Controller

The City of Fort Myers strives to be an employer of choice and most of our employees turn jobs into long term careers.  The salary shown in the job description is the full range for this position from entry to later career.  

NEW EMPLOYEES ARE HIRED AT, OR NEAR THE ENTRY POINT SHOWN, DEPENDING ON QUALIFICATIONS AND RELEVANT EXPERIENCE.

FLSA Status: Exempt         Safety Sensitive:   NO           Level II Screening: NO

Under the general direction of the Deputy Finance Director, manages the day-to-day accounting and treasury operations/activities and performs complex financial and administrative duties in developing and maintaining the City's accounting records and financial reports.

Responsibilities and Reporting During an Emergency Situation:

Essential Employees may be required to work during a declared emergency. Depending on the nature of the emergency, this may require working around the clock for several days on short notice.

Non-Essential Employees will not be required to work during a declared emergency. The employee’s Department Head will determine when the employee will be required to work.

Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the City's policies and applicable laws. Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.

Perks and Benefits

• Free city-paid employee health coverage, additional for spouse or family
• 3 weeks Paid Time Off (sick & vacation)
• 13 paid holidays
• Pension plan & optional Deferred Compensation 
• City-paid life insurance
• Optional Vision, Dental, and Disability Insurance
• Tuition reimbursement
• On-site Gym facility
• And much more!

• Coordinate the preparation of the year-end audit and issuing of the annual financial statements including the year-end closing process workflow.
• Prepare balance sheets and other statements, schedules and footnotes for the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR)
• Manage the activities for the payroll, accounts payable, accounts receivable, and fixed asset functions.
• Review funds; general ledger accounting reconciliations; schedules; statements and footnotes and journal entries for accuracy of accounting information.
• Prepare required written reports, including but not limited to the State Financial Report.
• Provide sound fiscal judgment in monitoring actual versus anticipated results to assist elected official's decision making.
• Provide professional assistance, guidance, and analysis in the creation/elimination of programs, staffing levels, and other areas.
• Review all work done by the Accounting group. 
• Review all City Council meeting agenda items for financial implications. 
• Evaluate Accounting/Finance process workflows and make recommendations for improvement.
• Responsible for the completion of the year-end audit and the issuing of the periodic financial statements including the year-end closing process workflow.
• Responsible for reviewing with and recommending implementation of management letter actions made as part of the annual external audit process.
• Oversees City payroll process including timekeeping procedures, keeping abreast of changes in FLSA and other legal issues, and ensuring that payroll is processed in a correct and timely manner without interruption or delay.
• Responsible for administering and implementing special projects such as Internal Audit reports, Infrastructure and OPEB valuations, as necessary.
• Review and sign off on all key written reports done by the Accounting group including but not limited the ACFR,  State Financial Report, periodic financial reports.
• Responsible for training, administering, and enforcing financial policies and procedures to the various departments within the City. 
• This position requires regular and reliable attendance and the employee’s physical presence at the workplace.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES 

• Knowledge of payroll policies, procedures, standards, preparation, processing and regulations related to federal and state laws governing payroll.
• Knowledge of the methods, procedures, and policies of the Payroll Department as they pertain to the performance of duties of the position.
• Knowledge of IRS, SSA, FLSA, ACH, garnishment, and accounting transactions.
• Knowledge of the City’s negotiated Union contracts and the City’s Policies and Procedures as they pertain to payroll processing.
• Proficient in the use of computer applications including file accessing and table development and modification, word processing, spreadsheet, database, and presentation software.
• Skilled in having a high degree of integrity and sound judgment in administering the position due to the highly sensitive and confidential nature of the job responsibilities.
• Ability to communicate effectively with others and provide excellent customer service to internal and external customers.
• Ability to multi-task efficiently and effectively.
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision. 
• Ability to exercise independent judgment in developing approaches and techniques in problem resolution.
• Knowledge of government accounting systems.
• Knowledge of applicable state statutes and federal, state and local regulations and contracts. 
• Demonstrated strong problem solving and analytical skills. 
• Ability to speak clearly and persuasively in positive and negative situations. 
• Ability to operate necessary equipment, including personal computer, mainframe terminal, and other standard office equipment.

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting, Finance or related field from an accredited college or university. 
• Five years’ experience in advance accounting or public accounting 
• OR an equivalent combination of education and experience that provides the necessary expertise and experience.  

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS 

• Certified Public Accountant certification 
• Certified Government Finance Officer certification (State of Florida) or Certified Public Finance Officer certification from GFOA of US and Canada. 
•  Advanced knowledge of Enterprise Planning / organization wide software systems. 

This work typically requires the following physical activities to be performed.  

• Balancing – maintain equilibrium to prevent falling while walking, standing, or crouching. 

• Climbing – ascending, descending ladders, stairs, ramps, requires body agility. 

• Reaching – extending hands or arms in any direction.

• Repetitive Motion – substantial movements of wrists, hands, fingers. 

• Speaking – expressing ideas with spoken word, convey detailed, important instructions accurately, concisely. 

• Standing – for sustained periods of time. 

• Stooping – bending body downward, forward at waist, with full motion of lower extremities and back. 

• Talking 1- expressing ideas by spoken word 

• Crouching – bending body forward by bending leg, spine. 

• Feeling – perceiving attributes of objects by touch with skin, fingertips. 

• Fingering – picking, pinching, typing, working with fingers rather than hand.

• Grasping – applying pressure to object with fingers, palm. 

• Handling – picking, holding, or working with whole hand.

• Hearing 1 – perceiving sounds at normal speaking levels, receive information. 

• Visual Acuity 1 - prepare, analyze data, transcribing, computer terminal, extensive reading.

• Visual Acuity 2 - color, depth perception, field of vision.

• Visual Acuity 3 - determine accuracy, neatness, observe facilities/structures.

• Kneeling – bending legs at knee to come to rest at knees.

• Lifting – raising objects from lower to higher position, moving objects side to side, using upper extremities, back. 

• Mental Acuity – ability to make rational decisions through sound logic, deductive reasoning. 

• Visual Acuity 4 - operate motor vehicles/heavy equipment.

• Walking - on foot to accomplish tasks, long distances, or site to site. 

Work performed is primarily:

• Sedentary work: Exerting up to 10 pounds of force occasionally and/or negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects, including the human body.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

• Contact with internal and external customers and the general public.
• Works in an office environment and sits for long periods of time. 
• May be required to work hours other than the regular schedule including nights, weekends, and holidays.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform the essential job functions satisfactorily.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the primary job functions described herein.   Since every duty associated with this position may not be described herein, employees may be required to perform duties not specifically spelled out in the job description, but which may be reasonably considered to be incidental in the performing of their duties just as though they were actually written out in this job description

Salary : $83,366 - $125,632