Project Accountant

Smith + Andersen; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible hours

Health benefits

Retirement plan

ESOP

Time off program

Transit subsidy

Community/events

Great Place to Work-Certified

Best Workplaces for Inclusion

Best Workplaces for Professional Serv

Best Workplaces for Mental Wellness

Job summary

Smith + Andersen in Vancouver seeks a Project Accountant to support high-volume project billing. You will review contracts, manage invoicing, update project data in Deltek Vantagepoint and SAiD, and liaise with project teams to ensure accurate billing and timely reconciliations.

Ideal candidates hold an accounting/finance degree and 2–3 years of accounting experience, with strong Excel skills and knowledge of project accounting. Vancouver office, full-time.

Qualifications

• Post-secondary degree or diploma in Accounting and/or Finance.
• Two to three years of experience working in an accounting role.
• Experience with Deltek Vantagepoint considered an asset.
• Experience in project accounting considered an asset.
• Excellent knowledge of Microsoft Excel.
• Strong written and oral communication skills.
• Superior organization and administrative skills.
• Able to work independently as well as part of a team.

Responsibilities

• Provide general accounting support related to billing and invoicing for clients and Project Managers.
• Update project information in Deltek Vantagepoint and SAiD as needed.
• Review contracts and supporting documents to gather details required to bill and invoice clients.
• Respond to inquiries from project teams.
• Process client changes at the request of the client or Project Manager and file memos.
• Generate draft invoices for DPM approval and issue client invoices per contract terms.
• Identify and correct billing discrepancies and ensure timely project changes.
• Assist with year-end audit requirements and prepare WIP valuations.
• Run monthly reports for Principals and DPMs.
• Resolve billing issues and reconcile with clients.
• Communicate contract documents and changes with PMs and PICs.
• Research unbilled issues to maximize billing with DPMs.
• Maintain billing notes and prepare final invoices for project closure.

Skills

Excel

Communication

Organization

Teamwork

Independent work

Deltek Vantagepoint

Project accounting

Education

Accounting/Finance degree or diploma

Tools

Deltek Vantagepoint

Job description

Smith + Andersen is a trusted, Canadian engineering firm, recognized for its multi-disciplinary expertise. With more than seven hundred employees across twelve offices in five provinces, the firm delivers comprehensive solutions nationwide.

At Smith + Andersen our employees contribute to some of the most sustainable building design projects in Canada. The work we do has meaningful impact on the community by contributing to landmark projects such as hospitals, transit stations, parks, federal and provincial government buildings and post secondary institutions.

Our values drive and define everything we do, demonstrating a deep commitment to sustainability, mentorship and quality work that spans nearly six decades in business. In addition, we are proud to have been certified as a Great Place to Work™ and selected as one of Canada’s Best Workplaces™ for the highly collaborative culture we’ve built and for empowering employees to do great work!

This Opportunity

Our Vancouver office is seeking a Project Accountant to join its accounting team. The successful candidate will provide billing and invoicing support for a high volume of projects. The Project Accountant reviews relevant project contracts and supporting documents including proposals, billing plans and RAF's to ensure the accuracy of project invoicing and setup and liaises with internal and external clients to processes contact and fee changes as required. The Project Accountant maintains billing notes and documentation for all projects, prepares invoice packages for clients resolves billing issues, and completes project reconciliations as required.

This posting is for an existing vacancy within our organization.

Why choose Smith + Andersen?

In addition to an exciting career filled with meaningful work, we offer:

• Flexible hours and half day Fridays (all year round)
• Comprehensive Group Health Benefits Program, including a Health Spending Account
• Group Retirement Savings Plan (Employer and Employee Contributions)
• Employee Share Ownership Program (ESOP)
• Purchase Time off Program
• Transit Subsidy Program
• Wide variety of community and social events
• Great Place to Work-Certified™
• Best Workplaces for Inclusion™
• Best Workplaces for Professional Services ™
• Best Workplaces for Mental Wellness ™

What You’ll Do

• Provide general accounting support related to billing and invoicing for clients and Project Managers.
• Update project information in Deltek Vantagepoint, such as billing client name changes or fees, when instructed by DPMs. Coordinate with Operations team to ensure our internal project database (SAiD) is also updated.
• Review all contracts and supporting documents related to the contract, including proposals, billing plans, email backups, project information forms (PIFs) and requests for additional fees (RAFs) to gather details required to accurately bill and invoice clients.
• Respond to all inquiries from project teams.
• Process all client contact and fee changes at the request of the client or Project Manager. Electronically file change requests or change memos in the project folder.
• Generate draft invoices for DPM approval. Generate and issue client invoices based on contract terms, fixed fee and hourly projects.
• Identify and correct client billing discrepancies. Liaise with the team to ensure project changes are captured and completed in a timely manner.
• Assist with year-end audit requirements. Prepare project specific reports such as work in progress (WIP) valuation for your project portfolio.
• Run monthly reports for Principals and Designated Project Managers (DPMs).
• Resolve any billing issues and reconcile our billing with clients.
• Effectively communicate with Project Managers (PMs) and Principals-in-Charge (PICs) regarding contract documents, change orders, and other contract modifications, approvals, and any additional services related to billing.
• Assess and pursue opportunities to maximize client billing. Research any unbilled issues to optimize billing by following up with DPMs regarding fees, RAFs, unbilled time, etc.
• Maintain billing notes for all projects with the appropriate documents.
• Perform additional assignments as directed by the Controller.
• Prepare special project analyses for the PICs, PMs, and others as requested.
• Prepare final billing and zero-dollar invoices to support project closure and transition to dormant status.
• Upload invoices to client portals and prepare any additional spreadsheets or documentation as requested.

Who You Are:

• Post-secondary degree or diploma in Accounting and/or Finance.
• Two to three years of experience working in an accounting role.
• Experience with accounting programs such as Deltek Vantagepoint considered an asset.
• Experience in project accounting considered an asset.
• Excellent knowledge of all Microsoft Office Suites, specifically Excel.
• Strong written and oral communication skills; able to communicate with both internal and external clients.
• Superior organization and administrative skills with the ability to prioritize and multi-task in a fast paced environment.
• Able to review large amounts of data, demonstrate attention to detail and problem solving abilities.
• Able to work independently as well as part of a team.

About Smith + Andersen

Founded in 1965, Smith + Andersen has organically grown from an established reputation as a trusted engineering consulting firm, reaching new levels of engineering and design excellence in the mechanical, electrical, communications, security and audiovisual fields, and providing enhanced services such as lighting, building automation systems, and intelligent integrated systems design. Thanks to our client-focused approach, we are able to apply efficient, sustainable, and reliable design and engineering solutions on the some of the most exciting projects across Canada.

For more information about Smith + Andersen, please visit our website at www.smithandandersen.com.

Accommodation

Appropriate accommodations will be provided to candidates upon request throughout the recruitment and hiring process. If you require accommodation during any phase of the hiring process, please advise the Human Resources Specialist with whom you are in contact.

Diversity

Smith + Andersen is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates of any age, culture, subculture, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, nationality, race, ethnicity, family status, religion, mental or physical status or veteran status.

Recruitment Agencies

Smith + Andersen welcomes interest by individual applicants. For resumes or applications submitted by agencies or recruiters with which Smith + Andersen does not have an agreement in place, Smith + Andersen will not pay any referral fee. Unsolicited resumes or applications from agencies or recruiters will be deemed to have been referred without fee or other charges.

Smith + Andersen does not use artificial intelligence (AI) to screen, assess or select applicants.

Smith + Andersen is an equal opportunity employer.