Lead Accountant - Buckeye Merchant Services

Buckeye is the premier infrastructure and logistics provider for the world's energy needs, both today and tomorrow. Since 1886, we have successfully navigated transitions in the way energy has been distributed to continually meet the needs of an evolving market and industry environment. Our people are a critical element to the success and longevity of our operational history and our future as we seek to thrive through the energy transition.

We own and operate a diversified global network of integrated assets providing midstream logistic solutions, primarily consisting of the transportation, storage, processing, and marketing of liquid petroleum products. We are committed to safely and responsibly providing world-class service to meet the continually evolving energy needs of our customers and the communities we serve. As part of this commitment to our customers, we are continually diversifying our platform and service offerings to enable less carbon intensive energy solutions and undertaking decarbonization efforts on our operations.

Role Summary:

The Lead Accountant, Buckeye Merchant Services role is responsible for supporting the accounting functions for the Buckeye Merchant Services (BMS) segment, which includes inventory accounting, hedge accounting, gross margin accounting, operating expenses, and other general ledger accounting activities. The role will require preparing journal entries, account reconciliations, detailed variance analysis, as well as performing inter-company accounting, supporting the monthly close process, reporting results to upper management and participating in other general accounting projects as assigned.

Responsibilities include:

• Account Reconciliations and Journal Entries. Prepare and record various monthly account reconciliations, analyze various general ledger accounts on a regular basis, prepare recurring and other journal entries to support the monthly BMS close process and as necessary develop an approach to resolve outstanding reconciling items and develop documentation that meets the standards of sound internal controls.
• Lead and coordinate monthly reporting and accounting close duties for function. Support and review the preparation of monthly and quarterly financial reporting packages for accounting managers, senior leaders and other departments as necessary. Communicate monthly results to management and other business units.
• Month Close. Supports the monthly close process by preparing various journal entries, performing analytics and assisting with submission and review of journal entries as well as organizing close-related tasks for team to ensure compliance with established timelines within the monthly close process.
• Executing and following appropriate accounting principles, practices and procedures to ensure compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley, GAAP, IFRS, FERC and other applicable regulatory policies and standards.
• Processes and Procedures. Identifying new processes and reviewing existing ones to create more efficient workflows and insuring controls for processes are sufficient and compliant. Leveraging technology to automate processes and procedures surrounding financial reporting and analysis and assuming ownership of special projects to develop and implement improvements in current processes and systems.
• Serving as a key resource for the function for training and mentoring less senior accountants.
• Monthly Analyses. Assisting in the performance of monthly analyses, including budget-to-actual, prior-year variances and other key performance indicators for senior management and Board financial-review packages.
• Cross-functional support. Participate in special projects and support other accounting functions as needed.
• Audit Support. Prepare supporting schedules for audit activities as assigned.
• Assist in the preparation of budgets as needed.
• Providing assistance with assimilating purchase acquisitions into company records.
• And other duties as assigned.

Position Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance.
• 4-7 years of experience in an Accounting or Finance role.
• Experience with inventory accounting is preferred.
• Significant proficiency utilizing MS Excel.
• Prior utilization of trading software, Solarc RightAngle, is preferred.

Certificates & Licenses:

• None required

Other Skills, Attributes and Abilities:

• Works with a substantial level of autonomy with the ability to work independently on most basic accounting tasks. Performs work under limited supervision.
• Intermediate understanding of accounting principles, systems and processes with an intermediate functional knowledge.
• Moderate understanding of technical accounting concepts and procedures.
• Strong ability to teach accounting basics applicable to their function to less experienced accounting professionals.
• Ability to work with ambiguity on moderately complex accounting issues. Delivers proposed resolutions when raising issues. Takes on a broader range of tasks including routine and non-routine tasks. May facilitate training and lead functional meetings. Creates reports and presentations for the function.
• High-level understanding of business units and of their function. Builds network of peers throughout the business to better understand and support business operations. Can teach others how Buckeye operates and how functions / business units work.
• Demonstrates influential communication skills with the ability to influence peers on solutions to issues. Some ability to collaborate and partner across department to influence others in the service of effective decision-making within the organization. Listens to feedback, shares their views and articulates solutions in group meetings and when discussing issues. Ability to communicate with emotional intelligence, share opposing ideas and identify ways to address issues while respecting other views and compromising when necessary.
• Ability to identify and solve moderately complex problems and articulate proposed solutions across a broader spectrum of issues.
• Teamwork inclination and ability to work effectively and efficiently among team.

Essential Functions:

• This position requires the ability to safely and successfully perform essential job functions consistent with ADA, FMLA and other federal, state and local standards, including meeting qualitative and or/quantitative productivity standards.
• This role requires the ability to maintain regular, punctual attendance consistent with the ADA, FMLA and other federal, state and local standards.
• This position requires compliance with all personnel policies.

Physical & Safety Requirements:

• The person in this position needs to occasionally move inside the office to access file cabinets, office equipment, etc.
• The employee is frequently required to effectively communicate with others.

About You:

To be successful in the Buckeye culture, our employees must possess a demonstrated commitment to environmental responsibility and regulatory compliance. Excellent communication, both written and verbal, as well as strong organizational skills are paramount. You must work independently and be able to exercise tact, discretion, and professionalism when dealing with internal and external customers, and when handling sensitive and confidential information.

Buckeye wants to create and reward an organizational focus that stimulates the creative and entrepreneurial actions of its employees that result in innovative ways of reducing costs, generating revenues, improving productivity, or improving processes.

People First Culture:

From managing over 5,000 miles of pipeline to commercializing clean energy projects, our people collaborate to provide world-class service and meet the changing energy needs of our customers. Our employee-first culture means that we invest in our employees and equip them to be fully contributing members of high performing teams. We are focused on collaboration, inclusion, empowerment, accountability, and professional development. We want the best in you to bring out the best in us.

Join us as we work together to build a business that is responsive to the needs of the future while continuing to serve the energy needs of communities today.