Director of Finance

Sonesta Hotels•St. Louis, MO

28d

About The Position

We’re Sonesta International Hotels. The 8th largest hotel company in the U.S.—and growing fast. An epic blend of full-service and focused hotels in major cities, Sonesta’s uniquely diverse portfolio of owned, managed, and franchised properties makes us everywhere you want to be. Driven by the human side of hospitality, we deliver service with passion, loyalty with purpose, and experiences that truly connect. Together We Thrive—bringing quality, value, and amazing hospitality to every guest, every stay, across 1000+ properties in eight countries and counting. Job Description Summary The Director of Finance sets the tone for Sonesta’s Culture of Caring. We expect leaders to focus on creating amazing moments for guests and team members and dig deep to find ways to create success for their team. The Director of Finance is responsible for creating and executing business plans that are aligned with the property’s and brand’s business strategies. The responsibilities of the Director of Finance include planning, organizing, directing and controlling the financial operations while ensuring the security of hotel assets, maximizing the return on investment, providing timely and accurate reporting and analysis of results and integrity of the management information systems in a decentralized accounting environment. As a member of the hotel’s Executive Committee, the Director of Finance is a highly visible role with exposure to Senior Corporate leaders and Asset Managers of owning entities. Sonesta managers are charged with providing strategic vision, ensuring tactical execution, actively managing their department to achieve the company’s revenue, profitability goals and objectives. The ideal candidate has a passion for building and motivating teams that achieve results. Sonesta managers are guest-focused (both internal and external) achievement-oriented leaders. Job Description Work Environment Majority of work takes place indoors in an office environment. Physical Demands The person in this role may be exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally, and/or 20 pounds of force frequently or constantly. The person in this role may be carrying, lifting or pulling items weighing up to 50lbs and pushing and / or pulling approximately 200lbs. The person in this role will be frequently standing up, bending, climbing, kneeling and moving about the hotel. Expected Hours of Work Must be flexible to work variable days of the week to include weekends and holidays. Must be flexible to work variable shifts (days, nights, overnights). Ten to twelve hour shifts sometimes required. Travel Up to 10% travel may be required.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting/Finance or equivalent required.
8+ years’ experience in accounting in a hotel environment.
Demonstrated progressive career growth and a pattern of exceptional performance.

Nice To Haves

CPA certification or MBA degree preferred.

Responsibilities

Ensure compliance with company policies and local standard operating procedures.
Lead in the completion, review and presentation of monthly forecasts, annual operating and capital budgets and business plans prepared by hotel management team to provide stakeholders with reasonable and achievable guidelines of performance aligned with the Company’s and brand’s strategic direction.
Prepare accurate, timely and complete monthly financial statements with detailed workpapers and schedules in accordance with the company’s policies and procedures, applicable hotel management agreements, Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry (USALI).
Develop and implement local accounting and financial control procedures and systems to ensure compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley (Sox) 404 key controls, safeguard assets, improve operations and profitability.
Responsible for risk management to preserve hotel property and reduce potential liability claims.
Ensure hotel complies with all federal, state and local laws and fiscal regulations, including license and permit requirements.
Manage and control receivables, payables, credit, payroll, cash handling and treasury functions with the hotel’s accounting department staff.
Develop, implement and monitor hotel-specific A/R Responsibility Matrix and credit and collection practices in compliance with company-level policies and procedures.
Distribute outlook and forecast information as an up-to-date management tool for operating departments, review and analyze variance versus actual results to measure and improve accuracy.
Collaborate with department managers to provide stakeholders with meaningful explanations for variances to budget.
Maintain insurance coverage for protection against property losses and potential liabilities.
Use financial and operational performance analysis, including benchmarking, to maximize hotel’s revenue, GOP flow-through and bottom-line financial return.
Assist operations to improve the accuracy of work schedules and set labor standards to maximize productivity.
Monitor and accurately measure actual labor usage versus labor standards to ensure timely reporting and decision-making.
Comply with record retention as required for internal and external audits, coordinate audit visits and respond to auditor requests.
Ensure compliance with government regulations, federal, state and local laws and contractual agreements, including CBA’s.
Monitor purchasing/ordering/delivery compliance, analyze reports from company mandated buying programs, and approve all purchases, salaries and expenses.
Ensure timely and accurate sales, use and occupancy tax return and compliance form filing preparation as required.
Perform any other job-related duties as assigned.
Set departmental goals and strategy to align to company mission.
Provide leadership by clearly communicating financial concepts when rolling out initiatives and projects, measures and reports on actual versus anticipated results.
Develop a strong business relationship with owners by understanding the priorities and strategic focus, attending and participating in meetings, addressing owner requests and initiatives, and demonstrating a comprehensive understanding of the terms and provisions of hotel management agreements.
Ensure that all licenses, permits, contracts and legal agreements are up to date.
Interview, hire, train, and promote Finance department staff.
Provide constructive and consistent feedback and recommend disciplinary action when appropriate.
Ensure team members receive proper training applicable to their position and career aspirations and in accordance with company policy.
Responsible for monitoring, measuring, and recognizing performance of team members who directly report to the role and indirect reports
Support, comply and promote company initiative, policies and guidelines.
Handle employee issues in a professional and timely manner.
Responsible for ensuring success through the eyes of employees, guests, and owners.
Promote teamwork and quality service to all stakeholders including guests, vendors, Accounting staff, regulatory agencies and owners.
Utilize and collaborate with resources across different departments and corporate office.
Capable of influencing employees to perform to their highest standard and establishing a trusting environment to enrich the culture.
Focus on the mission and well-being of the department, hotel, and company as a whole.
Lead by example and operate with integrity and respect.
Inspire your team to embrace and demonstrate our values and GUEST People Standards.