E-commerce and CPG Controller

Cornerstone Finance; United States; Remote; USD 69,000 - 90,000; Part time

Job summary

Cornerstone Finance is seeking an experienced Controller with ecommerce/CPG background to join us as an independent contractor. You will own the monthly close for your assigned clients, review bookkeepers’ work and produce the reporting our Finance Partners present to owners.

This role starts around 5 hours per week with potential to grow your client portfolio and hours over time, offering flexible, meaningful work across a growing portfolio of brands.

Qualifications

• 4+ years of accounting experience including month-end close and financial reporting.
• Experience with ecommerce or CPG businesses, including inventory and cost of goods sold.
• Strong understanding of accrual accounting, reconciliations and financial statements.
• Strong QuickBooks Online skills.
• Experience reviewing others' work and giving clear correction notes.
• Strong attention to detail and organizational skills.
• Strong written communication skills.
• Comfort learning and using multiple systems (e.g., QuickBooks Online, Reach Reporting, Shopify, Amazon Seller Central, A2X, Google Workspace).
• Bachelor's degree in accounting or finance preferred; CPA a plus but not required.
• Experience at an accounting firm or managing close for multiple clients is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Own each assigned client's monthly close calendar and deliver an accurate, on-time close.
• Quality review bookkeeping work and send corrections back to the bookkeeping team.
• Reconcile sales channels and marketplace payouts against the books.
• Account for inventory, landed costs and COGS, and track gross margin by product, channel or customer.
• Prepare the standard monthly reporting package for each client.
• Coordinate deadlines with the Finance Partner who leads each client relationship.
• Work with our sales tax specialist on marketplace and multistate sales data.
• Identify issues in client books, processes or systems and recommend fixes.
• Help document and improve Cornerstone's close process and e-commerce accounting standards.
• Model Cornerstone's values to help clients build financially healthy businesses.

Skills

Close & reporting

Inventory & COGS

Reconciliations

Financial statements

Written communication

Time management

Multi-system learning

Education

Bachelor's degree in accounting or finance

Tools

QuickBooks Online

Reach Reporting

Shopify

Amazon Seller Central

A2X

Google Workspace

Job description

Do you love closing the books for product businesses? Are you looking for an alternative to the traditional corporate accounting path where you can work across a portfolio of growing brands, use your e-commerce and consumer packaged goods (CPG) experience and have the flexibility to grow your involvement over time?

Cornerstone Finance is a growing financial management and advisory firm based near Portsmouth, NH. We provide white-glove financial partnership to startups and small businesses, typically under $10M in revenue.

Our services are designed to scale with clients as they grow, beginning with bookkeeping, tax, payroll and financial reporting and expanding to include CFO and FP&A services such as KPI reporting, forecasting, budgeting, strategic planning, fundraising, exit planning and much more.

We are seeking an experienced Controller with an e-commerce and CPG background to join our team as an independent contractor. You will report to a Finance Partner and our Service Operations Lead.

Our Controllers are the quality backbone of every client relationship. You will own the monthly close for your assigned clients, review the work of our bookkeepers and produce the reporting our Finance Partners bring to business owners. For our product-based clients, that means getting inventory, cost of goods sold, marketplace settlements and channel margins right, so owners can trust their numbers.

This role is designed for someone who wants flexibility and meaningful work. We are targeting about 5 hours per week to start, with room to grow your client portfolio and hours over time.

We are especially interested in accounting professionals who have built strong close and reporting experience with e-commerce or CPG businesses and want to apply it across a variety of growing brands, with direct impact and a close-knit team.

Cornerstone is a values-based company. We expect our team members to care deeply about integrity, service, people and helping entrepreneurs build businesses that create long-term value for their owners, employees, customers and other stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities:

• Own each assigned client's monthly close calendar and checklist, and deliver an accurate, on-time close
• Quality review bookkeeping work and send clear corrections back to the bookkeeping team
• Reconcile sales channels and marketplace payouts, such as Shopify and Amazon, against the books
• Account for inventory, landed costs and cost of goods sold, and track gross margin by product, channel or customer
• Prepare the standard monthly reporting package for each client
• Coordinate deadlines and handoffs with the Finance Partner who leads each client relationship
• Work with our sales tax specialist on marketplace and multistate sales data
• Identify issues in client books, processes or systems and recommend practical fixes
• Help document and improve Cornerstone's close process, checklists and e-commerce accounting standards
• Model Cornerstone's values and help clients build financially healthy, sustainable businesses

Performance Expectations:

• Deliver accurate, on-time closes that clients and Finance Partners can rely on
• Take ownership of the quality of your clients' books rather than simply completing assigned tasks
• Catch and correct errors before they reach the client
• Communicate clearly and proactively when deadlines, timelines or availability change
• Maintain appropriate availability during US ET working hours for scheduled client and team commitments unless otherwise agreed
• Keep close checklists, project management systems and other relevant materials reasonably current
• Work collaboratively with bookkeepers, Finance Partners, tax professionals and other Cornerstone team members
• Exercise sound judgment, confidentiality and integrity when handling sensitive client information
• Take ownership over your work: be proactive, follow through, learn and continuously improve

Requirements:

• 4+ years of experience in accounting, including month-end close and financial reporting
• Hands-on accounting experience with e-commerce or CPG businesses, including inventory and cost of goods sold
• Strong understanding of accrual accounting, account reconciliations and financial statements
• Strong QuickBooks Online skills
• Experience reviewing the work of others and giving clear correction notes
• Strong attention to detail and organizational skills
• Strong written communication skills
• Comfort learning and using multiple systems. Examples may include QuickBooks Online, Reach Reporting, Shopify, Amazon Seller Central, A2X, Google Workspace and related small business technology
• Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance or a related field is preferred
• CPA is a plus but not required
• Experience at an accounting firm or managing close for multiple clients is a plus

Key Skills, Knowledge & Abilities:

• Strong technical accounting and reconciliation skills
• Inventory and COGS accounting for product-based businesses
• Marketplace and payment processor reconciliation
• High standards for accuracy and quality review
• Ability to explain accounting issues clearly to Finance Partners and business owners
• Strong organizational and time-management skills
• Comfort managing multiple clients and competing deadlines
• Entrepreneurial mindset and comfort operating in environments that are still being built
• Humility and willingness to learn, receive feedback and collaborate
• High standards of confidentiality and integrity
• Strong alignment with Cornerstone's values and commitment to serving clients, employees and other stakeholders well

Compensation

$50 to $65 per hour, based on experience.

This role starts at about 5-10 hours per week and is designed to grow as you take on more clients and responsibilities. It may be particularly attractive to professionals looking for flexible, part-time work alongside other commitments.