• Calculate and process closing entries in line with agreed timelines for certain key accounts including deferred revenue, accruals other than AP, payroll, non-controlling interests and other equity related transactions.
• Assist with other routine closing activities.
• Provide monthly analysis and reports on certain key companies / accounts. Review and check, understand the drivers and trends and document findings.
• Prepare certain monthly and quarterly Balance Sheet reconciliations covering all the accounts within the Balance Sheet for review by the Corporate Accounting Senior Manager and Manager.
• Fixed assets / depreciation – including disposals.
• Support the monthly, quarterly and annual consolidation processes at the business unit and holdings level.

• Prepare and check certain BS reconciliations and roll forwards (investment, equity, non-controlling interest etc) in conjunction with the Reporting Manager.
• Agreeing the segment reports to the underlying GLs.
• Checking / reconciling inter company and other accounts
• Support the addition of any new companies to the CA accounting group. Integrate
• Assist with the development of accounting and reporting “best practices”.
• Provide special analysis, research or support as requested by management.

Education/Certifications – Accounting degree/Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance or related field required.

• 8- 10 years of accounting and reporting experience required, including audit experience.

Systems – Must be proficient in Microsoft Word and Excel; QuickBooks, Dynamics and Cognos TM1 knowledge a plus.

Heights area – Must be Quick Books proficient

Overview: 

• AP – includes processing and paying all vendors promptly, taking all reasonable discounts available
• AR – includes receiving and posting payments, processing monthly statements
• GL – includes all month end financial records and reports, monitor and crosscheck postings for accuracy
• PR – includes processing biweekly payroll, all employment tax payments and QTD reports for accountant
• Routinely reconcile all types of company accounts to ensure their accuracy
  Maintain all account and item codes in QB (and sales order if required) as well as update forms and codes as needed.
• Maintain chart of accounts for various companies
• Manage, reconcile monthly and maintain all banking transactions, records and relationships
• Monitor debt levels and compliance with debt covenants
• Ensure receivables are collected promptly, collection of delinquent accounts
• Human Resources – new hire processing, administer insurance benefits, maintain attendance records
• Monitor and ordering of all office supplies and other supplies and equipment as authorized by management
• Communicate and schedule with IT company any IT needs
• Assist CEO, COO and SVP with any projects as needed

Requirements:

• Excellent verbal/written, interpersonal communication skills. Ability to multitask and effectively manage time with a very high level of organization. Effective communication with all levels of management, employees, customers and suppliers.
• Microsoft Office and QuickBooks Enterprise
• Minimum of 3-5 years’ experience
• Must be motivated, detail oriented and a self-starter
• Must be dependable, demonstrate fiduciary responsibility and confidentiality of
  sensitive personal and company information

• Staff Accountant – NW Houston
• Senior Accountant – NW Houston
• Staff or Senior Tax – NW Houston
• Bookkeeper / Office Manager – Heights
• AP Accountant – Woodlands
• SEC Manager – E&P – DT
• SEC Reporting Director – E&P – DT
• MLP Tax Manager – Galleria
• Senior Accountant – Consolidations – Galleria
• Corporate Accounting Manager- public accounting background – Galleria
• Property Accountant – Greenspoint
• Staff Auditor – Downtown
• Senior Auditor – Downtown
• Senior Auditor – West Houston
• SEC Reporting Manager – DT
• SEC Senior Accountant – DT
• Revenue and JIB Staff Accountant – DT
• Tax Manager – 40  hour work week – public accounting
• Tax Staff or Senior – 40 hour work week – public accounting
• Senior Auditor – Public – Southeast Houston
• Shared Service Controller – Galleria
• Real Estate Accounting Manager with big 4 experience

What NOT to say to a hiring manager

It’s interview day, and needless to say you are nervous. You need to appear calm, cool and collected; did I mention confident as well? Your resume got you in the door, and now your personality, communication skills, and overall professionalism will solidify your chances. You’re prepared to answer all types of interview questions, but there are some things you should keep to yourself. Here are 6 things you should never to a hiring manager:

I’m sorry I’m so late

This is no way to start an interview. Arriving late is a huge mistake, and a hiring manager does not want to hear your excuses or apologies. Things happen, but your time management skills will be questioned due to your tardiness.

Solution:  

Plan ahead! You must factor in traffic delays, accidents, and slow public transportation. Do a trial run of the commute if you’re unfamiliar with the area so you won’t get lost. Remember, it’s always better to arrive early versus late. Please note though, you don’t want to show up more than 15 minutes early or else your interviewer will feel rushed to meet you. Walk around or grab a coffee until it’s an appropriate time to check in with the receptionist.

What exactly does your company do?

Never ask this in an interview! It shows that you didn’t care enough about the position (or the company) to do your research beforehand. If you couldn’t make an effort to find this information out on your own, then what kind of an employee will you be? Will you cover your bases when working with a client? Or will you constantly be cutting corners?

Solution:  

Do some initial background research on the company before you step into the interview. Once you illustrate that you have an understanding of the company, you can ask, “What current projects is your company working on?” or “Out of the past projects you’ve worked on, what was one of your favorites?” These questions will delve into the specifics that you wouldn’t find online.

My last company was the worst

Even if your last company was horrible, you cannot badmouth them during an interview. Not only is it disrespectful, but also it’s extremely unprofessional. Doing so will only make the hiring manager question if you’re difficult to work with.

Solution:  

When discussing your previous employer, make sure to keep things in a positive light. When asked why you are leaving, simply discuss your reasons (corporate culture, lack of growth opportunities, etc.) with a non-hostile tone. You want to be honest while remaining professional.

I’m keeping my options open

This essentially means that you don’t know what you want. You’re hoping that the hiring manager helps persuade you into wanting this job, when in reality you’re the one who needs to convince them that you are the best fit. You also don’t want to give the impression that you’re interviewing for a lot of different jobs and that this position isn’t a priority.

Solution:

Even if you are unsure about the position, you want to portray yourself as 100% committed. Speak about how your skills align perfectly for this opportunity and show enthusiasm about the position and the company. Don’t lose your chance because the interviewer perceives a lack of interest for the job.

What are the hours?

Although you may be genuinely curious, asking this can bring your work ethic into question. What you’re really saying is, “How short is the work day and is overtime common?” The hiring manager could take this as you being unmotivated and lazy when it comes to your work.

Solution:

Try asking, “What does a typical work day look like?” This will give you a deeper understanding of the tasks you’ll be doing on a daily basis and what your workload will look like. In addition, the hiring manager is bound to discuss how many hours a typical workweek is.

I don’t have any questions

If you want to leave a lasting impression, make sure it’s a positive one. Hiring managers reserve the second half of the interview to answer your questions, so if you fail to do this then the hiring manager will think you’re not interested in the position. When they think you’ve written the company off, then they will write you off as well.

Solution:

Have at least three questions prepared before you get to the interview. Remember, this is your last chance to make a good impression! By asking unique and thought provoking questions, you stand out as a top candidate and maximize your chances of getting the position.

Have questions on interviewing? Comment below! You can also reach out to one of our expert recruiters. Find the closest CFS office to you here.

Posted by Creative Financial Staffing at 12:57 PM No comments:

dlemaire@cfstaffing.com

Overview: 

• Financial statement review of each operating unit’s financials to understand fluctuations
• Work-in-process/job review and analysis through the use of Hyperion Essbase reports.
• Actual vs Forecast Review – This review includes understanding the operating unit’s variances and variance explanations for the monthly and quarterly comparisons
• Other Monthly Reporting Schedules – This review includes reviewing and preparing various other schedules and consolidating schedules
• Resolving various accounting issues brought up by the operating units or corporate personnel.
• Assisting with the updating of the type of work segment support and disclosure.
• Working closely with the operating units to help with any problems/issues that may arise. This includes developing relationships with the operating units’ controllers and becoming a main point of contact.
• Providing support and assistance to the SEC financial reporting group in preparations of 10-Q, 10-K, earnings releases,

Requirements:

• Accounting Degree
• Public Accounting