Assistant Controller, Construction & Project Accounting

Grassi; Elmont (NY); On-site; USD 180,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Standard benefits

Job summary

Grassi in Elmont, NY seeks an Assistant Controller to lead accounting operations, including corporate and project accounting, payroll, and accounts payable, with hands-on close and cross‑functional collaboration.

You will supervise staff, partner with HR and Project Management to ensure accurate financial reporting, manage cash flow, and drive process improvements in a dynamic construction environment. This role is on-site five days a week with a competitive benefits package.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in accounting, Finance, or related field.
• 5–7 years of progressive accounting experience, at least 3 years’ experience in the construction industry.
• Working knowledge of job cost accounting, WIP reporting, and percentage‑of‑completion revenue recognition.
• Experience with month‑end/year‑end close and preparation of financial statements.
• Experience with general ledger reconciliation and accounts payable/receivable operations.
• Working knowledge of federal, state, and regulatory requirements affecting accounting operations, including taxes and payroll.
• Experience with certified payroll/prevailing wage compliance.
• Proficiency with construction accounting/ERP systems (CMiC preferred).
• Advanced Excel skills (PivotTables, XLOOKUP/VLOOKUP, SUMIFS, financial modeling).
• Experience supervising or training accounting staff.
• Excellent communication, organization, and problem‑solving skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively across departments.

Responsibilities

• Manage corporate accounting operations, including accounts payable, accounts receivable, general ledger functions, account reconciliations, and month-end and year-end closing processes.
• Manage project accounting, including job cost accounting, work-in-progress (WIP) schedules, and percentage-of-completion accounting across active projects.
• Oversee project profitability reporting, contract billing, change order accounting, and retainage management.
• Analyze reports - including cost-to-completion, billing and projected revenue - and to evaluate project profitability and financial performance.
• Partner with project managers to complete requisition processes, identify cost issues, margin risks, forecasting variances, and corrective actions.
• Support cash flow management, budgeting, and forecasting at both the company and project levels, including monitoring accounts receivable, accounts payable, project billings, collections, and projected cash requirements.
• Oversee payroll administration, including timely processing and reporting, tax submission, certified payroll, prevailing wage compliance, and project payroll processing.
• Partner with HR to maintain a collaborative check‑and‑balance process over shared functions — benefits and payroll changes including hires and terminations, timekeeping/PTO reconciliation, and compensation changes — ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant data handoffs between departments.
• Support ongoing compliance with applicable federal, state, and local tax and regulatory requirements, including timely filing of taxes.
• Provide day‑to‑day supervision of accounting staff, including coaching, performance feedback, and career development.
• Support internal and external audits, including coordinating with external auditors, tax advisors, and other outside parties.
• Identify and implement improvements to accounting processes, systems, reporting and internal controls.

Skills

Construction accounting

Job cost accounting

WIP reporting

Percentage-of-completion

Close process

General ledger

Payroll

Excel

CMiC ERP

Staff supervision

Education

Bachelor's degree in accounting

Tools

CMiC ERP

Job description

Grassi in Elmont, NY seeks an Assistant Controller to lead accounting operations, including corporate and project accounting, payroll, and accounts payable, with hands-on close and cross‑functional collaboration.

You will supervise staff, partner with HR and Project Management to ensure accurate financial reporting, manage cash flow, and drive process improvements in a dynamic construction environment. This role is on-site five days a week with a competitive benefits package.