Accounting Manager

Henry Pestana, CPA

*** ********* ******, ** *****

Phone: 305-***-**** ************@***.***

[pic]

Background Summary

Finance Leader with experience in international markets having previously

worked as an expatriate in Mexico City for over 4 years. Proven ability

working and negotiating with internal and external customers, vendors and

Government agencies. Highly capable of directing, motivating, training and

developing a team in a highly paced ever changing environment to reach

desired internal and external objectives. Specific expertise:

Multilingual - International Revenue Recognition / US GAAP

experience Tax Accounting / FAS 109

Process Improvement / FX Accounting / FAS 52

Documentation SOX Regulations

Budgeting & Forecasting

Variance / Profitability

Analysis

Selected Accomplishments

. Re-Structured the Trust Department at Neptune in order to ensure Legal

Regulations were complied with resulting in no further penalties from the

State Governments

. Created an Inter-Company Shared Services Organization for Nortel in

Mexico City

. Directed the Nortel Mexico Accounting team through a full scale

transition from Oracle to SAP financials which included the general

accounting, fixed assets, A/R, AP, and treasury modules

. Lead the effort between the accounting and tax team to recover over $8.0M

of Aged Value Added Tax owed to the company by the Mexican Government

. Documented all internal controls within the Operations organization and

conducted Management self assessments in order to comply with SOX

regulations

. Improved project profitability by detecting excessive charges from

vendors and negotiating new prices for services

. Coordinated the implementation of Oracle Financials in Peru and Chile

Professional Experience

Beckman Coulter, July 2010 - CURRENT

Business Unit Controller - Latin America

Provide Finance and Accounting Leadership to the Latin America Team.

. Structure and manage the finance & accounting organizations in the Latin

America countries

. Oversee the monthly and yearly forecasting process to ensure they are

challengeable but realistic and approve the final operating budget for the

region

. Conduct Profitability Analysis on major bids/proposals

. Manage cash position of the Latin America operating units to ensure

enough cash is being generated to pay operating expenses and inter-company

billings

. Coordinate efforts to improve processes that will lead to efficiencies

and cash savings

. Partner with Commercial Operations to restructure or close operating

units when required

. Conduct balance sheet and P&L reviews for the region

. Provide accounting guidance to the country controllers

. Steer Credit Committee and approve credit limit and payment terms for

customers

. Present and participate in quarterly executive review of financial

results

. Ensure proper internal controls are in place and documented, best

practices are implemented and actions are taken to resolve internal and

external audit points

Neptune Management Corporation, Apr. 2009 - July 2010

Controller - Officer of the Company

Lead and Direct the Accounting, Treasury & Trust department for the

Corporation.

. Oversee preparation of financial reports as per US GAAP. Present them to

the Board of Directors

. Improve internal controls by implementing close checklist, balance sheet

reconciliations and monthly balance sheet reviews

. Coordinate the preparation of the yearly budget. Provide explanations

for variances between actual and forecast

. Ensure in compliance with all tax and trust depository requirements

including the filing of tax returns and Annual Trust Reports

. Partner with Operations to enhance the Contract Management System to

provide more useful information

. Provide guidance on complex accounting requirements such as lease

accounting and FAS 109

. Manage the cash flow of the company and tightly control the capital

expenditures

Nortel Networks, Sept. 1996 - Feb. 2009

America's Center of Excellence Leader (Oct 2008- Feb 2009)

Selected by Finance Executives to transform the organization by

standardizing processes globally and finding ways to reduce the cost for

the company.

. Develop a strategy to reduce cost across the finance and accounting

Organization

. Lead the standardization of procedures globally and find opportunities

for the elimination of duplicated efforts

. Re-Organize the team to work in a more efficient and effective manner

. Coordinate with other leaders the transfer of routine tasks from high

cost to lower cost locations

. Hire, develop and train a team in Mexico to perform accounting functions

in a central location

Regional Controller - Mexico (Nov 2004-Oct 2008)

Located in Mexico City, managing a team of responsible for providing

accounting services which included General Accounting, Payroll, A/P, A/R

and Employee Expense Vouchers.

. Company Director with signatory authorization over financial matters

including bank accounts, payroll and tax filings

. Review accounting transactions and financial statements prepared by the

team to ensure in compliance with US GAAP

. Ensure all account reconciliations are properly prepared and that there

is proper documentation to tie off between US GAAP, local GAAP and taxable

income

. Confirm proper revenue recognition as per SOP 97- 2 and SOP 81-1

. Conduct yearly FX studies to document the functional currency of the

company and on a monthly basis ensure FX had been calculated as per FAS 52

. Coordinate calculation of Current & Deferred Tax provisions to ensure in

compliance with FAS 109

. Analyze Inter-company transactions and work with 3rd party vendor to

ensure in compliance with Transfer Pricing Regulations

. Partner with external audit to ensure the local financial statements and

tax returns are properly prepared, audited and filed with the Government

Business Center Manager (Feb 2003-Nov 2004)

Promoted to Manager from previous role. Supervised a multi-national team

responsible for providing financial support to the Operations team.

. Document internal controls and conduct management self assessments to

comply with SOX

. Publish monthly executive metrics packages detailing operational issues

impacting the financials

. Analyze profitability on top projects, provide recommendations for margin

improvements

. Review time tracking system for accuracy prior to percent complete

revenue being calculated

. Provide approvals for job change orders affecting the margin of projects.

. Track operation's team discretionary spending to ensure did not exceed

budgetary guidelines

Business Operations Advisor (2001-2003)

Provide business analysis support to the Operations team in order to

improve on financial results.

. Establish standards to ensure proper order and revenue recognition as per

company guidelines and Generally Accepted Accounting Principals

. Analyze Change Orders and related costs to identify key process issues

causing deterioration of margins

. Review market inventory balances, provide recommendations for reduction,

and follow up to ensure all required actions are taken

. Provide Days Sales Outstanding metrics and help resolve issues causing

delays in cash collections

Senior Planning Analyst (1999-2000)

Provide planning, budgeting and variance analysis for the Caribbean & Latin

America Region.

. Coordinate the forecasting of P&L and Balance sheet.

. Partner with Operations team to reconcile and clean Order Backlog.

. Analyze financial results at month closing to ensure adequacy and

integrity of balances

. Prepare Variance Analysis Report including explanations for all major

variances, and providing recommendations for improving financial results

Senior Accountant (1996-1999)

Ensure accurate accounting results for the Caribbean and Latin America

Region by analyzing financials, preparing required manual entries and

preparing account reconciliations.

. Consolidate Regional Results including balancing of Inter-company

accounts

. Estimate Bad Debt Reserve and Warranty Reserve

. Analyze P&L and Reconcile Balance Sheet Accounts

. Review the internal control systems within our regional offices and

suggest ways to improve them

Education

Texas A&M University

Master of Science in Accounting, 1995

Bachelor of Business Administration, Major in Accounting and Management,

1994

Certification

Florida Certified Public Accountant - Certificate # AC0030721

Technical Skills

Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), SAP, Oracle, QuickBooks

Languages

Fluent in Spanish

Contact this candidate