This is a hands-on operational controller role within a growing multi-national company operating in both the United States and Canada. The Controller will serve as the financial operations bridge between Uptime’s bookkeepers and executive leadership, owning month-end close, financial reporting, variance analysis, accounting controls, workflow documentation, and accounting process discipline.
While the Controller is responsible for financial oversight, reporting, controls, documentation, and process ownership, they are also expected to participate in day-to-day accounting operations as needed. The Controller serves as the escalation point and backup resource for accounting staff and may directly perform accounting tasks during periods of vacation, leave, high workload, or business need. While the role includes both oversight and execution of AP, AR, payroll, and related accounting workflows, its primary focus is financial accuracy, timely reporting, process maturity, and actionable financial insight.
Goal & Purpose of Role: The Controller is responsible for ensuring timely, accurate, and well-documented financial operations across the company. This role owns the monthly book-close process, financial reporting, variance analysis, accounting process documentation, and oversight of key financial workflows, including AP, AR/client Plan Management, payroll oversight, tax reporting support, bank reporting, and internal controls. Success in this role will be measured by financial accuracy, timely close and reporting, documented and consistently followed workflows, reduced errors, and the ability to provide clear financial insight to leadership.
Reports To: President & COO
Primary Responsibilities:
Month-End Close & Financial Reporting
- Manage and prepare the month-end close process, including month-close process management, task completion, account reconciliations, adjusting entries, and review of financial data for accuracy and completeness.
- Prepare monthly financial statements, including Income Statement, Balance Sheet, and supporting schedules.
- Prepare Budget vs. Actual reporting with variance analysis, explanations, and recommended follow-up actions.
- Prepare monthly internal financial reporting for leadership.
- Prepare required financial reports for banks, lenders, and financial vendors.
- Identify trends, risks, anomalies, and reporting issues requiring leadership attention.
Accounting Operations Oversight
- Oversee AP, AR, client plan management, payroll, fixed asset, loan/lease, vendor management, and related accounting workflows.
- Perform AP, AR, payroll-related, reconciliation, or other accounting tasks directly when needed due to workload, vacation coverage, leave coverage, issue escalation, or business need.
- Review accounting work prepared by bookkeepers for accuracy, completeness, proper coding, and documentation.
- Monitor and direct AR workflows, AR-aging, payment issues, and collection risks.
- Monitor and direct vendor invoice-payable workflows, invoice accuracy, vendor statement reconciliation, and receipt/documentation compliance.
- Monitor and direct client plan management and client-invoicing workflows and invoice accuracy.
- Oversee fixed asset reporting, loan/lease tracking, vendor invoice audits, and payroll oversight.
Compliance: Tax, Government, Accounting
- Reporting and schedule creation for third-party financial institutions as well as Uptime’s accountants.
- Monitor and direct monthly GST reporting and payment.
- Montior and direct sales/use tax reporting.
- Corporate tax prep coordination and support for accountants.
- Respond to accountant requests.
Internal Controls, Process Documentation & Workflow Oversight
- Create, maintain, and continuously improve accounting process documentation, checklists, and workflow instructions.
- Ensure accounting workflows are clearly documented, current, assigned, and consistently followed.
- Develop and maintain controls, reconciliations, reviews, and audit tools to reduce errors and improve accountability.
- Oversee approval workflows for AP, vendor management, payments, chargebacks, payroll-related processes, and other financial operations.
- Review account reconciliations and investigate discrepancies between QuickBooks, bank records, vendor statements, loan balances, and internal workbooks.
- Oversee intercompany transactions and transfers between U.S. and Canadian entities.
- Identify recurring process issues, root causes, and opportunities for automation or improved workflow design.
- Ensure payment systems and automatic payment workflows are functioning as intended.
Team Oversight
- Initially, this role will provide workflow, process, and accounting oversight for Uptime’s bookkeeping team. The Controller will assign, review, monitor, and improve accounting workflows but will not initially have direct HR management responsibility for accounting staff.
- Direct people-management responsibilities, including performance reviews and formal employee management, may be added over time based on business needs and successful performance in the role. This would be a growth and career path opportunity.
- The Controller is expected to maintain sufficient familiarity with day-to-day accounting operations to serve as a backup resource for accounting staff during vacations, leaves, peak workload periods, and other business needs.
Education, Experience & Competencies
Required experience
- Minimum 5 years of progressive accounting or financial operations experience.
- Minimum 3 years of hands-on QuickBooks experience, including month-end close, reconciliations, financial reporting, and general ledger management.
- Experience independently owning month-end close, including preparation of financial statements and variance analysis.
- Experience preparing Budget vs. Actual reporting with variance explanations and follow-up detail.
- Experience developing or maintaining accounting controls, audit procedures, reconciliations, checklists, and workflow documentation.
- Experience overseeing AP, AR, payroll-related workflows, or other accounting operations performed by others.
- Experience with some combination of GST/HST or sales/use tax.
- Experience with payroll oversight, bank/lender reporting, and loan/lease tracking.
Strongly Preferred Experience
- Experience supporting operations in both the United States and Canada.
- Multi-entity, multi-currency, or intercompany accounting experience.
- Experience creating audit tools or review workflows for AP, vendor management, receipts, payment approvals, or account reconciliations.
- Experience in a recurring revenue, managed services, technology, legal services, or professional services environment.
Education / Credentials
- Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or related field preferred.
- CPA designation preferred but not required.
- Equivalent hands-on accounting leadership experience will be considered.
Systems Experience
- Advanced hands-on QuickBooks experience required.
- Strong Excel skills required, including reconciliations, reporting schedules, workbooks, variance analysis, and financial tracking tools.
- Experience improving financial workflows using accounting systems, payment platforms, spreadsheets, and documented SOPs.
- Experience with payroll systems, payment processors, bank portals, and vendor management tools preferred.
Required Competencies
- High attention to detail and strong ownership mentality.
- Ability to identify discrepancies, investigate root causes, and implement process fixes.
- Strong written documentation skills.
- Comfortable working in a hands-on finance role within a growing company.
- Able to balance recurring deadlines with process improvement work.
- Strong judgment regarding escalation, risk, financial accuracy, confidentiality, and appropriate handling of sensitive financial and payroll information.
- Clear communicator who can translate accounting details into business insight.
The Company / Who We Are:
Uptime Legal: A new kind of Legal Technology Company.
We build products that help law firms do the important work that they do.
Our company provides Managed IT Services, cloud services, document management, and legal application consulting to law firms across North America.
We were ranked among Inc. Magazine’s list of 5000 fastest-growing private companies in America for eight consecutive years.
We have offices in Eden Prairie, MN (our headquarters), Austin, TX, and Toronto, Canada.
Learn more about Uptime Legal: https://www.uptimelegal.com/company/
What we offer:
A fun environment, room for developing and growing your skillset and background, and of course a salary.
The salary range is $85,000 - $95,000 depending on experience.
Other benefits include paid time off, a medical package with medical and dental insurance, a health savings account (HSA), 401(k) with 3% safe-harbor (guaranteed 3% 401(k) company contribution), and access to building fitness center.
Pay: $85,000.00 - $95,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Health savings account
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Retirement plan
- Vision insurance
Application Question(s):
- This position requires you to work from our offices in Eden Prairie, MN. Are you currently located in an area that would allow you to commute to and work from our Eden Prairie offices?
Experience:
- QuickBooks: 3 years (Preferred)
- Accounting or Financial Operations: 5 years (Preferred)
- Multi-entity or multi-currency (within same company): 1 year (Required)
- Financial variance analysis: 1 year (Preferred)
- Supporting accounting operations in both the US and Canada: 1 year (Required)
Work Location: In person
