Controller

Description A Top 100 Firm, Brown Edwards provides assurance, tax and business advisory services to a diverse clientele. With firm-wide staff of approximately 450 professionals, our accounting firm is one of the largest independent CPA firms in the Virginia / West Virginia / Tennessee region. We support individuals and businesses ranging from small companies to large corporations. Our success is directly attributable to an unyielding commitment to excellence in every aspect of our work. Core Values: Integrity : Community : Respect : Excellence : Transformative We are seeking a highly skilled, detail-driven Controller to support and strengthen the financial operations of our firm. The ideal candidate brings prior CPA firm experience-either in a controller/finance role or as a client-facing professional who understands the economics, workflows, and revenue model of a public accounting practice. This position is hands-on, accuracy-focused, and heavily involved in general ledger detail, financial analytics, and budgeting. The Controller oversees the firm's core accounting processes, leads internal billers, and provides validation and oversight of data coming from the practice management system through review of reports prepared by the Assistant Controller and billing team. What your day looks like: Financial Management & Reporting Maintain the integrity of the firm's general ledger, ensuring timely and accurate posting, reconciliation, and documentation of all activity. Prepare monthly and annual financial statements with analytical review of variances, margins, and key performance indicators. Oversee all account reconciliations such as bank, credit card, WIP, and AR. Budgeting Assist with the annual budgeting process, partnering with the CFO, partners, and operational leaders. Develop budget templates, assumptions, and analysis tools. Operational Accounting Leadership Supervise internal billers to ensure accuracy, timeliness, and compliance with firm billing policies. Oversee the Assistant Controller's work product, including practice management data extractions, WIP/AR reports, and billing/scheduling analytics. Validate key reports generated from time and billing system. Ensure proper accounting treatment for partner compensation, distributions, benefits, and tax-related items. Systems & Data Oversight Oversee the financial reporting system, ensuring accurate GL structure, reporting, and process flow. Maintain sufficient working knowledge of time and billing software to pull reports, reconcile financial data, and verify output produced by the Assistant Controller and billing staff. Identify opportunities to improve data integrity, automation, and reporting tools. Internal Controls, Compliance & Process Improvement Maintain strong internal controls around billing, collections, cash disbursements, payroll, and financial reporting. Support CFO with lender, insurance, tax, and regulatory reporting. Recommend and implement process enhancements to improve accuracy, efficiency, and transparency. What you need for this role: Bachelor's degree in Accounting. CPA designation preferred. Prior experience in a CPA firm-finance, controller, senior accountant, or client-facing role. Strong GAAP technical knowledge. High attention to detail with willingness to work hands-on in transactional accounting and GL review. Demonstrated experience managing staff and overseeing accounting processes. Strong communication, organizational, analytical, and problem solving skills with a continuous-improvement mindset. Intermediate to advanced level Microsoft Office Suite. Experience with Microsoft Dynamics GP or similar accounting software. Familiarity with CCH Practice Management or similar time and billing system. Understanding of CPA firm KPIs (WIP, AR aging, realization, utilization, billable vs. non-billable). What you can expect from us: Full benefits package including: Medical, Dental, Vision, FSA and HSA options, STD/LTD, Firm-paid Life Insurance, and Supplemental Life, Critical Illness and Accident coverages. 401K Profit Sharing Plan with pre-tax and Roth deferral options and employer match. Competitive compensation and annual merit considerations. Annual and engagement-based performance assessments. Firm-wide Peer Recognition and Rewards platform to support our culture of year-round positive feedback and communication. Flexible working options with generous PTO. "Dress for Your Day" policy. Continuing Professional Education (CPE). Participation in professional and civic organizations is encouraged! Brown Edwards is proud to be deeply involved in many charitable organizations that give back to our communities. We even offer reimbursements for some membership dues.

Created: 2026-03-04