Controller

Focus Financial Partners; Mayfield Heights (OH); On-site; USD 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401(k)

Job summary

Focus Financial Partners in Mayfield Heights, Ohio is looking for a Controller to head the accounting function across various legal entities. This role involves leading the accounting team and managing monthly and quarterly closes, liaising closely with the CFO. Candidates must have an accounting degree, CPA preferred, along with 8+ years of accounting experience.

The position necessitates strong knowledge of GAAP and advanced Excel skills, as well as familiarity with ERP systems like Workday. Focus is an equal opportunity employer, offering a competitive compensation package with benefits including medical, dental, and a 401(k).

Qualifications

• Minimum 8+ years of progressive accounting experience and ownership of close processes.
• Experience in financial services or asset management is a plus.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complexity across multiple legal entities.

Responsibilities

• Lead the monthly and quarterly close for multiple business lines.
• Coordinate SOX control reporting and documentation.
• Oversee the 401(k) plan audit and quarterly management fee billing.

Skills

Public accounting experience

Advanced Excel skills

People management

Knowledge of GAAP

Education

Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, or related field

CPA strongly preferred

Tools

Workday

Acumatica

NetSuite

Power BI

Job description

Position Summary

Founded in 2003, Ancora Holdings Group is a private wealth advisor and institutional asset manager focused on building distinctive investment strategies and robust wealth & risk management solutions that help our clients achieve more. The firm’s comprehensive service offering is complemented by a dedicated team that has the breadth of a global institution with the responsiveness and flexibility of a boutique firm. We are seeking an experienced accounting leader to serve as Controller, owning the firm’s accounting function across multiple legal entities and business lines. Reporting directly to the Chief Financial Officer, the Controller leads the accounting team, owns the monthly and quarterly close, manages internal controls and audit execution, and serves as a key partner to both firm leadership and Ancora’s parent company. This is a rare chance to step into a true controllership and own an accounting function end-to-end, with direct visibility to the CFO and firm leadership. It is well-suited to an accounting professional ready to take the next step into broad ownership and to make a visible mark early through a major systems transformation. This position requires you to be onsite, no remote option.

Primary Responsibilities

• Own the monthly and quarterly close across the firm’s multiple legal entities and business lines, including general ledger management, journal entries, accruals, adjustments, and account reconciliations.
• Lead, develop, and hold accountable the accounting team — including two internal accountants and a dedicated offshore accounting team — setting priorities, reviewing work, and ensuring deadlines are consistently met.
• Own the firm’s internal control environment and coordinate quarterly SOX control reporting and documentation.
• Partner closely with the broker‑dealer subsidiary’s Chief Compliance Officer and the outside FINOP on the entity’s standalone audit, serving as the accounting lead within that team — compiling and managing audit sample requests, and reviewing the financial statements and footnote language to ensure everything is sound from a GAAP perspective.
• Coordinate the firm’s 401(k) plan audit, preparing schedules and interfacing with auditors in partnership with the CFO.
• Oversee the quarterly management‑fee billing and receivables process, partnering with and reviewing the work of the billing and operations team to ensure accurate, timely invoicing and collections.
• Serve as a key liaison to Ancora’s parent company on applicable tax preparation, cash‑flow management, and consolidated financial statement support.
• Help lead the firm’s accounting systems transformation, including the upcoming migration to Workday, and continually identify opportunities to improve efficiency, strengthen controls, and reduce manual work across recurring accounting processes.
• Deliver accurate, well‑organized, and timely financial data across all entities to support CFO and leadership reporting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, or a related field; CPA strongly preferred.
• 8+ years of progressive accounting experience, with demonstrated ownership of close, reporting, and audit processes.
• Public accounting experience expected; prior external audit experience is a strong advantage given the role’s audit support and GAAP review responsibilities.
• Direct people‑management experience, including the ability to lead and develop a distributed team.
• Experience in financial services, wealth management, RIA, broker‑dealer, or asset management is a plus, though not required; a strong generalist will get up to speed quickly.
• Demonstrated ability to manage breadth and complexity across multiple legal entities and business lines — success in this role depends as much on organization, process discipline, and follow‑through as on technical accounting expertise.
• Experience with accounting ERP systems (e.g., Acumatica, Workday, NetSuite, or Sage Intacct); ERP implementation or system‑conversion experience strongly preferred given the firm’s upcoming migration to Workday.
• Advanced Excel skills required; experience with Power BI or comparable BI/reporting tools a plus.
• Familiarity with billing, expense, and payables platforms (e.g., SS&C/Advent products, Concur, AvidXchange) a plus.
• Strong knowledge of GAAP, internal controls, and process documentation.

Base pay may vary based on factors including, but not limited to, experience, subject matter expertise, geographic location where work will be performed, and the applicant’s skill set. The base pay is just one component of the total compensation package. Other rewards may include an annual cash bonus and a comprehensive benefits package, including but not limited to medical, dental, vision, life insurance, and 401(k). Please note that the job title is subject to change based on the selected candidate’s experience and education.

Equal Opportunity Employment

Focus is an equal opportunity employer and bases its employment decisions on the employee or candidate’s skillset, and without regard to an employee or candidate’s race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state and/or federal law. Focus complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities.