Senior Project Accountant

Sealaska/Woocheen Family of Businesses•Signal Hill, CA

3d•$45 - $55•Hybrid

About The Position

The Senior Project Accountant is responsible for the financial administration, reporting, and compliance of multiple construction/drilling projects from project setup through closeout. This position serves as a critical business partner to Project Managers by ensuring project accounting activities are completed accurately, timely, and in accordance with contract requirements, company policies, and accounting standards. The Senior Project Accountant must possess a thorough understanding of construction accounting, job costing, owner contracts, billing requirements, subcontract administration, certified payroll compliance, and project financial reporting. This role also provides leadership, training, and support to Project Accountants while promoting consistency and continuous improvement across project accounting functions. This role can hybrid or remote, depending on location.

Requirements

Strong understanding of construction accounting and project lifecycle accounting.
Thorough knowledge of job costing principles and project financial reporting.
Advanced proficiency with construction ERP systems and Microsoft Excel.
Ability to analyze complex financial data and resolve accounting discrepancies independently.
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
Excellent communication skills with project teams, field personnel, subcontractors, customers, and management.
Demonstrated ability to train, mentor, and support accounting staff.
Working knowledge of AIA Pay applications
Working knowledge of Unit-price billing
Working knowledge of Certified Payroll Reporting (CPR)
Working knowledge of California lien laws
Working knowledge of Prevailing wage requirements
Working knowledge of Davis-Bacon requirements
Working knowledge of Bonding and insurance requirements
Working knowledge of CSI cost coding structures
Working knowledge of Work-in-Progress (WIP) reporting
Associate degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or related field required.
Minimum 5 years of progressive project accounting experience in the construction industry.
Experience interpreting owner contracts and extracting accounting, billing, and compliance requirements.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's degree preferred.
Experience with commercial, public works, and prevailing wage projects preferred.
Sage 300 CRE experience strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

Train, mentor, and support Project Accountants to promote high-quality work and professional growth.
Serve as a subject matter expert for construction accounting processes and procedures.
Review work for accuracy and provide coaching and corrective guidance as needed.
Promote standardization, process improvement, and best practices across the accounting team.
Foster collaboration and knowledge sharing between Accounting, Operations, and Project Management.
Maintain a working knowledge of owner contracts and independently identify accounting, billing, retention, reporting, labor compliance, and certified payroll requirements.
Ensure accounting activities are performed in accordance with contract terms and project-specific requirements.
Track and ensure receipt of fully executed owner contracts, subcontracts, purchase agreements, and change orders.
Review contract documents to identify project-specific billing requirements and compliance obligations.
Support setup and maintenance of subcontracts, purchase agreements, and professional service agreements.
Verify compliance with California lien laws, contractual notice requirements, insurance, bonding, and documentation requirements.
Ensure Exhibit A and other contract exhibits align with project scope, contract values, taxes, bonds, and insurance requirements.
Perform project setup within Sage 300 CRE, including Job Cost, Contracts, and Accounts Receivable modules.
Generate and/or enter original project estimates and budgets to align with executed contracts.
Enter estimate transfers and maintain project budgets throughout the project lifecycle.
Set up and maintain subcontract commitments within Sage.
Review and maintain committed costs to ensure accuracy and completeness.
Process owner and subcontract change orders and ensure reconciliation to modified contract values.
Verify all project financial data ties accurately to contract values and approved changes.
Maintain an in-depth understanding of project costs, cost coding structures, and job cost reporting.
Perform monthly job cost analysis and reconciliation in collaboration with Project Managers.
Review project cost reports and identify inaccuracies, omissions, or unusual cost trends.
Prepare and process job cost reclassification entries as needed.
Update and maintain missing cost reports to support month-end close activities.
Monitor project financial performance, committed costs, cost-to-complete estimates, and budget variances.
Provide financial insights and recommendations to Project Managers and Operations leadership.
Participate in monthly Work-in-Progress (WIP) meetings and weekly project review meetings.
Maintain a working knowledge of WIP reporting and project profitability analysis.
Partner with Project Managers to ensure billings are prepared accurately and submitted timely in accordance with contract requirements.
Maintain a working knowledge of AIA billing formats, unit-price contracts, lump-sum contracts, and project-specific billing requirements.
Understand and support field billing processes and related documentation requirements.
Prepare, review, and submit owner billings through Sage and external customer platforms as required.
Verify supporting documentation required for billing submissions is complete and compliant.
Monitor accounts receivable aging and coordinate collection efforts on assigned projects.
Follow up with customers regarding outstanding invoices and payment delays.
Document collection activities and escalate unresolved issues to management when appropriate.
Coordinate with Project Managers and customers to resolve billing disputes.
Review, approve, and enter project-related vendor invoices through established workflows.
Investigate and resolve invoice discrepancies with vendors and project teams.
Ensure compliance with contractual pricing, payment terms, and project requirements.
Prepare and support project-related accounts payable accruals during month-end close.
Assist the Accounts Payable team with project-specific questions and reconciliations.
Research and respond to vendor inquiries regarding project-related invoices and payments.
Review subcontractor invoices/pay applications for accuracy and completeness.
Verify receipt of all required subcontractor documentation, including: Executed contracts, Insurance certificates, Bonds, Conditional and unconditional lien waivers, Certified payroll documentation, Approved change of orders.
Process approved subcontractor invoices and pay applications in Sage.
Assist with subcontractor administration and payment processing as needed.
Release subcontractor payments in accordance with contract terms and management approval.
Maintain accurate subcontract commitment records and documentation.
Maintain a working knowledge of prevailing wage and labor compliance requirements.
Interpret certified payroll obligations contained within owner contract documents.
Ensure project accounting activities comply with Davis-Bacon, prevailing wage, and other applicable labor regulations.
Assist CPR Specialist as required.
Verify subcontractor compliance with certified payroll requirements prior to payment processing.
Support timely and accurate project closeout activities.
Ensure project files are complete, organized, and maintained in digital format.
Confirm final project costs align with contractual and accounting requirements.
Complete final reconciliations, cost adjustments, and closeout reporting.
Assist in resolving outstanding billing, retention, subcontract, and documentation issues prior to project closure.
Assist estimating teams during bid preparation as requested.
As requested, research project specifications and general requirements for bid submissions.
As requested, assist with subcontractor outreach and bid solicitation efforts.
Support project startup and closeout logistics as requested, including coordination of temporary project services and site requirements.
Other duties as assigned