Dynamic Financial Controller with over 16 years of progressive leadership experience at Costco, overseeing financial strategy and operations for a $5B+ regional business across Australia and New Zealand. Demonstrated expertise in Financial Planning, Financial Accounting, Inventory and Margin Accounting, Payroll, Treasury, reporting, business analysis with a strong track record of leading enterprise-wide system transformations—including OneStream, Power BI, FXAll, Preceda, EC, Cadency, EDI, Serko, Efsure and C2FO—to enhance efficiency, compliance, and transparency. Proven ability to lead and develop high-performing finance teams, drive cash flow and working capital optimization, and align financial initiatives with overarching business objectives. Recognized for delivering actionable insights, fostering cross-functional collaboration, and ensuring robust financial governance in accordance with accounting standards.
Overview
18
18
years of professional experience
Work History
Financial Controller – Inventory & Margin Accounting, Accounts Payable and Systems Accounting
Costco Wholesale Australia and New Zealand
Sydney, Australia
01.2022 - Current
Inventory & Margin Accounting
Lead and manage the end-to-end Inventory and Margin Accounting processes, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and timely reporting.
Delivering comprehensive inventory and margin reports to executives and business leaders, supporting informed strategic decision-making.
Partnering with Operations by providing regular inventory insights, driving improvements in stock management, and supporting the business goal of reducing shrink.
Ensuring accurate and timely recognition of vendor rebates, allowances, and other considerations, enabling better margin analysis and forecasting.
Conducting regular inventory and margin reconciliations to maintain data integrity, strengthen internal controls, and support audit readiness.
Accounts Payable
Lead, coach, and mentor the Accounts Payable team, enhancing technical and analytical capabilities to consistently achieve departmental KPIs.
Conducting regular audits of key performance metrics to assess effectiveness of internal controls and ensure compliance with policies and procedures.
Strengthened vendor partnerships by delivering efficient and reliable service, ensuring all vendor queries were resolved within defined service levels (≤2 business days).
Delivering critical financial insights to executives, highlighting risk areas such as debit balances and discrepancies to safeguard company assets and strengthen internal controls.
Systems Accounting and vendor maintenance
Providing strategic oversight of finance systems, ensuring stability, integrity, and continuous improvement to support business growth and scalability.
Acting as the key liaison between Finance and IT, translating complex business requirements into effective system solutions that delivered measurable value.
Lead the design, implementation, and governance of system enhancement projects, ensuring alignment with corporate objectives and successful delivery within scope, time, and budget.
Partnering with cross-functional stakeholders to integrate financial systems with operational platforms, improving data accuracy, reporting capabilities, and decision-making across the business.
Leading the vendor onboarding process, ensuring compliance with global guidelines and controls, including bank detail verification, denied-party screening, and TRAC checks to uphold Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) requirements.
Key Projects and Achievements
Item level Inventory reconciliation for $450M+ inventory leading better shrink management
PowerBi for shrink results; location, department and item level
Option GME for daily department margin visibility
PowerBi dashboard for finance team managers enabling effective KPI tracking, workload management and resource allocation
Duty post payment audit recovery of $310K ($248K net) representing 0.5bps of sales. Identified total potential recovery of $1.1M
EDI for Inbound Freight vendors driving significant process efficiencies
Citibank P-Card implementation
Provided strong leadership, guidance and mentorship to a high-performing finance team of 19 professionals, fostering a culture of growth, accountability, and operational excellence.
Financial Controller – Financial Planning, Treasury and Payroll
Costco Wholesale Australia and New Zealand
Sydney, Australia
01.2018 - 01.2022
Financial Planning and Treasury
Led end-to-end FP&A processes, including budgeting, 3 period updates, business plan and ROI, and scenario analysis, translating financial insights into actionable strategic plans.
Partnered with executive leadership and cross-functional teams to ensure financial goals were aligned with organizational strategy and operational priorities.
Delivered timely, accurate, and relevant financial reports to executives and business leaders, enabling informed decision-making and driving business performance.
Led treasury operations, including cash flow forecasting, liquidity management, loan facilities, and debt servicing.
Oversaw foreign exchange (FX) risk management, merchant fee analysis, and banking relationships, safeguarding profitability, working capital optimization and reducing financial risk.
Strengthened governance by embedding internal controls, compliance frameworks, and risk management practices across financial planning and treasury processes.
Payroll
Led the end-to-end payroll function, ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant processing for all employees across multiple pay cycles.
Ensured compliance with tax regulations, superannuation requirements, awards, enterprise agreement, employment laws, minimizing risk and safeguarding company reputation.
Owned and managed Expat Taxes, management bonus calculations, and Fringe Benefits Taxes (FBT).
Oversaw payroll governance and internal controls, including segregation of duties, data integrity checks, and audit readiness.
Partnered with HR and IT to streamline payroll systems and processes, driving automation, accuracy, and efficiency.
Delivered payroll reporting and analytics to executives and Finance, enabling visibility into payroll costs, overtime trends, and roster planning.
Managed third-party relationships with payroll service providers, tax authorities, and auditors.
Provided strategic support by forecasting payroll-related cash flows and integrating payroll cost insights into financial planning and budgeting.
Led and mentored the payroll team, fostering continuous improvement and ensuring high standards of service delivery.
Key Projects and Achievements
Onestream implementation to enhance reporting capabilities and efficiencies
Merchant fees analysis to drive scheme fees negotiation discussions
Streamlined budgeting process by implementing financial and forecasting tools to reduce the planning cycle time and drive efficiency
Award interpretation and BOOT (better of overall test) and scenario analysis for employee agreement implementation
Detailed audit of superannuation and long service leave to ensure the compliance with the relevant legislations
Employee Central implementation
Finance Manager – Financial Planning, Treasury and Payroll
Costco Wholesale Australia
Sydney, Australia
01.2016 - 01.2018
Streamlined the month-end close process, reducing reliance on manual tasks and significantly improving the accuracy and timeliness of financial data reporting.
Led budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting functions, designing tools to improve efficiency and stakeholder engagement. Developed an ODBC-driven trend analysis tool that enabled departments to make more informed budgeting and forecasting decisions.
Prepared comprehensive monthly reporting packs for executive leadership, including detailed financial analysis, performance commentary, and actionable recommendations to support strategic objectives.
Managed the Employee Agreement (EA) renewal process, including conducting BOOT (Better Off Overall Test), scenario analysis, union negotiations, ensuring compliance with Fair Work Act requirements and executive presentations.
Managed end-to-end payroll functions while ensuring the compliance with various employment federal and state laws
Oversaw employment tax compliance, including preparation and lodgment of Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) returns and management of expatriate tax matters for the organization.
Inventory and Margin Accounting Manager
Costco Wholesale Australia
Sydney, Australia
01.2015 - 01.2016
Managed end-to-end inventory accounting processes, ensuring timely information to the business users for better inventory management.
Oversaw physical and cycle inventory counts, reconciliations, and adjustments; monitored obsolescence reserves to maintain inventory integrity.
Analyzed gross margin and identified margin improvement opportunities through trend analysis.
Partnered and collaborated with buying team to evaluate margin drivers, support pricing strategies, and prepare margin forecasts.
Led month-end close activities related to inventory and COGS; prepared journal entries and account reconciliations to ensure accurate financial reporting.
Maintained and improved internal controls over inventory and margin accounting processes; supported internal and external audit requirements
Implemented process improvements to enhance efficiency and automation in inventory tracking and margin reporting.
Identified system enhancement and upgrade avenue to improve inventory management to strengthen data integrity and reporting capabilities.
Supervised and developed a team of inventory and margin accountants; ensured timely delivery of month-end tasks and continuous team development.
Temporary Accounting Manager – Financial Accounting and Inventory and Margin Accounting
Costco Wholesale Australia
Sydney, Australia
01.2014 - 01.2015
Provided a cover for Maternity Leave to manage all aspects of Financial Accounting and Inventory and Margin Accounting.
Prepared and lodged corporate tax returns and statutory financial reports, ensuring compliance with applicable regulatory and tax requirements.
Successfully led and guided the team to ensure reporting timelines were met keeping in the integrity of Inventory and Margin control.
Financial Accountant and Inventory and Margin Accountant
Costco Wholesale Australia
Sydney, Australia
01.2011 - 01.2014
Supported annual external audit preparations, ensuring a smooth and efficient process with no major discrepancies or audit findings.
Monitored and reconciled revenue and expenditure transactions, ensuring accurate financial records and contributing to improved reporting accuracy.
Managed the end-to-end period close process, including preparation of period-end journals, variance analysis, and commentary on financial results.
Led and successfully implemented item-level inventory tracking for Depot and warehouses, enhancing inventory accuracy and visibility across the organization.
Prepared corporate tax returns and statutory financial reports, ensuring compliance with applicable regulatory and tax requirements.
Performed detailed inventory and margin analysis, providing insights into product performance and cost management.
Assisted with internal and external audit processes, including gathering supporting documentation and preparing audit schedules.
Completed period-end general ledger reconciliations, addressing aged items and ensuring alignment with financial controls.
Provided training and mentorship to assistant accountants, promoting team knowledge sharing and capability development.
Assistant Accountant
Costco Wholesale Australia
Sydney, Australia
01.2009 - 01.2011
Maintained detailed financial records of sales audit and completed a thorough bank reconciliations to safeguard the cash receipts
Assisted with monthly and quarterly income statements and balance sheets reports to assist the management team with decision making
Prepared general ledger entries and ensured its accuracy for accurate financial reporting
Assisted with timely month-end closing procedures to meet the reporting timelines
Ensured the timely booking of vendor considerations and assist with margin queries from the buying team
Assistant Accountant
Smith & Nephew
01.2008 - 05.2009
Assisted in the implementation of the SAP Finance Module, contributing to system testing, data validation, and process mapping to ensure a smooth transition from legacy systems.
Prepared general ledger reconciliations, ensuring accuracy and compliance with financial reporting standards.
<ul><li>Company Overview: Group Company of PUIG, Spain</li><li>Team Leadership & Process Excellence: Organised the transformation of the Finance & Accounts function, establishing performance-driven goals, and embedding a culture of accountability and continuous improvement. Drove operational efficiency through process redesigns, SOP implementation and optimal resource deployment, leading to measurable improvements in turnaround time and accuracy.</li><li>Strategic Partnering with CXOs: Acted as a key advisor to the CEO, CFO, and other CXOs on business planning, pricing strategies, and business model pivots to support scale-up and profitability. Contributed to investor communications with data-backed insights to enhance stakeholder confidence and secure strategic funding.</li><li>Cross-Functional & Global Stakeholder Management: Functioned as the strategic finance business partner to cross-functional heads and the PUIG global finance team, aligning local execution with global financial strategies and compliance requirements.</li><li>ERP Transformation & System Automation: Led end-to-end ERP reimplementation to address system gaps, enforce role-based controls, and automate core finance processes—resulting in enhanced data accuracy, faster reporting and improved internal controls.</li><li>Costing, Inventory & Profitability Optimization: Designed and implemented plant-level costing models to ensure accurate COGS determination. Improved inventory management across pricing, consumption tracking, and aging analysis—enabling better working capital control and cost efficiency.</li><li>Manufacturing Finance & Statutory Compliance: Supervised end-to-end accounting for manufacturing operations and ensured full statutory compliance.</li><li>Financial Reporting, MIS & Profitability Analytics: Delivered accurate and timely monthly MIS reports, including P&L, Balance Sheet and KPI dashboards with deep-dive variance analysis across stores, business verticals, and geographies. Supported board-level decision-making through insightful presentations on financial health and business performance.</li><li>Budgeting, Forecasting & Business Planning: Led the Annual Operating Plan (AOP) and rolling forecasts, ensuring alignment with strategic objectives and market dynamics. Monitored key financial metrics to enable business decisions and proactive cost management.</li><li>Statutory, Internal & Tax Audit Management: Finalized standalone and consolidated financials under Ind AS and IFRS, ensured timely group reporting and compliance with international standards. Delivered clean and timely closures of statutory, tax, and internal audits in coordination with Big 4 auditors. Strengthened audit readiness through pre-audit diagnostics and rectification of recurring control gaps.</li><li>Regulatory Compliance & Risk Management: Ensured end-to-end compliance which includes ROC, RBI, FEMA, Income Tax, GST, Transfer Pricing, DTAA, and Customs. Reviewed cross-border contracts and transactions to ensure arm’s length pricing, accurate TDS application, and proper documentation under Transfer Pricing regulations.</li><li>Commercial Negotiation & Contract Governance: Led commercial negotiations and structured deals with vendors and franchisees. Reviewed key business contracts to ensure financial viability, risk protection, and compliance with regulatory standards.</li><li>Treasury & External Commercial Borrowing (ECB): Managed fund planning and liquidity management including ECB drawdowns, bank negotiations, and interest optimization. Improved working capital cycles through proactive cash flow forecasting and receivables control.</li><li>Internal Controls & Governance Framework: Led organization-wide reviews of internal control systems, identified process gaps, and redesigned or implemented over 40 SOPs and IFCs. Established a governance structure for financial discipline, risk mitigation, and policy compliance across departments.</li></ul> at Kama Ayurveda Pvt. Ltd. & PUIG India Pvt. Ltd.<ul><li>Company Overview: Group Company of PUIG, Spain</li><li>Team Leadership & Process Excellence: Organised the transformation of the Finance & Accounts function, establishing performance-driven goals, and embedding a culture of accountability and continuous improvement. Drove operational efficiency through process redesigns, SOP implementation and optimal resource deployment, leading to measurable improvements in turnaround time and accuracy.</li><li>Strategic Partnering with CXOs: Acted as a key advisor to the CEO, CFO, and other CXOs on business planning, pricing strategies, and business model pivots to support scale-up and profitability. Contributed to investor communications with data-backed insights to enhance stakeholder confidence and secure strategic funding.</li><li>Cross-Functional & Global Stakeholder Management: Functioned as the strategic finance business partner to cross-functional heads and the PUIG global finance team, aligning local execution with global financial strategies and compliance requirements.</li><li>ERP Transformation & System Automation: Led end-to-end ERP reimplementation to address system gaps, enforce role-based controls, and automate core finance processes—resulting in enhanced data accuracy, faster reporting and improved internal controls.</li><li>Costing, Inventory & Profitability Optimization: Designed and implemented plant-level costing models to ensure accurate COGS determination. Improved inventory management across pricing, consumption tracking, and aging analysis—enabling better working capital control and cost efficiency.</li><li>Manufacturing Finance & Statutory Compliance: Supervised end-to-end accounting for manufacturing operations and ensured full statutory compliance.</li><li>Financial Reporting, MIS & Profitability Analytics: Delivered accurate and timely monthly MIS reports, including P&L, Balance Sheet and KPI dashboards with deep-dive variance analysis across stores, business verticals, and geographies. Supported board-level decision-making through insightful presentations on financial health and business performance.</li><li>Budgeting, Forecasting & Business Planning: Led the Annual Operating Plan (AOP) and rolling forecasts, ensuring alignment with strategic objectives and market dynamics. Monitored key financial metrics to enable business decisions and proactive cost management.</li><li>Statutory, Internal & Tax Audit Management: Finalized standalone and consolidated financials under Ind AS and IFRS, ensured timely group reporting and compliance with international standards. Delivered clean and timely closures of statutory, tax, and internal audits in coordination with Big 4 auditors. Strengthened audit readiness through pre-audit diagnostics and rectification of recurring control gaps.</li><li>Regulatory Compliance & Risk Management: Ensured end-to-end compliance which includes ROC, RBI, FEMA, Income Tax, GST, Transfer Pricing, DTAA, and Customs. Reviewed cross-border contracts and transactions to ensure arm’s length pricing, accurate TDS application, and proper documentation under Transfer Pricing regulations.</li><li>Commercial Negotiation & Contract Governance: Led commercial negotiations and structured deals with vendors and franchisees. Reviewed key business contracts to ensure financial viability, risk protection, and compliance with regulatory standards.</li><li>Treasury & External Commercial Borrowing (ECB): Managed fund planning and liquidity management including ECB drawdowns, bank negotiations, and interest optimization. Improved working capital cycles through proactive cash flow forecasting and receivables control.</li><li>Internal Controls & Governance Framework: Led organization-wide reviews of internal control systems, identified process gaps, and redesigned or implemented over 40 SOPs and IFCs. Established a governance structure for financial discipline, risk mitigation, and policy compliance across departments.</li></ul> at Kama Ayurveda Pvt. Ltd. & PUIG India Pvt. Ltd.
<ul><li>Spearhead all accounting operations, including A/R, A/P, payroll, and general ledger, for a midsized financial services firm, resulting in a 25% improvement in operational efficiency.</li><li>Prepare and analyze complex financial statements and reports, providing actionable insights to senior management and supporting data-driven decision-making.</li><li>Lead and mentor a team of 5 accounting professionals, fostering a culture of continuous learning and development, and achieving a 95% employee satisfaction rate.</li><li>Collaborate with external auditors and regulatory bodies, ensuring compliance with GAAP, IFRS, and internal control procedures, and successfully navigating annual audits.</li><li>Implement and manage a new accounts payable system, reducing processing time by 30% and improving accuracy by 20%.</li><li>Key Achievement: Successfully managed a complex merger and acquisition project, ensuring seamless integration of financial systems and minimizing disruption to daily operations.</li></ul> at Security Financial Services<ul><li>Spearhead all accounting operations, including A/R, A/P, payroll, and general ledger, for a midsized financial services firm, resulting in a 25% improvement in operational efficiency.</li><li>Prepare and analyze complex financial statements and reports, providing actionable insights to senior management and supporting data-driven decision-making.</li><li>Lead and mentor a team of 5 accounting professionals, fostering a culture of continuous learning and development, and achieving a 95% employee satisfaction rate.</li><li>Collaborate with external auditors and regulatory bodies, ensuring compliance with GAAP, IFRS, and internal control procedures, and successfully navigating annual audits.</li><li>Implement and manage a new accounts payable system, reducing processing time by 30% and improving accuracy by 20%.</li><li>Key Achievement: Successfully managed a complex merger and acquisition project, ensuring seamless integration of financial systems and minimizing disruption to daily operations.</li></ul> at Security Financial Services
<ul>
<li>Achieved revenue and cost objectives through effective marketing and planning tools.</li>
<li>Fostered employee engagement by serving as a working leader for team members.</li>
<li>Monitored labor, scheduling weekly, and conducted inventory checks bi-weekly.</li>
<li>Participated in P&L reviews to assess financial performance.</li>
<li>Strived to meet or exceed budgeted Gross Operating Profit targets.</li>
<li>Resolved conflicts for guest services and internal team dynamics.</li>
<li>Enforced cash and credit card procedures per company and brand standards.</li>
<li>Collaborated with corporate on all accounting functions, including accounts payable and receivable.</li>
</ul> at Home2 Suites by Hilton Lithia Springs<ul>
<li>Achieved revenue and cost objectives through effective marketing and planning tools.</li>
<li>Fostered employee engagement by serving as a working leader for team members.</li>
<li>Monitored labor, scheduling weekly, and conducted inventory checks bi-weekly.</li>
<li>Participated in P&L reviews to assess financial performance.</li>
<li>Strived to meet or exceed budgeted Gross Operating Profit targets.</li>
<li>Resolved conflicts for guest services and internal team dynamics.</li>
<li>Enforced cash and credit card procedures per company and brand standards.</li>
<li>Collaborated with corporate on all accounting functions, including accounts payable and receivable.</li>
</ul> at Home2 Suites by Hilton Lithia Springs