Senior Project Accountant

Foresight Recruitment Group; Ottawa; On-site; CAD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Foresight Recruitment Group in Ottawa is seeking a senior accounting professional to own the finance function for a growing project-based organization. This role goes beyond routine bookkeeping and focuses on the financial story behind projects, including WIP, job costing, margins, forecasts and variances.

You will oversee the full accounting cycle, strengthen reporting, controls and processes, and collaborate with project managers and operations to drive profitability and data visibility.

Qualifications

• 5+ years progressively responsible accounting experience.
• Hands-on WIP and job-cost accounting experience.
• Advanced QuickBooks Online skills.
• Advanced Excel skills.
• Experience managing month-end and year-end close.
• Strong financial reporting, reconciliation, budgeting and forecasting experience.

Responsibilities

• Own monthly WIP and job-cost accounting.
• Analyze percentage of completion, earned revenue, cost-to-complete and project profitability.
• Identify margin fade, cost overruns and unusual project variances.
• Lead month-end and year-end close.
• Prepare financial statements, management reporting and balance-sheet reconciliations.
• Budgeting, forecasting and cash-flow reporting.
• Collaborate with Project Managers and Operations on project financial performance.
• Provide oversight across AP, AR and payroll and support bonus calculations.
• Strengthen internal controls, approval processes and accounting procedures.
• Improve reporting tools, dashboards and data visibility.
• Identify opportunities for automation and more efficient use of technology.

Skills

WIP accounting

Job-cost accounting

Forecasting

Variance analysis

Strong communication

Analytical mindset

Leadership with PMs

Education

CPA designation or progression toward CPA

Tools

QuickBooks Online

Excel

Job description

Foresight Recruitment Group is partnering with a growing, privately owned, project-based organization in Ottawa to recruit a senior accounting professional who can take real ownership of the finance function.

This is not a traditional transactional accounting role.

We are looking for someone who understands the financial story behind individual projects. Someone who can dig into WIP, job costing, margins, forecasts and variances, identify when something doesn’t look right, and confidently work with operational leaders to understand why.

The successful candidate will act as the senior accounting resource within the business, overseeing the full accounting cycle while helping strengthen reporting, systems, controls and financial processes as the organization continues to grow.

What you’ll be responsible for:

• Owning monthly WIP and job-cost accounting
• Analyzing percentage of completion, earned revenue, cost-to-complete and project profitability
• Identifying margin fade, cost overruns and unusual project variances
• Leading month-end and year-end close
• Preparing financial statements, management reporting and balance-sheet reconciliations
• Budgeting, forecasting and cash-flow reporting
• Working closely with Project Managers and Operations on project financial performance
• Providing oversight across AP, AR and payroll
• Supporting organizational bonus and incentive calculations
• Strengthening internal controls, approval processes and accounting procedures
• Improving reporting tools, dashboards and data visibility
• Identifying opportunities for automation and more efficient use of technology
• Providing leadership with forward-looking financial insight and recommendations

What we’re looking for:

• 5+ years of progressive accounting experience
• Strong hands-on WIP and job-cost accounting experience
• Advanced QuickBooks Online skills
• Advanced Excel skills
• Experience managing month-end and year-end close
• Strong financial reporting, reconciliation, budgeting and forecasting experience
• Experience within construction, contracting, engineering, restoration or another project-based environment is strongly preferred
• Strong professional written and verbal communication skills
• The confidence to challenge inconsistencies and work directly with operational leaders
• A proactive, analytical mindset. Someone who looks for root causes, not just corrections

Candidates may currently hold titles such as:

CPA designation or progression toward a CPA is an asset, but strong practical experience will also be considered.

What makes this opportunity particularly interesting is the growth potential. The organization is continuing to expand, and this role has a clear opportunity to evolve into broader Controller-level responsibility over time.

We’re looking for someone who wants to help build and improve the accounting function, not simply inherit and maintain it.