Financial Controller

About Us

Hilton Vancouver Downtown is a 206-room full-service hotel in the heart of downtown Vancouver, steps from Robson Street and the city’s sports and entertainment district. We’re hiring a hands-on Financial Controller to lead finance for our hotel and our sister property, Hotel Belmont Vancouver (84 rooms), a short walk away. The role is based at Hilton Vancouver Downtown, with regular time on-site at Hotel Belmont. You’ll work closely with the Hotel Belmont General Manager and team, as well as our ownership group, Pacific Reach.

About the role

You'll own accounting, reporting, tax, audit and controls for both hotels, lead a small finance team, and be a real business partner to each General Manager and to Pacific Reach head office. No two months are the same. Alongside the monthly close, you'll handle owner and investor reporting for a stratified hotel, support major renovation and capital projects, and help guide a brand transition.

If you enjoy being close to the operation, like owning the numbers end to end, and want more scope than a single-property controller role, we'd like to hear from you.

What you'll do

Month-end close and reporting

• Lead the month-end close for both hotels on one combined calendar
• Prepare monthly USALI financial statements with clear variance commentary against budget, forecast and prior year
• Post month-end adjustments, accruals, prepaids and allocations
• Complete and review all balance sheet reconciliations each month
• Record and reconcile inter-company transactions (operating and capital) between the hotels and related Pacific Reach entities
• Lead monthly financial reviews with each General Manager
• Maintain fixed asset registers and depreciation schedules

Collaboration with head office

• Partner with Pacific Reach head office as the hotels' finance lead, making sure their reporting, information and deadline needs are met
• Prepare monthly reporting packages and ad-hoc analysis for head office and ownership
• Coordinate capital purchases and project spending with the Pacific Reach development team
• Align budgets, forecasts and accounting policies with head office standards and timelines
• Support head office on audits, financing, tax and portfolio-wide initiatives
• Take on special projects from the General Managers and the corporate office

Budgeting, forecasting and cash

• Build annual operating and capital budgets for each hotel with the GMs and department heads
• Prepare monthly reforecasts and a rolling year-end outlook
• Manage cash flow forecasting, bank accounts and transfers
• Reconcile the FF&E reserve bank account and track capital and renovation spend against budget

Owners, investors and strata

• Calculate and process investor distributions accurately and on schedule
• Prepare monthly individual owner statements and respond to owner inquiries
• Coordinate the upload of investor statements to the owner website
• Resolve strata corporation billing issues with the strata manager
• Issue strata common-area invoices with full supporting backup

Revenue, payables and controls

• Oversee income audit, credit card reconciliations, city ledger and collections
• Approve purchase orders, and review and authorize invoices and payments
• Support Accounts Payable as needed, with strong vendor setup and payment-fraud controls
• Review contracts for financial terms, payment obligations and renewal dates
• Reconcile brand franchise, loyalty and program fees
• Maintain a strong internal control framework, including approval limits and segregation of duties

Payroll, tax and compliance

• Review payroll and labour reporting, and ensure compliance with the BC Employment Standards Act
• File GST, PST, MRDT, payroll remittances, Employer Health Tax, WorkSafeBC and other taxes and fees on time
• Coordinate annual external audits for both hotels
• Complete statistical surveys for government and industry bodies

Leadership and team

• Lead, coach and cross-train the finance team across both hotels
• Provide vacation coverage for the Assistant Controller and Accounts Payable
• Attend leadership meetings at both hotels as an active member of each executive team

What you bring

• CPA designation, or a degree in accounting or finance with equivalent experience
• 5+ years as a hotel Controller or Assistant Controller, ideally in full-service or branded hotels
• Solid knowledge of USALI, GST/PST/MRDT, payroll remittances and BC employment standards
• Experience leading year-end audits
• Advanced Excel skills and experience with hotel PMS, POS and accounting systems
• Clear communication: you can explain the numbers to GMs, owners and head office
• Highly organized, able to manage two closes and competing deadlines without losing accuracy
• A collaborative style: you work well with operations, head office, auditors and outside partners
• Ability to think forward and critically to stay ahead of the curve. Fearlessly embrace technology and new methods.
• Legally entitled to work in Canada

Nice to have

• Multi-property or cluster finance experience
• Experience with strata or condo-hotel ownership and investor reporting
• Hilton and/or other franchise finance systems
• Experience with Microsoft Great Plains

What we offer

• Extended health and dental benefits
• RRSP matching
• Chainwide Hotel travel discounts and F&B discounts
• Room to grow within a multi-hotel ownership group
• A central downtown location close to SkyTrain

How to apply

Apply through Indeed with your resume and a short cover letter telling us about your hotel finance experience. We thank all applicants; only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

Benefits:

• Dental care
• Discounted or free food
• Extended health care
• Life insurance
• On-site parking
• Paid time off
• RRSP match
• Store discount
• Vision care

Work Location: In person