Director Level Controller - Music Industry

Feb. 8, 2012

New York, NY

Confidential

Our well-established client is growing and needs your help! MSB Talent is recruiting on behalf of our client, a world leader in the music industry, for a highly motivated Director level Controller to join the Finance team, based in the New York City area. This global music industry organization is a great place to grow your career. Your future is here. . .contact us today

This is an exciting opportunity to work in a Media business undergoing a period of rapid change and development, with a Finance team driven by a commitment to deliver excellent standards of service. It is essential that the individual have an interest in being part of a developing department with a constructive approach to change -- this is a challenging role which offers a real opportunity to contribute to a growing, changing business.

Key duties and responsibilities include:

Responsible for a team of 7-10 professionals, covering all areas of financial reporting. The finance team is responsible for accounts payable, royalty accounting, general ledger accounting, credit control, banking & cash management and the monthly consolidation of actual financial results to the worldwide office

Manage the team effectively to establish clear roles & responsibilities and a calendar of activities

Communicate priorities & manage workload and workflow

Assist with the training, performance appraisals and future development of the finance team and ensure that there are cross-functional skills and knowledge within the team to enable a timely and efficient service to be delivered at all times

Ensure that there is an open and productive dialogue with North American business directors

Continue the development of processes and procedures to successfully integrate the new customised Royalties and Licensing systems into the General and Sales Ledgers and ensure that maximum benefit is derived in all finance processes from the increased automation and quality of data provided by the new systems

Responsible for entry and/or review of all journal entries

Responsible for managing the delivery of timely and accurate Balance Sheet reconciliations on a monthly basis

Preparation of monthly P&L, balance sheet and cash flow reporting for each North American entity on a monthly basis, or as required

Ensure that there is appropriate segregation of duties within the team and that the control environment is robust and appropriate. Full documentation of all approved finance processes and procedures is essential

Ensure there are clear points of contact within the finance team for our client's business directors, external clients and key service providers including payroll companies and external financial accountants

Define, issue, update & monitor the period close timetable and ensure any issues are followed up effectively

Manage the external audit cycles and work collaboratively with the corporate auditor to adhere to financial reporting standards and timetables

Continuously improve the automation of finance processes and respond in a timely and professional manner to business needs and priorities

Ability to recognise and recommend actions to reduce costs and increase revenues

The Person

Job specific skills

o CPA with 8+ years experience

o Audit experience with a Big Four firm, a plus

o Prior experience as a controller, a plus

o Advanced user of Microsoft Office Software applications, particularly Excel, and ability to learn and reconcile to other customised systems

o Ability to analyse accounting data and communicate effectively at a senior level to explain issues and results

o Experience of working in a multi-currency environment is essential

Communication

o Ability to communicate effectively with senior management in the business and explain finance issues in a clear manner to non-finance professionals

Teamwork & collaboration

o Experienced and effective at managing and developing people, including conducting performance appraisals, assessing development and training needs, monitoring and correcting performance issues

o Ensure that the North American finance team operates effectively as a team, sharing knowledge and information to enable services to be delivered in a seamless, timely and professional manner

o Open-minded and motivated to change processes and procedures where this would result in a more effective service

Time & work management

o Manages self and delegates effectively to others to complete tasks, follows through on open issues and meets deadlines in the most efficient and effective way, ensuring that open items are resolved satisfactorily

o Sets priorities and plans workload for self and others efficiently and with clear deadlines and deliverables

o Consults line manager where appropriate to communicate ideas or solutions, solve problems and complete tasks and projects to deadlines

o Able to make appropriate decisions, with broader business implications in mind, enabling issues to move forward to completion

Initiative & motivation

o Flexible, effective and enthusiastic approach to implementing tasks, taking on new assignments, managing projects and servicing requests

o Continuously strives to improve performance and efficiency

o Proven ability to think through issues in a constructive manner and recommend and effect appropriate actions and solutions

If interested and you meet all qualifications, please forward your resume via email to: cschilling(at)msbtalent(dot)com with the "Controller-music industry" in the subject field.