Job Overview
Primary Function
The Chief Financial Officer is responsible for the financial leadership, fiscal integrity, and long-term financial performance of the company. The CFO provides strategic and operational leadership over accounting, finance, treasury, budgeting, forecasting, banking, risk management, technology systems, and administrative functions.
This position serves as a key advisor to the CEO and leadership team and is expected to help drive profitable growth, improve cash flow, protect the company’s financial strength, and develop the systems, reporting, and management discipline required to support a growing mechanical contracting business.
The CFO must understand the financial dynamics of construction contracting including work-in-progress reporting, backlog, labor productivity, union payroll, retention, project cash flow, change orders, bonding, and contract risk.
Major Responsibilities
The successful candidate must be able to perform the following essential job functions, with or without reasonable accommodation:
- Serve as the senior financial leader of the company and strategic advisor to the Chief Executive Officer and Board of Directors.
- Lead development and execution of the company’s financial strategy in support of profitable growth, cash flow, risk management, and long-term value creation.
- Direct all accounting, finance, treasury, budgeting, forecasting, information systems, risk management, and administrative functions of the company.
- Lead the annual budget process and maintain cash flow forecasts.
- Present accurate and timely financial statements, forecasts, work-in-progress reports, key performance indicators, and management reporting packages.
- Oversee all accounting functions including general ledger, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, billing, job cost, fixed assets, and month-end and year-end close.
- Direct preparation of all financial information required for annual CPA-reviewed financial statements, lender reporting, surety reporting, tax filings, and Board reporting.
- Coordinate and manage relationships with the company’s CPA firm, bankers, sureties, ESOP trustee, valuation firm, third-party administrator, legal counsel, insurance broker, and other outside advisors.
- Oversee company cash flow, banking relationships, treasury activity, debt management, covenant compliance, and improvement of cash conversion metrics including collections, retention aging, days sales outstanding, and days payable outstanding.
- Oversee company work-in-progress reporting and ensure accurate calculation of earned revenue, percent complete, projected cost at completion, projected gross profit, underbilling’s, overbillings, and backlog.
- Work closely with project managers and operations leadership to improve project forecasting, labor productivity, billing, collections, change order management, and overall project profitability.
- Review and evaluate the financial and legal implications of contracts, including retention, insurance, indemnity, liquidated damages, pay-when-paid language, claims, litigation, and other risk provisions.
- Oversee insurance, bonding, claims management, legal coordination, contract administration support, and company risk management activities.
- Provide oversight of the company’s legal matters and coordinate with outside counsel regarding contracts, claims, collections, employment matters, litigation, regulatory compliance, and other legal issues.
- Oversee administration and financial compliance of the Employee Stock Ownership Plan, including coordination with the trustee, valuation firm, legal counsel, third-party administrator, and CPA firm.
- Ensure compliance with all ESOP-related, financial, tax, labor, payroll, union, prevailing wage, contractor licensing, and other applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
- Develop and maintain forecasts related to ESOP repurchase obligations, internal debt, contribution requirements, and long-term cash flow impact.
- Direct the improvement and effective use of the company’s ERP, business intelligence, internal controls, reporting systems, and operating processes.
- Recruit, develop, manage, and evaluate accounting and finance personnel while providing leadership, coaching, and accountability to the finance and administrative team.
- Work collaboratively with operations, project management, estimating, service, human resources, and executive leadership to improve company performance and carry out other duties as assigned by the Chief Executive Officer.
Objectives and Results
- Provides accurate and timely monthly financial statements, management reports, and key performance indicators within the established monthly close timeline.
- Develops annual budgets and periodic forecasts that are realistic, timely, and within acceptable variance thresholds, including reliable 13-week cash flow forecasts.
- Maintains sufficient company liquidity and improves company cash flow through effective management of collections, retention receivables, days sales outstanding, days payable outstanding, and debt.
- Produces reliable work-in-progress, backlog, earned revenue, and project forecast information that supports sound management decision-making.
- Reduces project margin fade, cost overruns, write-offs, underbillings, aged retention, and unapproved change order exposure while improving overall project profitability.
- Ensures all CPA-reviewed financial statements, tax filings, lender reporting, surety reporting, and Board reporting are completed accurately and on schedule.
- Maintains strong and effective relationships with bankers, sureties, CPA firm, ESOP trustee, valuation advisor, third-party administrator, legal counsel, insurance broker, and other outside business partners.
- Ensures the company remains in compliance with all financial, legal, tax, labor, union, prevailing wage, contractor licensing, ESOP, and regulatory requirements.
- Protects the company from unacceptable financial, contractual, legal, insurance, and operational risk through effective oversight of contracts, claims, litigation, collections, insurance, bonding, and legal matters.
- Leads implementation and improvement of ERP, business intelligence, internal controls, reporting systems, and operating processes that improve the accuracy, timeliness, and usefulness of company information.
- Successfully administers the Employee Stock Ownership Plan by maintaining compliance, supporting the annual valuation process, developing accurate repurchase obligation forecasts, and maintaining effective relationships with the trustee and related advisors.
- Builds and develops a high-performing accounting and finance team with clear accountability, professional development, succession planning, and effective collaboration with operations and executive leadership.
- Provides financial leadership and recommendations that contribute to the company’s strategic plan, growth initiatives, and long term success.
Skills, Qualifications, and Knowledge
Required:
- Bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance
- Minimum of 10 years of progressive financial leadership experience
- Minimum of 5 years in a senior financial leadership role within construction, mechanical contracting, HVAC, or a related project-based industry
- Strong knowledge of:
o Job cost accounting
o Work-in-progress reporting
o Revenue recognition for long-term contracts
o Project cash flow and forecasting
o Banking and surety relationships
o Construction contract risk
· Strong leadership, communication, analytical, and organizational skills
· Ability to work effectively with field operations and project management personnel
Preferred:
- Prior experience as CFO in comparably sized organization
- CPA, CMA, or MBA
- Experience in a commercial HVAC or mechanical contracting company of $50 million to $250 million in revenue
- Experience with union labor, prevailing wage, and public works
- Experience with ERP and business intelligence systems such as Viewpoint Vista, Power BI, and advanced Excel modeling
- Experience presenting to ownership, Board of Directors, banks, and sureties
- Experience with acquisitions, integration, or multi-entity organizations
- ESOP accounting and plan administration experience
The CFO is expected to:
- Operate with integrity, professionalism, and sound judgment
- Be direct, candid, and solutions-oriented
- Balance strategic thinking with attention to detail
- Hold others accountable while maintaining strong working relationships
- Remain calm and effective under pressure
- Address issues early rather than allowing problems to grow
- Challenge assumptions and speak up when risks are identified
- Support the company’s culture and vales while driving necessary change.
Other Information
Supervisory Responsibility
This position requires supervisory responsibilities.
Work Environment
This job operates indoors and outdoors in uncontrolled temperatures, confined spaces and elevated locations.
Physical Demands
Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
· Must be able to remain in a stationary position 75% of time
· The person in this position needs to move 10-20lb boxes onto shelves.
· Must move about inside the office to access file cabinets, office machinery, etc.
- The person in this position frequently communicates with customers and other staff who have inquiries. Must be able to exchange accurate information in these situations.
· Consistently operates a computer and other office productivity machinery, such as a calculator, copy machine, and computer printer.
· The ability to learn technical material.
Employment Verification
· Background check may be required.
· I-9 Completion required
Position Type/Expected Hours of Work
This is a full-time, in office position.
Travel
May require some travel between locations, work sites and cities
Additional Eligibility Qualifications
· Release of driving record may be required.
· Valid CA driver’s license may be required.
· Approval from Matrix auto insurance carrier may be required.
· Proof of personal auto insurance may be required.
· Health Screenings maybe required.
Matrix HG provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.
This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.
Other Duties
Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
Pay: $275,000.00 - $350,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Health savings account
- Paid time off
- Retirement plan
- Stock options
- Vision insurance
Education:
Experience:
- Progressive financial leadership: 10 years (Required)
- SR financial leadership role within construction: 5 years (Required)
- Prior CFO with a $50 million + company: 1 year (Preferred)
- Union labor, prevailing wage & public works: 1 year (Preferred)
- ESOP accounting & plan administration: 1 year (Preferred)
Work Location: In person
