Chief Accounting Officer

Job Description
Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), the CAO will hold executive responsibility for the integrity of the Company's accounting and financial reporting functions. This leader will oversee corporate and operational accounting, strengthen inventory and cost accounting controls across all facilities, and build the technical accounting, financial reporting, and Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) infrastructure required for a large, best in class company-accounting organization.

This role is designed to strengthen enterprise-wide accounting discipline, prepare the Company for public-company reporting requirements, and create scalable processes that support continued growth. Success will require an executive who can set strategy, establish clear accountability, and remain closely engaged in operational execution.

Core Responsibilities

The CAO will provide executive leadership across the following areas:

• Financial Reporting Integrity: Ensure the completeness, accuracy, and integrity of the Company's consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP.
• Close and Consolidation: Lead monthly, quarterly, and annual close and consolidation processes, ensuring rigor, consistency, accountability, and timely execution across corporate and field locations.
• SEC Reporting: Establish and oversee company reporting processes, including processes that are able to prepare Forms 10-K, 10-Q, and 8-K, related financial disclosures.
• Audit and Governance: Serve as the principal accounting liaison to external auditors, lead quarterly reviews and annual audits, and advise the CFO on significant accounting policies, judgments, and control matters.
• Cross-Functional Alignment: Partner with FP&A and executive management to ensure that operational decisions and management reporting are supported by standardized, reliable financial data.
• Technical Subject Matter Authority: Act as the Company's primary authority on complex U.S. GAAP interpretation, technical accounting research, and formal accounting position memoranda.
• Transaction Execution: Provide accounting leadership for complex business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions (M&A), divestitures, credit facility/financing arrangements, equity compensation, and corporate restructurings.
• Governance and Regulatory Standards: Monitor emerging SEC and FASB developments, lead implementation of new accounting standards, and establish disclosure controls that would support CEO and CFO certification requirements under Sections 302 and 906.
• Plant Costing Governance: Establish and maintain consistent inventory accounting and costing methodologies across all decentralized manufacturing, processing, and distribution facilities.
• Valuation and Controls: Oversee the accounting for raw materials, work-in-process (WIP), and finished goods, including standard costing models, overhead allocations, inventory reserves, obsolescence, and lower-of-cost-or-net-realizable-value (LCNRV) assessments, to ensure accurate and compliant inventory valuation.
• Field Analytics and Yields: Direct control processes over physical inventory counts, cycle-counting programs, manufacturing variances, production yields, waste, and spoilage across all operating plants.
• Operational Partnership: Bridge corporate accounting standards with plant-level operations to elevate underlying operational data quality without compromising business agility.
• SOX Compliance Architecture: Design, implement, and maintain an internal control framework compliant with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
• Deficiency Remediation: Partner with internal audit, external audit, and operational leaders to proactively identify, evaluate, and remediate control deficiencies.
• Process Automation: Lead initiatives to automate key financial controls, reducing spreadsheet reliance and manual entries across corporate and facility-level accounting workflows.
• Talent Development: Structure, mentor, and retain a high-performing accounting team across financial reporting, technical accounting, plant/cost accounting, and compliance functions.
• Culture & Accountability: Foster a high-performance culture centered on integrity, technical precision, continuous improvement, and business partnership.
• ERP & Infrastructure Modernization: Assess and optimize the Company's ERP, consolidation, and reporting systems to accelerate close timelines and enhance enterprise data governance.

Competencies

The successful candidate will demonstrate the following functional and interpersonal competencies:

Functional

• U.S. GAAP & SEC Mastery: Deep technical command of U.S. GAAP, SEC filing requirements (Forms 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K), and public financial statement disclosures.
• SOX & COSO Frameworks: Advanced knowledge of internal controls over financial reporting (ICFR), COSO frameworks, and SOX 404 readiness and maintenance.
• Cost Accounting Expertise: Proficiency in process costing, standard costing models, inventory valuation, variance analysis, and multi-facility operational cost controls.
• Financial Systems Literacy: Hands-on leadership experience with enterprise ERP systems such as SAP, Oracle, Microsoft BC, or NetSuite; close-management software such as BlackLine or FloQast; and business intelligence and consolidation platforms like workday.
• Transaction Accounting: Direct knowledge of purchase accounting, M&A integration, complex debt/equity instruments, and capital structure accounting.

Interpersonal

• Executive Communication: Exceptional written, verbal, and presentation skills; ability to convey complex technical accounting issues clearly to executive peers, Board members, auditors, and non-financial business leaders.
• Strategic and Hands-On Leadership: Ability to move seamlessly between enterprise-level strategic planning and detailed operational analysis when addressing plant-level or technical accounting matters.
• Change Management & Influence: Proven track record of introducing structure, standardization, and process discipline into growing, dynamic business environments.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Strong relationship-building skills to partner effectively across operations, supply chain, IT, legal, tax, and HR.
• Ethical Integrity & Skepticism: Uncompromising personal integrity, professional skepticism, and sound business judgment appropriate for a senior corporate officer.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related discipline required; Master of Accounting or MBA preferred.
• 15+ years of progressively responsible accounting and finance leadership, with significant executive team management in complex corporate environments.
• Preferred experience within a U.S. public company accounting environment or key leadership experience guiding a private enterprise through an IPO readiness roadmap.
• Strong operational familiarity with food processing, food manufacturing, consumer packaged goods (CPG), agriculture, or similar multi-site, inventory-intensive processing industries.
• Big Four or national public accounting audit background strongly preferred.
• Active Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated success managing financial close, cost accounting, and internal control functions across decentralized operating facilities.

Physical Demands

This role regularly requires sitting, communicating, and using a computer and other office equipment. The employee may occasionally be required to stand, walk, reach, bend, or lift and move items weighing up to 25 pounds. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals to perform the essential functions of the position.

Work Environment and Schedule

This position is based in the Company's Seattle, Washington corporate office. A hybrid arrangement may be considered for the right candidate, with a minimum of three days per week in the office. The role requires regular collaboration with corporate and operational teams across multiple locations and may require periodic travel to operating facilities and attendance at meetings outside standard business hours based on business needs.

Mental Activities

The employee is frequently required to set an example by consistently modeling high standards of honesty and integrity. Presentation and sharing of information should be handled in a direct, appropriate, and helpful manner.

Maintains a reputation for honesty, confidentiality, reliability, and fairness; acknowledges mistakes; and does not misrepresent personal qualifications or actions for personal gain. Performs work with energy and initiative, values thoughtful planning, and takes timely, decisive action when opportunities arise.

Salary Disclosure

The typical base pay range for this role is $250,000-$300,000 per year. Individual base pay will vary based on factors including primary work location, the scope and complexity of the role, job requirements, and relevant experience and skills.

Silver Bay Benefits and Perks

• Health Insurance: Employees and their eligible family members may enroll in medical, dental, and vision coverage. Employees are also eligible for basic life insurance, long-term disability coverage, and voluntary life insurance benefits for themselves and their families.
• Employee Assistance Program: Available for employees and their families.
• Retirement Plan: Employees are eligible for the Silver Bay Seafoods safe harbor retirement 401(k) plan.
• Paid Time Off (PTO) and Paid Holidays: Employees are eligible for Paid Time Off (PTO) plan benefits which start at 3 weeks a year, go up based on years of service, and receive 8 paid holidays each year.
• Other Compensation: Employees are eligible for an annual discretionary bonus.