Financial Controller / Director of Finance

Cool Cat Fence; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Cool Cat Fence is seeking an experienced Financial Controller to lead and oversee our Finance and Accounting department. This executive role ensures accurate financial reporting, strong controls, disciplined processes, and clear visibility into performance.

The Controller will own data integrity, partnering with executives to provide timely financial information that drives growth. Build systems to see financials throughout the month and enable proactive decision-making.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of progressive accounting and finance experience.
• 3+ years in a Controller or similar leadership position.
• Proven experience managing an accounting or finance team.
• Strong understanding of GAAP, accrual accounting, financial statements, general ledger accounting, and internal controls.
• Experience with budgeting, forecasting, cash flow management, and financial analysis.
• Experience overseeing AP, AR, payroll accounting, reconciliations, and month-end close.
• Strong understanding of job costing and gross margin analysis.
• Advanced Excel and financial modeling skills.
• Experience with QuickBooks or comparable accounting/ERP systems.
• Ability to build processes and reporting systems in a fast-growing organization.
• Strong analytical skills with exceptional attention to detail.
• Ability to communicate financial information clearly to executives and non-financial leaders.
• High level of ownership, accountability, urgency, and integrity.

Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee the entire Finance and Accounting department, including staff and reporting.
• Own monthly, quarterly, and annual financial close processes and ensure accuracy.
• Produce and maintain P&L statements, balance sheets, cash flow reporting, and departmental reporting.
• Develop processes for weekly and mid-month financial reporting for visibility.
• Maintain and improve chart of accounts, procedures, internal controls, and reporting structure.
• Oversee Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable, including cash collections and vendor payments.
• Oversee payroll accounting, commissions, bonuses, and other compensation-related processes.
• Manage reconciliations and general ledger accuracy; ensure proper revenue/expense recognition.
• Maintain job costing and COGS reporting; analyze margins by branch/product/team.
• Develop budgets, forecasts, and cash flow projections; explain variances clearly.
• Build dashboards and KPIs; partner with Operations and Leadership for accountability.
• Coordinate tax prep, compliance, year-end reporting, and external reviews.
• Protect assets with strong controls and scale accounting for growth.

Skills

GAAP & internal controls

Financial reporting

Budgeting & forecasting

Cash flow management

Excel & financial modeling

Team leadership

Communication with executives

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting/Finance

CPA or CMA designation

Tools

QuickBooks

Job description

Cool Cat Fence is seeking an experienced Financial Controller to lead and oversee our entire Finance and Accounting department.

This is an executive leadership position responsible for ensuring the company has accurate financial reporting, strong financial controls, disciplined accounting processes, and clear visibility into financial performance.

The Financial Controller will own the integrity of our financial data and work closely with executive leadership to provide timely, actionable financial information that helps us make better decisions as we continue to grow.

We are looking for someone who can do more than report what happened last month. The right person will build systems that allow leadership to understand where we are financially throughout the month, identify problems early, improve accountability, and support profitable growth.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee the entire Finance and Accounting department, including accounting staff, AP, AR, payroll/accounting coordination, and financial reporting.
• Own the monthly, quarterly, and annual financial close process and ensure financial statements are accurate and delivered on time.
• Produce and maintain accurate P&L statements, balance sheets, cash flow reporting, and departmental financial reporting.
• Develop processes for weekly and mid-month financial reporting so leadership has visibility into performance before month-end.
• Maintain and improve the company’s chart of accounts, accounting procedures, internal controls, and financial reporting structure.
• Oversee Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable, including cash collections, vendor payments, aging reports, and reconciliation processes.
• Oversee payroll accounting, commissions, bonuses, and other compensation-related financial processes.
• Manage bank reconciliations, credit card reconciliations, balance sheet reconciliations, and general ledger accuracy.
• Ensure revenue and expenses are recognized and classified correctly.
• Maintain accurate job costing and COGS reporting, including labor, materials, subcontractors, commissions, and other direct job costs.
• Analyze gross margin by branch, job type, product, crew, and other relevant business segments.
• Identify margin leakage, accounting discrepancies, unnecessary expenses, and opportunities to improve profitability.
• Develop and manage company budgets, forecasts, and cash flow projections.
• Track actual performance against budget and clearly explain significant variances.
• Build financial dashboards and KPIs that give leadership clear visibility into revenue, gross margin, overhead, marketing spend, labor costs, cash flow, and profitability.
• Partner with Operations, Sales, Marketing, and executive leadership to improve financial accountability across departments.
• Manage relationships with outside CPAs, tax professionals, auditors, banks, insurance providers, and other financial partners.
• Coordinate tax preparation, compliance requirements, year-end reporting, and external financial reviews.
• Ensure proper documentation and controls are in place to protect company assets and reduce financial risk.
• Build scalable accounting processes capable of supporting continued growth, additional branches, and expansion into new markets.
• Recruit, train, develop, and hold accountable members of the Finance and Accounting team.

What Success Looks Like

The Financial Controller will be expected to create a finance department where:

• Leadership has accurate and timely financial information throughout the month—not weeks after the month closes.
• Monthly financials are closed quickly and consistently.
• Gross margin and job profitability can be clearly understood and trusted.
• Leadership can quickly identify where money is being made, lost, or overspent.
• Budgets and forecasts are actively used to manage the business.
• Cash flow is predictable and proactively managed.
• Accounting processes are documented, scalable, and supported by strong internal controls.
• Every major number on the P&L has a clear owner and can be explained.
• Financial reporting helps leadership make decisions rather than simply documenting past performance.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of progressive accounting and finance experience.
• 3+ years in a Controller, Assistant Controller, Director of Accounting, or similar leadership position.
• Proven experience managing an accounting or finance team.
• Strong understanding of GAAP, accrual accounting, financial statements, general ledger accounting, and internal controls.
• Strong experience with budgeting, forecasting, cash flow management, and financial analysis.
• Experience overseeing AP, AR, payroll accounting, reconciliations, and month-end close.
• Strong understanding of job costing and gross margin analysis.
• Advanced Excel and financial modeling skills.
• Experience with QuickBooks or comparable accounting/ERP systems.
• Ability to build processes and reporting systems in a fast-growing organization.
• Strong analytical skills with exceptional attention to detail.
• Ability to communicate financial information clearly to executives and non-financial leaders.
• High level of ownership, accountability, urgency, and integrity.

Preferred

• CPA or CMA designation.
• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
• Experience in construction, home services, trades, or another job-costing-based business.
• Experience with multi-location or multi-state organizations.
• Experience integrating operational systems with accounting and financial reporting.
• Experience helping a company scale its finance function through rapid growth.