Junior Controller

Location: Newton, New Jersey

Employment Type: Full-Time, Onsite

Compensation: $110,000 to $140,000

Reports To: Vice President of Finance & Procurement

This role is designed for an experienced accountant with roughly four to seven years of progressive experience who is ready to own the close rather than support it.

This is not a senior staff accountant position and it is not a Controller position. You will own the monthly close end to end, own the integrity of the general ledger and the balance sheet, and review the work of others as the accounting team grows. You will be expected to operate independently, make sound technical judgments, and escape the issues that warrant escalation.

The right candidate is highly detail-oriented, executes with precision, manages multiple competing priorities, and takes accountability for outcomes. Mistakes will happen, particularly in a fast-growing organization, but you must be able to identify them quickly, understand their root causes, improve the underlying process, and prevent them from recurring.

Planet Networks is at a critical point in its growth trajectory. This role provides a unique opportunity to help build the accounting close, financial reporting capabilities, systems, and internal controls that the company will operate on for years to come.

As Junior Controller, you will own the company's accounting close and general ledger, and you will be accountable for the accuracy and completeness of the financial statements that result from them.

Approximately 60% of the role will focus on the close, technical accounting, and financial reporting, including reconciliations, journal entry review, fixed assets and construction in progress, and the preparation of monthly financial statements. Approximately 25% will focus on internal controls, systems, and process improvement. The remaining 15% will focus on review and development of the accounting team and support of the annual audit.

You will work directly with the Vice President of Finance & Procurement, review the work of the Accounting & Finance Associate, and collaborate with employees across the organization, including construction, engineering, customer success, sales, and operations.

This role requires someone who is comfortable working in a fast-paced and evolving environment. Planet Networks is a capital-intensive business that is actively building fiber network assets, and the accounting for that construction activity sits at the center of this position.

• Own the monthly, quarterly, and annual close calendar, including task assignment, deadlines, and completion tracking.
• Prepare, review, and approve journal entries and supporting documentation.
• Review balance sheet and bank reconciliations, and ensure reconciling items are investigated and cleared on a timely basis.
• Maintain the general ledger and chart of accounts, and ensure transactions are classified consistently and correctly.
• Review accounts payable and accounts receivable activity for accuracy, cutoff, and appropriate accrual treatment.
• Prepare monthly financial statements and the supporting workpaper package.
• Reduce close cycle time without reducing the quality or reliability of the results.

• Apply U.S. GAAP to the company's transactions and document the basis for accounting positions taken.
• Research technical accounting questions and prepare memoranda supporting conclusions.
• Maintain accounting policies and ensure they are applied consistently across the organization.
• Support revenue recognition, lease accounting, accrual, and capitalization determinations.
• Prepare schedules, analyses, and reporting requested by lenders, investors, and management.

• Own fixed-asset and capital-project accounting, including additions, transfers, disposals, and depreciation.
• Maintain construction-in-progress schedules and ensure network build costs are captured accurately and placed in service on a timely basis.
• Partner with construction and engineering to align project cost tracking with the accounting records.
• Review capitalization versus expense determinations and ensure treatment is consistent and supportable.
• Reconcile fixed-asset subledgers to the general ledger.

• Design, document, and maintain internal controls over financial reporting as the company scales.
• Identify control gaps and implement…