Controller, Operating Investments at Schnitzer West in Seattle, WA

Description

The Company:

The Company’s vision, mission, promise, culture, values and goals are at the heart of every decision made. The Company takes pride in and fiercely protects its 5 core fundamental values:

• Disciplined – Prepare for anything. Anticipate, ask questions and clarify. Own every moment. Don’t run from risk; mitigate it to create value. Keep your eye on the prize while obsessing over the details.
• Driven – Work with passion and ambition. Be relentless and work with urgency.
• Bold – Pioneer true innovation and be motivated by the unknown. Thrive in uncertainty to outperform the expected.
• Authentic – Work without ego and be a doer, not a talker. Be fair but candid and always willing and able to roll up your sleeves.
• ‘Cowboy Family’ – Be all in with the firm; pushing and protecting each other to achieve greatness and exceed all expectations. Take pride in being a difference maker and for making a material impact.

This unwavering focus makes the Company a recognized and well-respected vanguard in the industry and maintains the framework that allows for superior communications, sound and decisive decision making, diversity of thought, and unparalleled business practices, rigor and innovation.

Position Summary:

The Controller, Operating Investments leads the property accounting function for a multi-entity portfolio of owned and third-party-managed operating assets. This role is accountable for accurate and timely financial reporting, effective internal controls, disciplined cash management, portfolio budgeting, CAM estimates and reconciliations, ownership and lender reporting, accounting related lease and property management contract administration, and the development of the accounting team. The Controller partners closely with Investment Management, Asset Services, lenders, ownership groups, auditors, tax providers, insurance brokers, and third-party accounting contacts to support sound decision-making and consistent client service.

This position has final accounting review and approval responsibility for monthly reporting packages, budgets, CAM estimates and CAM reconciliations for operating assets within the assigned portfolio, subject to the company's approval policies and delegated authority matrix.

Essential Responsibilities:

Team Leadership and Development

1. Lead, supervise, train, and develop investment and property accounting staff; balance workloads, establish priorities, and manage deadlines across multiple reporting calendars and accounting systems.
2. Participate in hiring, onboarding, goal setting, performance management, succession planning, and development of accounting team members.
3. Maintain documented cross-training and coverage plans so absences, and peak reporting periods have minimal impact on service.
4. Provide technical guidance and workflow coordination to corporate accounting personnel and other departments, as applicable.
5. Identify training opportunities and implement consistent accounting practices and service standards across the portfolio.

Financial Close and Reporting

1. Lead monthly, quarterly, and annual close processes for the assigned portfolio, including journal entries, accruals, account reconciliations, financial statements, variance explanations, and ownership and lender reporting.
2. Review monthly reporting packages for accuracy, completeness, consistency, and timely delivery to ownership, partners, lenders, and internal stakeholders.
3. Review balance sheet and bank reconciliations, tenant receivables, security deposits, fixed assets, depreciation, debt activity, related-party and intercompany balances, straight-line rent, lease accounting, and other significant estimates.
4. Establish and manage the monthly accounting calendar, including clear expectations for close dates, review milestones, and reporting deadlines.
5. Coordinate distribution of financial reports and schedule monthly cash-flow review meetings for company-owned properties.
6. Develop and improve management reporting, portfolio-level consistency, variance analysis, forecasts, and decision-support tools.
7. Maintain significant interaction with Senior Investment Directors, Investment Managers, Asset Services, and property management teams regarding portfolio activity and financial results.

Internal Controls and Accounting Governance

1. Establish, maintain, document, and monitor accounting policies, procedures, and internal controls for the operating portfolio, including cash management, bank reconciliations, journal-entry approval, accounts payable, accounts receivable, system access, and segregation of duties.
2. Ensure approval workflows and delegated authority limits are followed for disbursements, contracts, banking activity, journal entries, and transactions outside approved budgets.
3. Monitor control exceptions, support fraud-prevention measures, and coordinate timely corrective action when issues are identified.
4. Maintain accounting records and supporting documentation sufficient for financial statement audits, tax compliance, lender reviews, and third-party ownership requirements.
5. Ensure accounting and reporting comply with applicable GAAP, management agreements, ownership requirements, lender requirements, and company policies.

Property Accounting Operations

1. Oversee tenant billing, cash receipts, rent-roll-to-general-ledger reconciliation, accounts receivable, collections reporting, bad-debt and credit-loss analysis, security deposits, and lease-related accounting setup.
2. Oversee accounts payable, vendor controls, operating expense coding, property-level accruals, fixed assets, capital-project accounting, and construction-in-progress transfers for building improvements.
3. Lead accounting for operating expense estimates and recoveries, real estate taxes, insurance recoveries, and other tenant reimbursements.
4. Monitor tenant and company accounts receivable; report delinquencies, collection risks, and recommended actions to management.
5. Coordinate accounting setup for new properties, new legal entities, leases, debt arrangements, ownership structures, and third-party management engagements.

Cash Management, Banking, Debt, and Distributions

1. Review capital calls and loan draws for accuracy, completeness, and appropriate supporting documentation.
2. Calculate and coordinate distributions of available cash flow to owners, including tracking equity, capital balances, preferred return, and other ownership economics as required.
3. Review debt activity, interest calculations, lender reserves and escrows, covenant reporting, compliance certificates, and required lender submissions.
4. Develop and improve cash-management practices, liquidity forecasting, bank-account administration, and controls over electronic payments and checks.

Budgets, Forecasts, and CAM Reconciliations

1. Lead preparation of budget guidelines, assumptions, calendars, and instructions for the operating portfolio.
2. Coordinate and provide portfolio assumptions for personnel and shared departmental costs, including technology, training, and operating platforms.
3. Perform final accounting review of detailed property budgets and forecasts, including consistency with leases, contracts, historical results, capital plans, and ownership assumptions.
4. Lead preparation of CAM and other operating expense reconciliation guidelines and perform final review and approval before reconciliations are submitted to ownership or tenants.
5. Partner with property management and Asset Services to analyze recoverability, gross-ups, caps, exclusions, prior-year true-ups, and supporting documentation.

Audit, Tax, Insurance, and Compliance

1. Coordinate annual financial statement audits and tax-return preparation for the assigned portfolio and respond to auditor and tax-provider inquiries.
2. Coordinate property tax, personal property tax, business license, sales/use tax, 1099, and other applicable reporting requirements with internal personnel and outside providers.
3. Prepare or review tax-basis schedules, tax-estimate support, and responses to notices or information requests, as applicable.
4. Provide property and financial information requested by insurance brokers and support insurance renewals, claims, values, and exposure reporting for the assigned portfolio.
5. Monitor compliance with accounting provisions in management agreements, operating agreements, loan documents, and other governing documents.

Acquisitions, Dispositions, and Technical Accounting

1. Support acquisitions and dispositions of operating assets, including cash-flow projections, opening and closing balance sheets, closing-statement review, prorations, working-capital settlements, purchase accounting support, and transition planning.
2. Research, document, and review accounting treatment for significant or unusual transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions, lease modifications, tenant improvements, capital projects, debt transactions, impairments, ownership restructurings, and related-party transactions.
3. Lead accounting implementation for new property and ownership structures, including chart-of-accounts design, system setup, reporting processes, forecasting, budget controls, and expenditure requests outside approved budgets.
4. Coordinate transitions to and from third-party owners, managers, lenders, and accounting service providers.

Systems, Process Improvement, and Client Service

1. Act as the senior accounting liaison with third-party accounting contacts and work closely with Investment Management and Asset Services to maintain high-quality accounting services.
2. Identify and implement process improvements, automation, standardized reporting, dashboarding, and accounting-system enhancements.
3. Participate in accounting-system implementations, conversions, integrations, chart-of-accounts changes, and user-acceptance testing.
4. Monitor developments in GAAP, lease accounting, automated accounts payable, property accounting systems, budgeting platforms, and other relevant technologies; communicate and train teams on required changes.
5. Participate in new-business proposals, presentations, and special projects as needed.

Requirements

Required Qualifications:

1. Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
2. Eight or more years of progressive accounting experience, including responsibility for financial close, financial reporting, reconciliations, internal controls, and audit support.
3. At least three years of supervisory or team-lead experience, including responsibility for developing staff and managing deadlines.
4. Commercial real estate property operations accounting.
5. Advanced Excel skills and demonstrated proficiency with enterprise or property accounting systems.
6. Working knowledge of GAAP and the ability to research and document accounting conclusions.
7. Strong analytical, problem-solving, organizational, written communication, and interpersonal skills.
8. Ability to manage multiple legal entities, reporting calendars, ownership structures, and stakeholder requirements.

Preferred Qualifications:

1. Certified Public Accountant (CPA) designation and/or an advanced degree.
2. Public accounting experience.
3. Experience with Yardi, MRI, or similar property accounting and lease administration software; Argus or similar real estate cash-flow analysis software is helpful.
4. Experience with portfolio level operations management and lease administration, including complex CAM estimates and reconciliations and comprehensive understanding of fixed and variable expense impacts.
5. Experience with third-party property accounting, acquisitions, dispositions, debt compliance, owner distributions, and CAM reconciliations.
6. Experience with Microsoft 365, banking platforms, electronic accounts-payable systems, budgeting and forecasting tools, and system implementations or conversions.

Physical Demands:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

1. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to walk, sit and use hands and fingers to handle or feel.
2. The employee is required to talk and must be able to read.
3. The employee is occasionally required to stand and reach with hands and arms.
4. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 20 pounds.
5. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and ability to adjust focus.

Work Environment:

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate consisting of usual business office sounds including but not limited to computers, printers, telephones, and light traffic.

The statements herein are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees assigned to this classification. They are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified.

Schnitzer West is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Schnitzer West offers an excellent benefits package including:

• Medical Insurance – Eligible Employees (and their dependents) may choose an HSA or PPO plan through Premera Blue Cross.
• Prescription Drug Insurance – Included with each medical plan.
• Dental Insurance – Eligible employees (and their dependents).
• Vision Insurance – Eligible employees (and their dependents).
• Other Insurance – Basic Life, Accidental Death & Dismemberment Insurance, Short- And Long-Term Disability, Optional Employee-Paid Voluntary Life Insurance.
• Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (DCFSA).
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
• 401(k) Retirement Plan including Employer match.
• Paid Time Off – Three (3) weeks of PTO accrual with increases based on years of service.
• Paid Holidays – Ten (10) paid Holidays per year.

Please note that the salary information shown below is a general guideline only. Salaries are based upon candidate experience and qualifications, as well as market and business considerations.

• Salary: $150,000 - $180,000 Annually - This position is eligible for up to a 30% bonus opportunity based on individual and company performance. This position is full-time in-office.

Salary Description

$150,000 - $180,000 Annually