Controller of Accounting (Controller)

The Skirball Cultural Center seeks an experienced full-time Controller.

The Controller is a key financial leader responsible for ensuring compliance, accuracy, and efficiency of the accounting operations. Reporting to the CFO, this role manages a small team and oversees critical financial processes, including month-end close, cash management, accounts payable, general ledger, audits, and tax preparation. The Controller also drives process improvements, strengthens internal controls, and provides actionable insights to support organizational decision-making.

Note: This position is on-site. The Controller must work daily from the Skirball Cultural Center campus.

Responsibilities:

Financial Operations & Reporting

• Lead the month-end close process, ensuring timely and accurate financial statements.
• Maintain financial hygiene through regular account reconciliations, petty cash counts, inventory counts, clearing accounts, fixed assets, prepaids accruals, etc.
• Oversee cash management, accounts payable, and general ledger functions.
• Ensure team delivers timely and accurate programmatical and capital projects/expenditures results
• Collaborate with leadership and departments to provide the most effective reporting and information

Compliance, Audit & Budget

• Lead timely year-end audit processes with auditors and tax preparers (990, 5500, 403(b), etc.) ensuring completion which includes schedule preparation, reconciliation and adjustment recording
• Ensure timely submission of statutory reporting as well as other financial (BLS, AG, county, city, state, etc.) reporting and compliance
• Assist in researching and analyzing new accounting standards and ensure appropriate planning and implementation of new standards
• Facilitate departmental cost and trend analysis to identify efficiencies and support decision-making.
• Assist in preparation of annual operating and capital budgets

Team Leadership

• Ensure deadlines are met by actively reprioritizing deliverables as competing priorities evolve to ensure balanced workload while providing CFO timely updates
• Ensure effective archiving process for digital and physical documents/files which complies with records retention policy
• Direct, train, and mentor staff. Actively participate in career development of team

Qualifications, Experience, and Attributes:

• REQUIRED: At least a Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Mathematics, or Economics or the equivalent experience
• PREFERRED: 8+ years of experience in accounting in an operational multi-unit organization
• PREFERRED: Certified Public Accountant License (CPA); experience in accounting for a nonprofit organization
• Skilled thought partner
• Proven experience in staff management, including demonstrated ability to hire, lead, and develop team members
• Self-directs and manages upward comfortably
• Effectively manages multiple projects, dynamically shifts prioritization, operates with both attention-to-detail and big picture focus
• Strong knowledge and application of GAAP especially with regards to restricted gifts and the management of the accounting processes to support clean reporting
• Ability to identify, promote, process / systems efficiencies and aid implementation
• Be a good listener and seek to know competent details of team tasks to better solve new issues and help decision-making
• Effective oral and written communication, including the ability to translate financial data into meaningful information
• Proven skills in accounting/financial systems and processes, as well as strong Excel skills.
• Motivated by collaboration and commitment to provide high quality, timely customer service to internal and external customers

Physical and environmental demands of the job: Prolonged periods sitting at a desk and working on a computer. Must be able to lift up to 15 pounds.