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How to hire a Construction and Real Estate Accounting team
Start a Search Financial Headhunters Salary Guide
Financial Headhunters: How to vet accounting staff who manage job cost coding and project lifecycles.
This is what we do all day: recruit accounting, finance, banking and insurance professionals.
- Controller
- CFO
- VP Finance
- FP&A Director
- Accounting Manager
- Director of Accounting
- Assistant Controller
- Tax Director
- Treasury Manager
- Internal Audit Director
- Senior Accountant
- Financial Analyst
- Head of Financial Reporting
- Commercial Lender
- Chief Credit Officer
- Business Systems Finance Lead
01
Team Structure and Job Levels
Base your team architecture on project volume and entity complexity. High-volume general contractors require granular control over job cost coding while real estate entities prioritize property-level lease management. Use Controllers for oversight of total ledger accuracy and compliance. Use Accounting Managers to direct the daily work of project accountants. Project Accountants handle the tactical tasks of billing and cost validation.
Select candidates based on their experience with specific project lifecycles. New development roles require knowledge of entitlement accounting and construction-in-progress tracking. Existing property portfolios require experts in CAM reconciliation and tenant billing cycles.
- 01ControllerManages financial reporting, bonding relationships, and total ledger compliance.
- 02Accounting ManagerDirects daily operations including AIA billing reviews and staff supervision.
- 03Senior Project AccountantHandles complex change orders, WIP schedule creation, and subcontractor compliance.
- 04Property AccountantFocuses on lease administration, rent rolls, and monthly property-level close processes.
02
Interview Bank
Ask questions that force candidates to explain how they handle the intersection of physical job site activity and ledger entries. Look for specific technical workflows rather than generalized process descriptions.
Ask the candidate to explain how they handle an over-billing discrepancy discovered during a month-end WIP review. Listen for direct steps: checking the cost-to-complete, validating the percentage-of-completion against physical progress, and documenting the adjustment for project managers. Follow up by asking how they communicated the change to project management without stopping the billing cycle.
- 01Explain your process for reconciling WIP schedules with project manager estimates. Evidence: Specific use of ASC 606 revenue recognition logic.
- 02Describe your procedure for managing subcontractor lien waivers before payment release. Evidence: Tracking systems for COIs and lien waiver status.
- 03Detail your experience with AIA G702/G703 billing software. Evidence: Workflow steps for verifying retainage and progress line items.
03
Common Hiring Mistakes
The most frequent error is prioritizing general ledger experience over construction-specific cost accounting. A candidate who only knows standard accrual accounting for services will struggle with the complexities of job cost coding or retainage. Do not hire someone who has never touched a WIP schedule.
Another mistake is ignoring software-specific fluency. If you run Sage 300 CRE or Viewpoint, hire someone who has already lived in those databases. Training someone on these systems while they try to manage an active project close leads to broken schedules and inaccurate billings.
- 01Hiring general accountants for specialized job cost roles.
- 02Overlooking the need for previous exposure to percentage-of-completion revenue models.
- 03Accepting vague answers about subcontractor management instead of specific compliance processes.
- 04Ignoring the lack of experience with AIA billing software interfaces.
04
Credential Verification
Certifications in this field verify technical understanding but do not replace field experience. Verify status through the issuing body for each credential. Use these to narrow the pool when you have many similar resumes.
The CCIFP is the industry standard for Construction Financial Professionals. It proves the individual passed a rigorous test on construction-specific finance. It does not mean they have project management skills or can handle your specific software. Always confirm the current active status through the CFMA registry.
- 01CCIFPCertification for Construction Industry Financial Professionals issued by the CFMA.
- 02CPALicense verifying general accounting competence issued by the state board.
- 03Software CertificationsVendor-provided badges for platforms like Sage or Viewpoint, proving basic navigation proficiency.
05
Decision Logic
Move a candidate to the next stage only if they provide concrete examples of the exact accounting functions your role requires. Trade off general years of experience for specific software usage. A candidate who has three years of direct AIA billing experience is more valuable than someone with ten years in a different industry.
Hire when you need to resolve persistent bottlenecks in project accounting or when your ledger accuracy drops due to volume. If your project managers are doing your billing, your team is under-leveled. The correct hire reduces the burden on PMs and clarifies the financial position of every job or property.
- 01Move forward if they explain how to handle lien waivers during busy seasons.
- 02Move forward if they can describe the impact of change orders on project margins.
- 03Discard if they cannot distinguish between accrual and cash-basis reporting for construction projects.
- 04Discard if their software history lacks construction-grade ERP systems.
06
Which related hiring decisions are worth comparing?
Questions people ask
Can I hire a candidate with real estate experience for a construction controller role?
Only if they have direct job cost and WIP experience. Construction accounting requires specific handling of physical progress and subcontractor compliance that real estate property accounting often lacks.
What is the primary indicator of a successful candidate?
Their ability to show how they translate field-level construction activity into accurate accounting data like percentage-of-completion revenue or WIP schedules.
Should I require a CPA for all accounting roles?
No, a CPA is useful for a Controller, but tactical roles like Project Accountant or Job Cost Accountant require software proficiency and process discipline over licensure.
How do I know if the software experience is legitimate?
Ask for the specific version they used and have them describe the setup process for a new job or project entity within that system.