Financial Controller

Generis is proudly ranked on:

2025 – The America’s Fastest-Growing Companies – Financial Times

2024 – Canada’s Top Growing Companies – The Globe and Mail

2020 – The America’s Fastest-Growing Companies – Financial Times

2020 – Growth List of Canada’s Fastest-Growing Companies – Canadian Business and Maclean’s

2020 – Canada’s Top Growing Companies – The Globe and Mail

2019 – Canada’s Top Growing Companies – The Globe and Mail

Who We Are

Generis organizes and delivers industry-leading B2B conferences where business leaders discuss, learn, and network. Our focus on transforming how people connect has let us work with brands such as Amazon, Johnson & Johnson, PepsiCo, NASA, Google, and Ford. Learn more at

Our Mission

Generis was formed to redefine how knowledge transfer and face-to-face interactions take place, enhancing the partnership experience by understanding how professionals create and sustain successful relationships. Our commitment to world-class content and connecting business ideas with relationship opportunities is the Generis experience. We are equally committed to our people’s personal and professional growth, and are thrilled to have expanded across both the North American and European markets.

Job Summary

The Controller is responsible for the integrity of the Company’s books and records and the day-to-day operation of the accounting function. Reporting to the CFO, the Controller owns the month-end close, balance sheet reconciliations, and core accounting operations (AP, AR, and the general ledger). The role also oversees North American and EU payroll, commission and bonus calculations, and the management and sales reporting leadership relies on to run the business.

The role is hands-on and detail-oriented, focused on delivering a fast, clean, repeatable close and an audit-ready balance sheet while building a culture of accuracy and accountability. The Controller partners closely with the Senior Director, Finance and FP&A so reporting and forecasting are built on reliable, properly closed books.

Reporting Relationship: Nadim Allidina, Chief Financial Officer

Status: Full-time

Responsibilities

Month-End Close, Balance Sheet & Internal Controls (40%)

• Own and run the end-to-end month-end close, meeting the close calendar and all reporting deadlines.
• Prepare and review journal entries, including complex and manual entries (accruals, prepaids, deferrals, allocations).
• Manage the close checklist, clearing bottlenecks so deliverables land on time.
• Produce monthly financial statements and supporting schedules; partner with the Senior Director, Finance on the Monthly Reporting Package and variance analysis in Datarails.
• Formalize, document, and continuously improve the close so it is repeatable, templated, and completed without overtime.
• Support quarter- and year-end close, including audit preparation and external auditor requests.
• Own the balance sheet reconciliation process — every account reconciled on a defined cadence with proper support and sign-off.
• Review team reconciliations; investigate and clear reconciling items and aged balances on a timely basis.
• Maintain reconciliation templates and a tracker giving clear visibility into status, ownership, and open exceptions.
• Own key schedules — prepaid and sponsor commissions, prepaids, accruals, fixed assets, and deferred revenue.
• Uphold balance sheet integrity standards and proactively escalate risks to the CFO.
• Maintain internal controls over financial reporting — documented, effective, and updated as the business evolves.
• Identify and remediate control gaps, partnering with the CFO and external auditors to strengthen controls.

Payroll & Commissions (20%)

• Oversee accurate, timely North American and EU payroll, including accounting, funding, remittances, and reconciliation across jurisdictions.
• Ensure payroll journal entries, accruals, and statutory remittances are recorded correctly and reconciled each period.
• Oversee completion of Delegate and Sponsor commission calculations — accurate, documented, and consistent with plan terms.
• Oversee employee bonus accruals and payouts, partnering with the CFO and HR on inputs, eligibility, and timing.
• Maintain commission and bonus schedules and supporting documentation for review and audit.

Day-to-Day Accounting Operations (10%)

• Oversee day-to-day accounting — AR, billing, collections, AP, and the general ledger — ensuring transactions are recorded accurately and on time.
• Maintain the general ledger and chart of accounts with FP&A, preserving data integrity and a clean subledger structure that harmonizes with Emerald’s.
• Oversee invoice review and recommend improvements where bottlenecks or risks exist.
• Oversee cash and bank activity, including bank reconciliations and cash reporting.
• Apply accounting policies consistently across the team and maintain clear supporting documentation.
• Serve as the day-to-day point of contact for accounting questions across the business.

Management & Sales Reporting (10%)

• Oversee daily sales reports — accurate, timely, and reconciled to underlying records.
• Oversee weekly sales and pacing data, giving leadership a clear view of performance against target.
• Oversee salesperson Yield Per Person (YPP) and yield numbers, ensuring consistent methodology and accurate inputs.
• Finalize revenue reconciliations each period, ensuring reported revenue ties to the general ledger.
• Prepare and finalize sales numbers for management and period-end reporting with FP&A and sales.

Tax (10%)

• Oversee indirect and payroll-related tax compliance, including HST and Employer Health Tax (EHT) filings and remittances.
• Oversee Canadian and German corporate tax compliance and filings, partnering with external advisors as required.
• Oversee Canadian and German employment tax obligations — accurate withholding, remittance, and reporting.
• Ensure tax accounts are reconciled, provisions recorded accurately, and all filing and remittance deadlines met.
• Serve as the internal point of contact for tax and coordinate with external advisors and auditors.

Systems & Process (5%)

• Support and use the Company’s finance systems (Salesforce, Datarails, Concur, Rippling, QuickBooks Online), focused on accounting and close workflows.
• Automate recurring journal entries, reconciliations, and reporting to reduce manual effort and cycle time.
• Contribute to modernizing the GL subledger structure for better data integrity and reporting granularity.

Team Leadership & Collaboration (5%)

• Provide leadership, coaching, and development to the accounting team.
• Set team priorities and standards of work with the Senior Director, Finance and Finance Lead.
• Build a culture of accuracy, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Partner with the wider Emerald Finance team on shared processes and reporting.

First Year Success Indicators

• Month-end close completed on time every period, without overtime.
• All balance sheet accounts reconciled on a defined cadence with clean, documented support; aged items cleared.
• Close, journal entries, and reconciliations templated into a repeatable, documented process.
• Day-to-day accounting runs smoothly, with accurate, timely processing across AP, AR, and the GL.
• North American and EU payroll completed accurately and on time, fully reconciled to the GL.
• Delegate and sponsor commissions and bonus calculations completed accurately and on schedule.
• Daily sales reports, weekly pacing, and YPP/yield reporting produced reliably for leadership reviews.
• Revenue reconciliations finalized each period, with reported sales tying cleanly to the GL.
• Internal controls over financial reporting documented, operating effectively, and free of significant deficiencies.
• HST, EHT, and Canadian and German corporate and employment tax filings completed accurately and on time.
• Year-end audit completed cleanly with minimal adjustments.
• Strong FP&A partnership ensures the Monthly Reporting Package flows from accurate, closed books.

Skills and Qualifications

• CPA designation (Canadian, or equivalent foreign designation recognized in Canada).
• 7+ years of progressive accounting experience, including hands-on close and balance sheet ownership; prior Controller/Assistant Controller experience preferred.
• Strong technical accounting foundation, including revenue recognition and balance sheet integrity.
• Experience with finance systems (QuickBooks Online, Datarails, Salesforce, Concur, Rippling, ADP) an asset.
• Experience with multi-jurisdiction payroll (North American and EU) and commission/bonus calculations an asset.
• Meticulous attention to detail with a track record of accurate, timely close and clean reconciliations.
• Experience building, leading, and developing accounting teams.
• Advanced Excel skills.

Other Details

Office Location: 555 Richmond Street West, Toronto, ON

Working Environment: First six weeks are 100% in office; thereafter, work-from-home flexibility up to 7 days per month.

Working Hours: 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Monday–Thursday, 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Friday, with a one-hour lunch (12:00–2:00 p.m.).

Generis is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. If you require assistance or an accommodation, please let us know.