Controller

DILFO Mechanical; Ottawa; On-site; CAD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health & Dental

RRSP matching

Employee Assistance Program

Wellness days

Good Life Fitness corporate program

Discretionary bonus

Job summary

DILFO Mechanical is seeking a Controller to lead financial management, reporting and controls for the Dilfo Group. This role oversees Finance, HR and Payroll, driving construction and project accounting, budgeting, forecasting, cash management, and financial controls. A path to Director of Finance exists as the business grows.

As the role evolves, expansion into strategic planning, project performance analysis, working-capital strategy, and reporting improvements is anticipated.

Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of ASPE, construction accounting.
• Experience with WIP reporting and revenue recognition.
• Advanced Excel, PivotTables and financial data analysis.
• Experience leading finance, HR and payroll functions.
• Experience with ERP and job-cost systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead monthly, quarterly and annual financial close and reporting.
• Oversee cash management and banking relationships.
• Manage payroll, HR and benefits oversight.
• Ensure compliance with ASPE and tax requirements.
• Coordinate audits and external reviews.
• Develop budgeting and forecasting processes.

Skills

Strong knowledge of ASPE, construction

WIP reporting & revenue recognition

Advanced Excel skills

ERP / job-cost systems

Leadership & staff supervision

Tools

ERP systems

Microsoft Excel

Job description

DILFO is proud to be trusted by the Ontario construction community to deliver the best for our clients’ needs. We design, install, and provide maintenance for HVAC, heating, cooling, refrigeration, and plumbing systems for large scale projects across different industries. Our team of skilled individuals shares a vision of building with integrity and collaboration to bring quality and innovation to our work every day, and we are honoured to have been recognized by the Ottawa Business Journal as one of Ottawa’s Best Places to Work.

The Team

DILFO has a strong team culture that heavily invests in team member wellness and our community. We host regular social events including Pub nights, golf day, pizza Fridays, and more. We are extremely invested in our local community, partnering with the YMCA for the Cycle for Strong Kids and other programs, donating to the Ottawa Food Bank, partnering with Boys and Girls Club Ottawa to create opportunities for young people, and donating to charities our team members support.

DILFO also offers additional benefits including:

• Health and Dental Benefit plan
• Group RRSP matching plan
• Employee Assistance Program that includes virtual medicine
• Fixed number of paid Wellness days
• Corporate program through Good Life Fitness
• Discretionary bonus program

The Role

The Controller is responsible for the financial management, reporting and controls of the Dilfo Group of Companies, with leadership oversight of Finance, Human Resources and Payroll. This hands-on role leads construction and project accounting, financial reporting, budgeting and forecasting, cash management, compliance and financial controls, while providing financial analysis and insight to support business and operational decision-making.

This role offers the opportunity to progress toward a Director of Finance position as the successful candidate develops a strong understanding of our business and demonstrates readiness to take on broader financial leadership responsibilities.

As the role evolves, there will be opportunities to expand into strategic financial planning, business and project performance analysis, cash and working-capital strategy, banking and bonding relationships, financial risk management, and systems and reporting improvements.

Progression will be based on demonstrated readiness, organizational needs and the evolving requirements of the business.

Keys Tasks

The Controller’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to the following:

• Lead monthly, quarterly and annual financial close and reporting processes.
• Prepare and analyze financial statements in accordance with Accounting Standards for Private Enterprises (ASPE).
• Prepare and review construction Work-in-Progress (WIP) schedules using ERP job-cost information.
• Ensure appropriate revenue recognition, project profitability reporting, balance sheet reconciliations and general ledger integrity.
• Review financial results, investigate significant variances and provide timely reporting and analysis to management.
• Maintain effective accounting policies, procedures and internal controls.
• Oversee project accounting across construction, plumbing and HVAC service operations.
• Review project financial performance, including contract values, costs, estimates to complete, margins, change orders and holdbacks.
• Partner with project leadership to identify changes in project performance, margin deterioration and emerging financial risks.

Budgeting, Forecasting & Financial Analysis

• Lead annual budgeting and periodic financial forecasting processes.
• Monitor profitability, cash flow, working capital and performance against budgets and forecasts.
• Develop financial analysis and recommendations to support operational and strategic decision-making.
• Support the evaluation of business opportunities, investments, capital expenditures and opportunities to improve financial performance.

Cash Management, Banking & Risk

• Oversee cash management, cash-flow planning, credit exposure and working-capital requirements.
• Manage banking relationships, credit facilities, financial covenant reporting and bonding and surety requirements.
• Coordinate annual external financial statement reviews or audits and corporate tax compliance.
• Ensure compliance with applicable tax, payroll and statutory requirements and maintain appropriate financial controls.
• Oversee organizational insurance requirements and maintain relationships with external financial and professional advisors.

Finance, HR & Payroll Leadership

• Provide leadership and oversight to the Finance, Human Resources and Payroll functions.
• Establish clear responsibilities and expectations and support employee development, cross-training and succession planning.
• Ensure accurate and timely payroll processing, statutory and union remittances and appropriate payroll controls.
• Provide financial oversight of employee benefits, compensation and other HR-related financial matters.
• Support effective HR processes and work with management on significant workforce and compensation matters.
• Ensure confidential financial, payroll and employee information is appropriately safeguarded.

Systems & Process Improvement

• Maintain and continuously improve financial systems, reporting processes and controls.
• Optimize ERP and job-cost reporting to improve the accuracy, efficiency and accessibility of financial information.
• Identify opportunities to streamline and automate accounting, reporting and financial analysis processes.

Experience

• Minimum 7-10 years of progressive accounting and finance experience, including significant construction industry accounting experience.
• Demonstrated hands‑on experience preparing construction WIP schedules and managing month-end financial close and reporting.
• Strong experience with construction job costing, project accounting and revenue recognition.
• Previous experience supervising or managing accounting staff.
• Experience overseeing payroll; exposure to Human Resources is preferred.
• Experience with banking, bonding, multi-company operations and financial process improvement is considered an asset.
• Experience with unionized construction payroll and related remittances is considered an asset.

Education

Knowledge and Technical Skills

• Strong knowledge of ASPE, construction accounting, WIP reporting, job costing and revenue recognition.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills, including formulas, lookups, PivotTables and financial data analysis.
• Strong proficiency with ERP, accounting and job‑cost systems.
• Ability to prepare and interpret financial statements, budgets, forecasts and management reporting.
• Working knowledge of taxation, payroll, statutory remittances and financial compliance requirements.
• Experience with business-intelligence, financial automation or data analytics tools is considered an asset.

Physical and Environmental Requirements

• Primarily office-based work involving prolonged periods of sitting and computer use.
• Regular use of computers, financial systems and other office equipment.
• Climbing stairs as needed.
• Performing tasks in a noisy environment.
• Manual dexterity for tasks such as typing.
• Occasional travel to company locations, project sites or external meetings may be required.
• May occasionally be required to work outside regular business hours to support month-end, year-end, budgeting or other business requirements.

We thank all applicants for their interest in working at DILFO; only those identified for further consideration will be contacted.

Accommodations for disabilities are available, where needed, upon request.

DILFO uses artificial intelligence as part of the screening process.

DILFO does not accept and is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited résumés from recruitment agencies. Recruitment agencies should not submit resumes in response to this posting to DILFO employees or any associated company location.