Director, Finance & Corporate Controller

The Opportunity

Are you committed to making a difference, leading, mentoring, and inspiring others?

Are you a “big picture strategic thinker” with a forward-thinking approach, experienced and comfortable with accounting process optimization?

The AER has an exciting opportunity for you to join us as our next Director of Finance and Corporate Controller, reporting to the Vice President of Finance and CFO. You will be an integral member of the Finance leadership team, responsible for leading your teams in the areas of Financial Reporting, Financial Planning and Analysis (Budgets, Forecasts, Management Reporting), Project Accounting, AR, AP, Treasury and Financial Internal Controls. This includes the maintenance and development of Accounting Records Systems (manual and electronic, including SAP).

As the Director, Finance & Corporate Controller you will provide financial advisory services to AER senior leadership, the Audit and Finance Committee, the Board of Directors and other internal and external stakeholders. You will be a key member of the leadership team, assisting the Vice President, Finance & CFO in fulfilling the Finance branch’s responsibilities, tasks and initiatives on an ongoing basis. 

Your Key Responsibilities:

  • Provide leadership to three managers and 20+ indirect reports. Collaborate, support staff development, inspire, and coach through objective setting and providing ongoing feedback and recognition. Support transparency by providing clear direction and communication of information. Lead employees through significant change, which may include updates to policies, procedures and the overall design of financial controls.
  • Promote continuous improvement and transition workflow to leverage system-based preventative controls. This transition will include examining how best to leverage AER’s current financial systems through to possibly implementing a new ERP Cloud-based system.
  • Financial Reporting - Ensure that all accounts, ledgers, material off-balance-sheet transactions, contingent liabilities and transactions with related parties are in accordance with Public Sector Accounting Standards, Government of Alberta and AER directives and policies. This includes the creation and maintenance of accounting policies. The Controller also liaises with the Office of the Auditor General and the Internal Auditor to ensure the timely closure of finance related audit recommendations.
  • Financial Planning and Analysis and Project Accounting - Provide oversight and participate in annual and multi-year budget development, in-year funding requests, financial forecasts, actual to budget variance analysis, financial modeling and scenario analysis.
  • AP, AR & Levy - Lead activities related to revenue, levy, grants, accounts receivable and allowance for doubtful accounts. Ensure vendors are paid on time and appropriate segregation of duties exists within the P2P and treasury processes.
  • Treasury - Ensure compliance with bank covenants. Maintain safe custody of over $1.5 billion in financial security. Develop and maintain a short-term cash management strategy and policy. Align short and long-term liquidity with cash forecasts. Ensure timely bank reconciliations.
  • Financial Internal Controls - Develop, implement and test internal controls to prevent and detect material errors in financial reporting.

Qualifications:

  • Minimum 5+ years experience in a Director, Controller or similar Senior Management role, leading a team of 10+ accounting professionals.
  • Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) designation is an asset.
  • Knowledgeable in accounting policies, procedures, and common best practices.
  • Experienced in project accounting, cost estimating and overhead allocations.
  • Experience with presenting to senior management and a board of directors is an asset.
  • Previous experience implementing an ERP system is considered an asset.
  • The ability to lead, engage, mentor, and build effective relationships, support employee development, be collaborative and have strong interpersonal skills.
  • Experienced in leading transformational change in a senior leadership role and the ability to craft and articulate transformational ideas and the impact you want to achieve.

Additional Requirements/Information:

  • This position will be subject to pre-employment background screening, including a criminal record check and a financial security check.
  • All applicants must be legally entitled to work in Canada at the time of application.

Additional Working Conditions

We understand the way we do our work has changed and our employees are looking for flexibility with a blend of in-office and remote work. From September 2021 – August 2022, the AER is participating in a 12-month trial to live, learn and adapt our flexible, hybrid model in a way that works for our business and our employees.

What does our hybrid work model look like?

  • Combination of in-office and remote work based on your preference and business needs!
  • Flexible work hours, while committing to being available during our core hours of 9:00am – 3:00pm

If you choose to participate in the hybrid model, you will:

  • Be provided with an AER computer or laptop when working in the office
  • Need to have access to a personal computer when working from home (unless assigned an AER laptop - dependant on business need).
  • Have a high-speed internet connection with a minimum of 50 Mbps for downloads and 30 Mbps for uploads when working remotely

Benefits at the AER

  • Defined benefit pension plan(s)  
  • Personal spending account  
  • Flexible benefits program
  • Work/Life Balance time off programs
  • Healthcare spending account
  • Voluntary Group Savings Programs
  • Employee & Family Assistance Program
  • Visit our careers page for more details on all the AER has to offer!

For Internal Applicants Only

  • Under the AER’s Classification Framework this position is a M6, Level 9
  • In the event a current AER employee would like to apply for an internal posting, the employee will inform their leader prior to submitting their application.
  • Please note: Should an individual with the required qualifications not be available, applicants with closely related qualifications may be considered. As a result, the position may be redesigned and/or reclassified.                           

    Please note, this job advertisement will close July 10, 2022 at midnight.