POSITION SUMMARY
The Controller is the accounting lead for Sonance Financial and is responsible for owning the books, monthly close, reconciliations, consolidated reporting, audit readiness, accounting controls, and integration of newly acquired entities.
This is a hands-on, high-ownership role for a technically strong accounting operator who can maintain accurate books across multiple entities, currencies, and reporting frameworks while building scalable close and reconciliation processes. The Controller must be able to explain financial statement variances, enforce balance sheet discipline, manage intercompany accounting, oversee junior accounting team members, and ensure the company produces complete, accurate, review-ready financial statements within 15 business days of month-end.
The ideal candidate has experience in financial services, wealth management, investment advisory, or another regulated / multi-entity environment, with strong command of NetSuite, intercompany transactions, multi-currency accounting, IFRS, U.S. GAAP, and audit support.
WHAT WE NEED FROM YOU
Accounting Leadership, Books Ownership & Monthly Close
- Serve as the primary accounting lead and owner of the general ledger, chart of accounts, and accounting records, with responsibility for full-cycle accounting across multiple entities, including journal entries, accruals, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll-related entries, prepaids, fixed assets, intercompany activity, account reconciliations, and month-end / year-end close.
- Own and continuously improve the monthly close process, with a clear mandate to deliver complete, accurate, review-ready financial statements within 15 business days of month-end.
- Establish and manage the monthly close calendar, including clear deadlines, preparer / reviewer responsibilities, supporting schedules, variance analysis requirements, and completion tracking.
- Ensure the accounting function operates with strong discipline, accuracy, documentation, and accountability in a fast-growing PE-backed environment.
Reconciliations, Variance Analysis & Financial Reporting
- Own the balance sheet reconciliation process across all entities, including reconciliation templates, preparation standards, review cadence, supporting documentation, aging items, and timely resolution of reconciling differences.
- Prepare, review, and explain monthly financial statements, management reports, and supporting schedules for VP, Finance & Operations review.
- Analyze and explain financial statement variances, including actual-to-budget, actual-to-prior period, entity- and department-level, revenue, expense, margin, working capital, and balance sheet fluctuations, supported by clear explanations, source documentation, and appropriate follow-up actions.
- Maintain financial reporting packages that are accurate, timely, consistent, and suitable for management, board, lender, investor, and audit review.
- Support budgeting, forecasting, and financial modeling as required by leadership, working from accurate actuals and clear variance analysis.
- Support investment-related transaction accounting and regulatory reporting requirements specific to portfolio management and advisory operations.
Multi-Entity, Multi-Currency & Intercompany Accounting
- Maintain accurate books across multiple entities and currencies, including foreign currency transactions, remeasurement, translation, consolidation adjustments, and financial reporting under IFRS, U.S. GAAP, or local statutory requirements, as applicable.
- Own intercompany accounting across entities, including charges, allocations, eliminations, settlements, reconciliations, and foreign exchange impacts, ensuring all multi-currency and intercompany activity is accurately recorded, reconciled, explained, and eliminated as part of the monthly close and consolidation process.
- Maintain appropriate documentation for accounting treatment, exchange rate assumptions, intercompany balances, and consolidation entries.
NetSuite, Systems & Process Improvement
- Operate confidently in NetSuite in a multi-entity, multi-currency environment, maintaining and improving accounting workflows including entity structure, chart of accounts discipline, reporting dimensions, approval workflows, journal entry controls, and close-related reporting.
- Identify and implement process improvements, including system enhancements, automation initiatives, and platform integrations, to increase close efficiency, reconciliation quality, reporting accuracy, audit readiness, and internal control effectiveness as the company grows.
- Prior experience migrating entities from QuickBooks, Sage, or other accounting systems into NetSuite is a strong asset.
Acquisitions & Entity Integration
- Lead accounting onboarding for newly acquired entities, including opening balance sheet validation, chart of accounts mapping, accounting policy conversion, NetSuite integration, close calendar alignment, reporting package standardization, and reconciliation setup.
- Integrate acquired entities into Sonance Financial’s consolidated accounting and reporting framework.
- Develop and customize integration checklists, reconciliation processes, and documentation to fit each entity’s specific needs.
- Identify and document differences between legacy accounting practices and Sonance Financial’s accounting policies, including differences related to cash basis accounting, accrual accounting, IFRS, U.S. GAAP, and local statutory requirements.
- Coordinate with external advisors, auditors, and internal leadership on conversion adjustments, acquisition-related accounting, entity setup, and financial reporting compliance.
Audit, Controls & Compliance
- Own audit preparation and coordination end-to-end, including audit schedules, reconciliations, working papers, supporting documentation, timeline management, and direct communication with auditors.
- Maintain and continuously improve internal controls, accounting policies, standard operating procedures, close checklists, reconciliation templates, and audit support processes, keeping accounting records audit-ready and supported by clear documentation.
- Prepare and file GST / HST, payroll remittances, and other recurring compliance filings as required.
- Coordinate with external tax advisors and other professional service providers on tax, statutory, and compliance matters.
Cash Flow, Treasury & Payments
- Monitor cash balances across entities and currencies.
- Support cash flow forecasting, payment management, banking activity, credit card activity, and intercompany settlements, ensuring related balance sheet accounts are reconciled timely and accurately.
Team Leadership
- Supervise, mentor, and develop two junior accounting team members.
- Set clear priorities, assign responsibilities, review work, enforce deadlines, and ensure accounting tasks are completed accurately and on time.
- Build a team culture of ownership, accuracy, responsiveness, documentation, and accountability.
- Provide hands-on coaching around reconciliations, journal entries, accounts payable, accounts receivable, close procedures, and audit support.
QUALIFICATIONS
Education & Experience
- Degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field required.
- CPA designation strongly preferred.
- 8+ years of progressive accounting experience, including meaningful experience as the accounting lead or primary owner of the books, close process, balance sheet reconciliations, variance explanations, and audit support in a multi-entity environment.
- Proven ability to deliver accurate monthly financial statements and reconciliations within a disciplined close timeline.
- Experience with IFRS and U.S. GAAP required, including the ability to identify, document, explain, and reconcile accounting differences between frameworks.
- Experience with multi-currency accounting, foreign exchange, intercompany transactions, consolidations, and entity-level reporting.
- Experience integrating acquired entities into a standardized accounting, reporting, close, and control environment.
- Experience in financial services, wealth management, investment advisory, portfolio management, insurance, tax services, or another regulated environment is a strong asset.
- Prior supervisory experience required, including experience managing junior accounting staff.
Systems Experience
- NetSuite experience strongly preferred, ideally in a multi-entity and multi-currency environment. Experience with QuickBooks, Sage, or similar systems is an asset, particularly where the candidate has migrated or integrated entities into NetSuite.
- Strong Microsoft Excel skills required.
- Experience with Ramp or other expense management and corporate card systems, as well as automation and workflow tools that streamline close, reconciliation, and reporting, is an asset.
Skills & Competencies
- Ability to explain financial results clearly: what changed, why it changed, whether it is accurate, and what follow-up is required.
- High attention to detail with strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
- Self-directed and comfortable operating with limited oversight in a dynamic, fast-changing environment.
- Strong communication skills and the ability to work effectively with finance, operations, leadership, auditors, tax advisors, and acquired-company teams.
- Comfortable being hands-on while also managing and developing junior team members.
- Strong sense of ownership and accountability, with the ability to enforce deadlines and maintain control quality without losing sight of business needs.
Sonance Financial is an equal opportunity employer. We thank all applicants for their interest; only those selected for an interview will be contacted.
The pay range for this role is:
120,000.00 - 150,000.00 CAD per year (Toronto, Ontario (Hybrid))
