Director, Portfolio Controlling

RWE•Chicago, IL

2d•$178,000 - $240,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Director, Portfolio Controlling will be part of the Controlling team in the rapidly growing renewables business of RWE Americas (RWEA). The Director role is a highly skilled finance leadership role overseeing a portfolio of renewable energy assets. The Director will manage a team responsible for administering financing agreements (tax equity, debt/loan, joint-venture partnership) including complying with all covenants and compliance obligations, providing external financing parties with required reports and deliverables, and consulting with internal stakeholders and external financing parties to achieve strategic and commercial business objectives. The ideal candidate has deep knowledge of financing agreements, tax equity structures and modeling, is familiar with commercial and operational performance metrics for renewable energy assets and is customer-service minded with strong communication and collaboration skills.

Requirements

BA/BS in Finance / Accounting / Economics / Business (required)
Minimum 12 years of experience in Finance, Accounting, Financial or Management Consulting, or other finance-related fields
Experience with tax equity financing, loan financing, origination/structured finance transactions required.
Minimum 4 years leading functional teams and or transactions
Proven experience leading teams of three or more, with demonstrated strength in people leadership, development, and accountability
Expert understanding of tax equity structures and modeling and financing agreements
Leads with expert analytical and conceptual thinking; solves complex problems; crafts clear, strategic visualizations, anticipates stakeholder dynamics and their needs in analyses.
Fosters a high-performance problem-solving culture within the team through guidance and development.
Collaborates across business units, teams and senior leadership; presents to senior leadership and external financing counterparties on complex matters.
Outstanding communication skills (written and verbal), comfortable interfacing with senior management and external financing parties.
Persuasive communicator who establishes feedback culture and drives consensus building across teams.
Demonstrated leadership and people-management experience.
Manages cross-functional, corporate wide processes, new initiatives or tools.
Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced environment.
Minimum 4 years of relevant experience
Basic knowledge of the core accounting concepts and principles; advanced knowledge is a plus
Strong communication skills (written and verbal) and comfortable interfacing with senior management
Strong interpersonal skills
Actively drives collaboration across functions; explains findings clearly to internal stakeholders; acts as finance partner with asset managers and technical teams
Proven ability to empathize, build relationships, and effectively communicate with people from a diverse set of backgrounds
Focuses on building relationships to standardize processes and solve problems
Applies strong conceptual and analytical thinking; independently runs forecasts and builds models; explains financial trends effectively to business partners; interprets financial data in light of business dynamics
Proficient understanding of forecasting, variance analysis, asset performance metrics and systems/reporting tools (e.g., Power BI)
Detail-oriented, has strong business acumen and analytical mindset, and a sound understanding of business concepts
Motivated self-starter, goal-oriented, and strong problem-solving abilities
Strong organizational skills and ability to coordinate multiple tasks and deliverables
Identifies issues and modifies processes and methods as needed
Demonstrated desire to learn about the Company and the renewables space
Responds well to direction, is easy to challenge and develop, and is coachable
Leads assigned tasks with management direction/guidance
Guides interns/graduates/new joiners

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree is a plus, but not required
Experience within the renewable energy sector preferred
CPA is preferred, but not required
Experience in an FP&A role and/or within the renewable energy sector preferred, but not required
Strong technical background, with advanced proficiency in Excel, SAP, SAC, PowerBI, and/or Tableau a plus

Responsibilities

Lead a team responsible for administering and complying with financing agreements (tax equity, debt/loan, joint-venture partnerships) for a significant portion of RWEA’s operating portfolio, including driving completion of reports/deliverables (monthly operating reports, PAYGO calculations, cash distributions, tracking/flip models, annual operating budgets), tracking project and investor returns, and responding to questions and issues raised by external financing parties
Lead engagement with external financing counterparties, serving as the organization's principal liaison and driving collaborative relationships that support strategic objectives and business outcomes
Manage cross-functional relationships with Legal, Accounting, Tax, and Asset Management to timely deliver all financing obligations, analyze and solve complex strategic topics, and optimize asset-level financial and operational performance
Advise Origination and M&A teams on deal structuring and financing agreement language to steer decisions so the Portfolio Controlling team can effectively administer financing agreements post-closing
Oversee project and investor returns in order to make recommendations to Senior Leadership to optimize financing agreements, including modeling tax equity buyout or restructuring transactions, leading negotiations with external financing parties, and executing transaction agreements
Lead and manage direct reports as well as others within the Portfolio Controlling team, including review of work product, setting clear expectations, building succession depth, and scaling team capabilities in line with portfolio growth and evolving business needs
Drive continuous improvement across processes, including implementing standardized templates, assumptions, and dynamic modeling approaches
Support evolving company priorities, special projects, and integration efforts related to structural changes and accelerated growth targets