About New Look Vision Group

New Look Vision Group, headquartered in Montreal, Canada, is the leading provider of eye care products and services across Canada and is rapidly expanding in the United States. The Group has retail sales of optical products which can be grouped into these principal categories:

• Prescription and non-prescription eyewear
• Contact lenses
• Sunglasses
• Protective eyewear
• Reading glasses
• Accessories

The Group’s network of stores totals 475 locations, consisting of 415 locations in Canada and 60 in the United States. Prescription lenses are manufactured at the company’s central manufacturing and distribution facility located in Montreal.

New Look Vision Group operates in a decentralized structure, empowering the various business units to make day-to-day decisions and operate in their local marketplaces as they deem fit.

Business units include well-recognized brands such as New Look Eyewear, Greiche & Scaff, Iris, Vogue Optical, Edward Beiner, Morgenthal Frederics and Robert Marc. The Group’s corporate office provides back office and shared services support for accounting, finance, merchandising, IT and real estate functions.

Culture and Values

Our Mission: Enhancing life’s sights and sounds

Forthright
We are honest and to the point with each other. We face the facts, whether they are positive or negative, and remain solutions focused. We are humble and open. Nothing to hide, everything to share. We don’t conceal information from each other or play politics.

Ambitious
We are shrewd operators, focused on results. We are ambitious for the company and brave in delivery. We are numbers-driven and use data to make the best decisions, dispassionately. We analyze but know when to stop, make decisions and take calculated risks. We never settle for average, rather we strive for excellence.

Respectful
We respect and support each other, always. We value diversity… and we don’t just write this: diversity is part of our fabric and makes us better. We never judge, never assume, and always treat each other the way we want to be treated. We have a great sense of duty towards customers (patients) and the community. But we also laugh and don’t take ourselves too seriously!

Empowering
Our ambitions are global, but our execution is local. We are a team of teams. A group empowering and leveraging the superior knowledge of troops on the ground. We know that the success of our business flows from the people who serve our customers every day, and everything we do is aimed at supporting them better.

Brief Description

New Look Vision Group is seeking an organized and motivated Vice-President Finance responsible for overseeing the general accounting, financial reporting, enterprise risk and treasury functions for its operations across the entire group in both Canada and the US. This person will provide strategic direction and be instrumental in transforming the accounting and finance functions by assisting with systems implementations and process improvements to increase department efficiency and accuracy.

Some travel may be required to regional offices (ex. New York and Miami).

Main Tasks and Responsibilities

• Lead and coach a team of seasoned accounting and finance professionals in Canada and the US, ensuring career growth opportunities, job satisfaction and retention
• Oversee all aspects of the month-end, quarter-end, and year-end reporting, consisting of consolidation, financial reporting, balance sheet and cash flow/treasury management
• Provide IFRS guidance and support within the company
• Help coordinate external audits and oversee implementation of agreed-upon recommendations
• Responsible for enterprise risk management, including internal controls and insurance strategy
• Identify and drive process improvements, including projects such as accounts payable automation and payroll consolidation
• Participate in the period-end reporting packages process including financial statements, shareholder meetings, and Board materials
• Assist with acquisitions integration, including the review of current systems and processes, identifying gaps and actions, and plans for remediation
• Oversee staff to support budgeting, forecasting, and variance analyses; and
• Support the Executive team as required.

Required Qualifications

Training

• Hold a recognized accounting designation (CPA, CA)

Professional Experience

• Minimum 15 years of experience in finance roles
• Experience in a large accounting firm
• Experience in public / large companies (retail experience is a strong asset)
• Experience with relevant systems including implementation and integration (SAP, Business Works and/or other ERP, financial and payroll systems)
• Experience in fast-paced, growing environments
• Experience with Board and Executive-level communications and reporting

Skills

• Strong knowledge of IFRS (Reporting)
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel (PivotTable, VLOOKUP, SUMIF, etc.)
• Fully bilingual in French and English

Abilities

• Excellent communication and analytical skills
• Ability to interact effectively with leaders at all levels of the organization
• Transformation and change management skills
• Excellent interpersonal and leadership skills
• High sense of urgency, strong project, and time management skills with the ability to focus on multiple priorities and files
• Strong organizational skill
• Attention to detail and ability to work in a self-directed manner
• Autonomous, self-sufficient, and flexible
• Ability to adapt quickly and successfully to change while maintaining poise.

Why join New Look Vision Group

• Evolve within a fast-growing company
• Join a company that is a leader in optics in North America and whose primary goal is to contribute to the well-being of its customers and employees
• The opportunity to work in an entrepreneurial environment with a talented team that is disrupting the eye care industry

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Only those selected for an interview will be contacted. We are an equal opportunity employer.

TALINKO is a middle and senior management recruiting firm that also offers support in recruiting members of boards of directors or advisory committees. We work in various sectors of activity.

Please note that the masculine gender is used to lighten the text, without prejudice against the feminine form.