Manager - Energy Accounting

Cleco•Pineville, LA

25d

About The Position

The Manager - Energy Accounting is a senior-level professional with extensive knowledge and experience in energy and back-office accounting principles, practices, concepts, and theories. The position leads day-to-day Energy/Back Office Accounting activities, including reconciliation and settlement of commodity purchases and sales, and prepares financial statement disclosures for commodity derivatives. The manager works with financial leadership to develop strategic and operational plans aligned with corporate and functional strategy, improves accounting processes and systems, and mentors and develops staff. The role oversees monthly close, analyses, financial and regulatory reporting, fuel audits, inventory reconciliations, deferred fuel calculations, commodity transaction capture and settlement, and related accounting controls. It supervises specified Louisiana Public Service Commission, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and Energy Information Administration filings; supports audits and audited financial statement issuance; and leads development of analytical reporting and process improvements. The manager partners with Finance, Risk Management, and other internal and external stakeholders, develops employees, and promotes transparency, integrity, safety, environmental responsibility, inclusion, customer service, and operational excellence. Other duties may be assigned.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
At least 5 years of related experience.
Strong business acumen pertaining to the utility industry.
Core knowledge of Finance principles, theories, and concepts, and of related local and federal laws and regulations for Energy/Back Office Accounting.
Strong knowledge of leading practices in Energy/Back Office Accounting.
Ability to manage high workloads and conflicting priorities and drive issues to resolution while maintaining collaboration.
Ability to function effectively in a team environment and present ideas and opinions in a respectful and collegial manner.
Strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical-thinking skills to interpret Finance KPIs and metrics and derive actionable opportunities.
Ability to operate effectively and proactively with an employee-centric mindset.
Attention to detail and high work standards.
Strong interpersonal, negotiation, communication, writing, speaking, and listening skills.
Knowledge of GAAP and internal control processes.
Experience and ability to lead staff across projects toward a common vision.
Experience with Microsoft tools and applications.
Adherence to the approved organizational design and structure; progression to this level is restricted based on critical individual capabilities and business requirements.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree preferred.
At least 5 years of people management experience preferred.
Experience with financial systems and SAP preferred.
Understanding of the MISO environment preferred.

Responsibilities

Contribute to the design and development of Energy/Back Office Accounting procedures, processes, and systems; maintain compliance with internal controls and ensure transactions are properly recorded in financial systems.
Lead Energy Accounting activities, including monthly close, analyses, financial and regulatory reporting, fuel audits, and resolution of accounting problems for regulated and unregulated businesses in coordination with stakeholders.
Review natural gas and solid fuel inventory reconciliations for volume accuracy and oversee deferred fuel calculations based on fuel revenues and expenses.
Approve month-end accounting entries and account reconciliations; review settlement discrepancy research; approve mark-to-market journal entries for commodity derivatives; and prepare derivative financial statement disclosures.
Monitor commodity transactions for accurate capture and data quality in the transaction management system; understand contract terms, fees, rates, and payment schedules to ensure settlements are complete and timely.
Supervise preparation of Louisiana Public Service Commission FAC and EAC filings and periodic FERC filings, including EQR and FERC 580, as well as EIA923 filings.
Ensure commodity trading transactions are recorded and reported in compliance with SOX processes; analyze, develop, and implement policies and procedures to improve efficiency and automation and reduce costs.
Lead development of analytical reporting tools and variance reports, and assist with internal and external audits and issuance of audited financial statements.
Use data and analytics to reduce costs and improve program quality; participate in integration of systems such as SAP, FASD, PCI, Horizon, and Tenaska and analytical techniques to streamline operations and improve cycle times.
Develop metrics, historical data and trend analyses, and reports to support decisions, accountability, and communication of insights across Finance and the broader organization.
Maintain business relationships with Finance and external stakeholders to support business objectives; coordinate with Risk Management on contract pricing and risk impacts.
Develop and evaluate employees, communicate performance expectations, review progress, and hold staff accountable to project milestones.
Champion a corporate culture emphasizing transparency, integrity, safety, environmental responsibility, employee development, diversity and inclusion, customer service, and operational excellence.
Perform other duties as assigned.