Director of Finance

Job Description Summary

The Director of Finance sets the tone for Sonesta’s Culture of Caring. We expect leaders to focus on creating amazing moments for guests and team members and dig deep to find ways to create success for their team.

The Director of Finance is responsible for creating and executing business plans that are aligned with the property’s and brand’s business strategies. The responsibilities of the Director of Finance include planning, organizing, directing and controlling the financial operations while ensuring the security of hotel assets, maximizing the return on investment, providing timely and accurate reporting and analysis of results and integrity of the management information systems in a decentralized accounting environment. As a member of the hotel’s Executive Committee, the Director of Finance is a highly visible role with exposure to Senior Corporate leaders and Asset Managers of owning entities.

Sonesta managers are charged with providing strategic vision, ensuring tactical execution, actively managing their department to achieve the company’s revenue, profitability goals and objectives.

The ideal candidate has a passion for building and motivating teams that achieve results. Sonesta managers are guest-focused (both internal and external) achievement-oriented leaders.

Job Description

Work Environment

• Majority of work takes place indoors in an office environment.

Physical Demands

• The person in this role may be exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally, and/or 20 pounds of force frequently or constantly.
• The person in this role may be carrying, lifting or pulling items weighing up to 50lbs and pushing and / or pulling approximately 200lbs.
• The person in this role will be frequently standing up, bending, climbing, kneeling and moving about the hotel.

Expected Hours of Work

• Must be flexible to work variable days of the week to include weekends and holidays.
• Must be flexible to work variable shifts (days, nights, overnights).
• Ten to twelve hour shifts sometimes required.

   

Travel

• Up to 10% travel may be required.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting/Finance or equivalent required.
• 8+ years’ experience in accounting in a hotel environment.
• CPA certification or MBA degree preferred.  
• Demonstrated progressive career growth and a pattern of exceptional performance.

Principle duties and responsibilities (Essential Functions) include:   

Operational/Functional:

• Ensure compliance with company policies and local standard operating procedures.
• Lead in the completion, review and presentation of monthly forecasts, annual operating and capital budgets and business plans prepared by hotel management team to provide stakeholders with reasonable and achievable guidelines of performance aligned with the Company’s and brand’s strategic direction.
• Prepare accurate, timely and complete monthly financial statements with detailed workpapers and schedules in accordance with the company’s policies and procedures, applicable hotel management agreements, Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry (USALI).
• Develop and implement local accounting and financial control procedures and systems to ensure compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley (Sox) 404 key controls, safeguard assets, improve operations and profitability.
• Responsible for risk management to preserve hotel property and reduce potential liability claims.
• Ensure hotel complies with all federal, state and local laws and fiscal regulations, including license and permit requirements.
• Manage and control receivables, payables, credit, payroll, cash handling and treasury functions with the hotel’s accounting department staff.
• Develop, implement and monitor hotel-specific A/R Responsibility Matrix and credit and collection practices in compliance with company-level policies and procedures.
• Distribute outlook and forecast information as an up-to-date management tool for operating departments, review and analyze variance versus actual results to measure and improve accuracy.
• Collaborate with department managers to provide stakeholders with meaningful explanations for variances to budget.
• Maintain insurance coverage for protection against property losses and potential liabilities.
• Use financial and operational performance analysis, including benchmarking, to maximize hotel’s revenue, GOP flow-through and bottom-line financial return.
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