Heather Fernlund
Medina
Summary
I am looking for a position with a stable company that will enable me to be part of a team and continue learning in my career.
Finance professional skilled in strategic financial planning, risk management, and corporate governance. Proven track record in team leadership and driving organizational growth through fiscal responsibility and innovative problem-solving. Strong emphasis on collaboration and adaptability ensures alignment with evolving business needs. Expertise in budgeting, forecasting, and financial analysis, supported by integrity and unwavering commitment to results.
Overview
32
32
years of professional experience
Work History
Vice President of Finance
Mazzella Lifting Technologies
Cleveland, OH
08.2024 - 12.2025
- Promoted to VP of Finance in the Lifting business reporting to President of MLT and a member of the leadership team of a family owned business
- Responsible for financial overview of sixteen divisions and over forty locations working with NetSuite and Jobscope software
- Complex revenue recognition of Projects % complete, service contracts, inspections and tech service calls and break-fix maintenance for service job revenue recognition as well as recognizing based on shipment of goods
- Direct reports are controller, AR supervisor, AP supervisor for a total of twenty-one finance professionals across the US
- Financial close before I started was 5 to 7 days and when I left was 2 days with streamlining processes, aligning work with specific skill sets and building a supportive, functional team environment
- Provide guidance on escalation calls for job bids informing of any customer risks to the business
- Worked directly with business management and the sales team to handle customer payment issues to avoid collection efforts and work on acceptable solutions so we could get paid
- Work with purchasing to review terms with vendors to push terms to match customer terms to reduce the impact of negative cash transactions
- Worked with legal to make sure the correct non-competes were in place for subcontractors to limit the risk of stolen business
- Traveled to sights to review inventory controls and worked with the inventory management team to review variance analysis for all physical to perpetual counts by location. I would work with my team and the service and manufacturing teams to research the variances to reduce the amount of loss each year
- Also created new processes to limit the approval of cycle count adjustments and sign-off approvals so management was aware of specific adjustments at each location
- Spearheaded a key initiative on reducing the amount of item numbers in our inventory and by combining items it reduced the risk of obsolete inventory and exclusion from bank lending
- Also with the inventory project we focused on cleaning up dead stock with running promotions for the sales team to contact customers and offer discounts on purchasing the materials as well as donated some and sent additional items to the scrap yard to recycle. This lowered taxes and insurance rates and increased our borrowing capacity
- Trained team members to easily identify fraud attempts and put processes in place to prevent fraud
- Month-end close, bank reporting, financial reporting, account reconciliations, process design and review
- Meet monthly with 30 professionals for financial reviews
- Member of leadership team to help direct and support company initiatives
- Worked directly with service regional managers on a monthly basis to review processes, financial results and costs that were directly impacting margins
- Designed a training program to teach finance to non-finance professionals and was rolling it out to forty branch managers
- Worked weekly with the business to define and enhance processes that were directly impacting profitability of the company
- Met weekly with the General Manager of crane production to identify areas of expansion needed to track costs by location and also reviewed overhead rates used in the system and for our quoting tool
- Enhanced the quoting tool to further define rates by job to lower the cost estimates as well as determining where the margins are lagging to improve overall quoting for jobs
- Identify issues in which journal entries are booked and then work with the front-end to solve problems to reduce manual adjustments
- Lead all reporting and testing for bank and financial audits
- Work with IT on solutions to reduce time spent on manual transactions and improving efficiencies
- Identify strengths in individuals and build on those to allow people to grow and develop internally rather than facing turnover
- Developed SMEs for each business area so they have an accountant with in-depth knowledge that will support them in all areas of their division
- Changed the culture from avoidance of finance to a partner that they really enjoy working with and value our knowledge and support
- It is important that my team is appreciated and we have good communication and a supportive culture which drives results and we work well together
- Oversaw budgeting processes, ensuring alignment with corporate objectives and financial targets.
- Directed financial strategy to enhance profitability and operational efficiency.
- Led cross-functional teams in identifying cost-saving opportunities and process improvements.
- Mentored finance team, fostering professional development and enhancing departmental performance.
- Collaborated with senior leadership to drive fiscal discipline and accountability within all divisions.
- Managed multimillion-dollar budgets for optimal resource allocation and financial success.
- Increased financial efficiency by streamlining processes and implementing cost-saving measures.
- Ensured timely and accurate financial reporting, maintaining full compliance with regulatory requirements.
- Oversaw preparation of annual budgets, incorporating input from department heads to align resources with organizational priorities.
- Managed relationships with external auditors to ensure timely completion of audits without significant findings or adjustments.
- Mentored finance staff members in their professional development, fostering a culture of continuous learning within the department.
- Streamlined month-end closing process through automation, resulting in reduced processing time and increased accuracy of reports.
- Established and maintained strong relationships with customers, vendors and strategic partners.
- Collaborated with legal, accounting and other professional teams to review and maintain compliance with regulations.
Corporate Controller
Mazzella Companies
Cleveland, OH
10.2022 - 08.2024
- Managed a team of professions including controllers, AR, AP as well as corporate finance professionals including remote employees in FL, NC, and CO
- Reported to CFO
- Compiled weekly and monthly ABL reporting as well as consolidated all bank reporting for all entities under the Mazzella Companies umbrella
- Worked on three financial systems including NetSuite, Jobscope and Great Plains and completed ASC 842 lease analysis
- Created journal entries, account reconciliations and reviewed all reconciliations from my team as well as controllers on the metals side
- Understand revenue recognition based on project % complete, service contracts and repair work as well as shipping products and recognizing upon shipment
- Reviewed and approved expense transactions to ensure proper coding on Emburse
- Trained and provided guidance on processes and empower my team to push accountability by position
- Responsible for managing all bank and financial audits
- Managed cashflow spending on weekly payables
- Completed cash forecasting for multiple entities
- Consolidated positions saving the company about $800k to the bottom line while reducing and streamlining closing process
- Started educating business professionals on their profit and loss statements. Met with thirty people a month educating them on proper spending on how their actions directly impact the bottom line of the company
- Educated employees on processes and that brought to light issues in fleet spending, resulting in the reduction in software fees and licenses, and we now track utilization by tech to reduce indirect spending and identify areas that are underperforming
- Integrated acquisitions and aligned work to avoid duplications in processes
- Oversaw financial reporting and ensured compliance with GAAP standards.
- Managed budgeting processes to align fiscal objectives with organizational goals.
- Led cross-functional teams to develop and execute company-wide financial strategies.
- Mentored finance team members, fostering professional development and performance excellence.
- Analyzed financial data to support executive decision-making and drive profitability improvements.
- Completed journal entries, reconciliations, and account analysis to prepare quarterly financial documents and general account management.
- Prepared balance sheets, cash flow reports and income statements.
- Provided treasury and cash management by overseeing reconciliation of banking activity and credit card processing
- Followed up with delinquent accounts to obtain funds and reduce aging balances.
- Supervised accurate, efficient, and compliant completion of monthly financial reporting packages.
- Reduced operational costs through the identification of inefficiencies and implementation of cost-saving measures.
- Completed year-end close processes through effective supervision financial functions and regular treasury transactions.
- Directed corporate decision-making and planning by monitoring and setting policies and procedures to optimize fiscal performance.
- Supervised and guided accounting staff.
- Collaborated cross-functionally to drive process improvements throughout the organization, positively impacting overall performance metrics.
- Assisted CFO of group vertical with annual audits and all reporting requirements.
- Spearheaded the successful integration of acquisitions, ensuring seamless transition periods.
- Developed and implemented policies to enhance operational efficiency within the finance department.
- Updated and reviewed financial reporting packages and managed financial reporting processes.
- Mentored and developed staff, fostering a high-performing team culture focused on continuous improvement.
Controller
Walnut Ridge Strategic Mgmt. Company
Orange Village, OH
02.2018 - 10.2022
- Manage all financial reporting for over 70 entities, accounts payable, general ledger, tax, fixed assets, and treasury and property management for family, entities and trusts
- Manage two accountants, one professional and provide guidance to other personnel
- Responsible for managing the IT, Tax, and Banking relationships and work directly with GOJO management
- Complete quarterly liquidity analysis and provide recommendations for future cash needs and options
- Implemented a formal close process, expense reports policies and approval matrix that resulted in reducing the close process by 10 days
- Reduced the risk of fraud by adding positive pay for checks and verification for donations from owners as well as implemented controls and streamlined processes
- Evaluated operating cash and identified areas where the company could improve interest income and then worked with the banks to increase interest rates to cover operating costs as well as decreased fees
- Responsible for creating the budget for several companies within the management company
- Admin for all treasury including wire transfers, approve ACH transactions and work directly with the bankers for account changes
- Provide guidance on a retail company on inventory, process management, store structure, expenses and where to cut costs to improve profitability
- Managing a bank transition with over 140 accounts and 60 investment portfolios to provide better treasury management and investment returns
- Streamlined the close and AP processes to provide better support to the families and entities so that we can meet deadlines while only employing two professionals in accounting
- Enhanced automation to streamline reporting and provide better support to the families and entities so that we can meet deadlines while only employing two professionals in accounting
- Currently working on a five-year cash forecast to determine current cash needs and build in investments and future goals to see if we have the right structures in place to accomplish future goals
- Work with Microsoft Dynamics GP and Management Reporter
Controller
Bass Security Services, Inc.
Bedford Heights, OH
05.2012 - 02.2018
- Key management leader for a family-owned security company around $100MM
- Manage all financial reporting, accounts payable, general ledger, tax, and fixed assets for Bass, Bass Realty and DJM Leasing
- Provide guidance to accounts receivable, operations and the information technology team
- Complete monthly variance analysis, management reporting and account reconciliations
- The company had manual excel financials and had purchased a company. I looked back the numbers to 2003, tied out the data and mapped the history to a revised chart of accounts. This resulted in reducing the amount of time to close, created automated reporting and removed the manual manipulation to reduce the risk of errors in reporting.
- Treasury reporting was required daily, weekly, and monthly for an asset-based loan thus enhanced my relationship with the bank including monthly calls with bank auditors and enhanced reporting and analysis
- Manage the quarterly bank audits and annual external financial audits, which resulted in minimal quarterly and year-end adjustments.
- The company was lacking standardized processes and procedures, so I created a month-end close schedule including documentation and monthly account reconciliations as well as standardized procedures, implemented controls and segregation of duties
- Functional lead for system implementation for Microsoft Navision
- Completely cross trained the team to prepare for turnover, vacations and in case we needed to cover for an employee or help someone who was behind in completing work
- Created new reporting for the physical inventory process to streamline the review of variances in order to reduce the amount of time it takes to complete the variance analysis as well as worked weekly to support the inventory team to ensure proper levels of inventory were maintained, reviewed cycle count results and enhanced inventory controls
- Established weekly meetings and in-house training to make sure my team is challenged and focused to become stronger in their positions to support the company
- Consolidated accounts payable and was able to streamline the process which minimized errors and reduced headcount for the company
- Work with Microsoft Dynamics GP and Management Reporter (FRX) and Microsoft Navision
Director, Accounting
Agilysys Inc.
Solon, OH
10.2005 - 05.2012
- Key roles were financial closing, audits, budgeting, led acquisition integrations and system implementations
- Finance lead on acquisition team
- Once the deal closed, traveled to the company for a week to learn the accounting system and identify key personnel then reported to CFO those in Finance who are needed and those who could be eliminated.
- Then I would work directly with the business leaders to determine their business needs and create the mapping to the company to enable proper reporting for the new entity
- For a few smaller acquisitions to save the company money, I created the closing balance sheets for our purchases that were audited by our external auditors
- Trained my team on understanding the new business and how it fits into Agilysys
- Managed teams in California, South Carolina, Georgia, New Jersey, and Maryland prior to consolidation into Cleveland
- For all six acquisitions transitioned work and eliminated all finance personnel and absorbed the work into Solon, OH without adding headcount in any areas
- Divestiture
- Agilysys in 2007 sold off the Keylink business to Arrow and we were responsible for populating the Oracle instance for Arrow which consisted of separating the information to give the company a closing balance sheet, worked with auditors from both sides to provide support for the information, worked with the IT team to make sure controls were in place the information was accurate and I was the key person to give final approval that Arrow could get access to their instance of Oracle and that the system had adequate subledger data to continue business. This was a $480MM deal
- Agilysys sold the TSG business to OnX Enterprise Solutions LLC in August of 2011 where I was instrumental in creating the closing balance sheet with proper support for both companies that was audited and I was responsible for both companies, Agilysys and OnX from Aug 2011 through Jan 2012
- Worked with IT to create a separate instance of Oracle and Hyperion reporting for OnX during the six-month transition services agreement where I was responsible for closing the books of the new company that we sold our business to as well as our publicly held company. At the same time, we were told the company was moving to Atlanta and many of my employees were terminated or left for other jobs. I was working for two companies and maintaining a team of temporary employees
- Provided audit records for SOX compliance on the discontinued operations
- Reported to the controller and was responsible for all financial reporting for management including the monthly and quarterly management reporting as well as supporting the CFO for earnings calls and audit committee meetings
- The final team I managed consisted of all of the accounting functions for the company including accounts payable, accounts receivable, cost accounting and funding analysis
- Provided guidance for AP, AR, payroll, business operations and services professionals as well as all day-to-day operations for Asia and the United Kingdom
- Established monthly calls to review monthly financial statements for Asia and the UK before loaded to Hyperion and was able to identify fraudulent activity in the UK and had two accountants removed from the company
- Met with key company leaders to review the monthly consolidated financial package before distribution to management
- Responsible for the quarterly Board of Directors financial package including analysis and special slide deck for additional support as to the net change in results impacting the company
- Set up all new processes and define how they work in Oracle 12.1 and worked with the business to ensure based on the front-end setup that the back-end accounting will report proper GAAP accounting
- Provided guidance on Oracle Projects and validate proper revenue/cogs in correct accounting periods
- Review journal entries and account reconciliations on a monthly basis for all circuit accounts and on a quarterly basis for every account reconciliation created in the company
- Review and approve all account/cost center/business unit and Hyperion roll-ups that need to be added to either Oracle or Hyperion
- Finance lead for all special projects or systems work
- Determine the close process and days to close as documented in SOX compliance
- Prepared my annual budget with supporting analysis
- Worked with internal and external auditors to ensure we are maintaining proper controls
- Worked to remediate prior material weakness in revenue recognition
- Systems
- Finance lead for all system implementation work and worked directly with the Oracle consultant team to setup the new instance of Hyperion (HFM) and FQDM – Hyperion and upgraded Oracle 12.1 went live in March 2010
- Reviewed systems to propose an upgrade to management to help the UK management run their business more efficiently
- Worked with an IT consultant and went back three years for external reporting needs and recreated history from source transactions and pushed the data through mapping tables in order to have history now support our current structure and the process to create the initial mapping tables took about six months
- Once all data was loaded to Oracle and Hyperion the tie out took nine weeks (three years history for US, Canada, Asia, UK
- Created list of expected testing scenarios
- Final sign-off for all validated testing scenarios
- Helped to convert and validate 800 existing projects from Quick Arrow to Oracle Projects
- Assisted in defining new processes for the business to follow
- Validated inventory setups and the correct accounting flow
- Identified the correct reports that would support the workflow
- Support the MDM team with issues on item setup and intercompany account requests
- Current modules responsible for closing-purchasing, inventory, accounts payable, accounts receivable, projects, fixed assets and general ledger
- Also converted Great Plains from our Sun business to Oracle at the same time as implementing our new system
- Cross trained for every module by having my team close in pairs so that they could discuss the process, ask questions, and have everyone know the dependencies of the new system
- Proficient in Microsoft Office, Hyperion, OASIS (new user), Oracle
Financial Reporting Manager
Agilysys Inc.
Solon, OH
05.2005 - 10.2005
- Promoted after five months to Director at Agilysys
- Reported to Assistant Controller and responsible for month-end close and a team consisting of four senior accountants and one staff accountant
- Responsible for the final review of all areas of month-end close and reporting including creation and review of journal entries, account reconciliations with proper support and advised my team on all areas of the business and also implemented process improvements to reduce non-quarter-end close from 8 to 5 days
- Prepared my annual budget with supporting analysis
- Improved account reconciliation process from roll forwards with unsupported balances to proof of balances with adequate support, segregation of duties, and consistent reviews
- Identified weaknesses in the incentive comp process so I enhanced the accrual process and reduced the over/under from 300k to under 50k on a quarterly basis
General Accounting Manager
Western Enterprises a Scott Fetzer Company
01.2001 - 05.2005
- Reported to the controller and managed general accounting, credit, accounts receivable, and accounts payable including three degreed professionals and four staff members
- Responsible for monthly closings including journal entries, variance analysis, accruals, rebate programs, commission analysis, and bad debt analysis
- Prepared the MDBA for our division and explained variances from projected targeted goals
- Prepared monthly management reports including mid-month and month-end financials and year-end analysis
- Met monthly with sales to evaluate order status and projected sales
- Worked directly with department managers to control spending
- Advised departments on budget preparation
- Created cost benefit analysis for special projects for executive committee
- Filed form 941 and additional supporting payroll taxes and employee reviews
- Reduced closing time from 5 days to 1 ½ days with financials on day 3
- Automated processes, updated chart of accounts and created better reporting to separate overhead by department
- Implemented a credit software to increase collections and minimize time spent on past due accounts and collection calls
- Automated daily sales and nightly inventory updates
Financial Manager
Bonne Bell, Inc.
Lakewood, OH
05.1998 - 01.2001
- Reported to the controller and managed the monthly closing process including journal entries and variance analysis
- Reviewed financials for Canada, Austria, and Australia
- Managed all intercompany transactions and all audit documentation including system updates or changes
- Prepared year-end supporting documentation and footnotes for the audited financials for the external auditor
- Automated system generated reports from JD Edwards to reduce reporting errors and time to close
- Created banking reports for the quarterly bankers’ meetings
- Served as a team leader handling all budgeting and analysis
- Audited internal areas such as accounts payable, accounts receivable, shipping, and receiving to ensure proper operational procedures were being followed
- Assisted with the manufacturing setup to map the flow of inventory for JDE
- JDE conversion – created new chart of accounts and mapped out allocation structure to fit the new accounts, enhanced reporting to enable management to track profitability by product segment
- Managed three individuals since promotion in February of 1999 from corporate accountant
- Trained individuals in all of the financial areas on the new JDE system
Corporate Accountant
Norandex, Inc.
Macedonia, OH
10.1996 - 05.1998
- Reported to the Manager of Accounting
- Managed monthly profit and loss statements for the 140 distributor locations and analysis of actual versus budgeted expenses
- Traveled monthly for physical inventory audits
- Completed twenty-five monthly schedules for management
- Completed journal entries and account reconciliations for month-end close
- Assisted in annual corporate budgeting and forecasting process
- Aided in the implementation of JD Edwards conversion with mapping old accounts to new accounts and balancing the new system
- Managed two part-time employees and one temporary employee completing 140 bank statements and supporting analysis
Staff Accountant
Allied Consolidated Industries
Youngstown, OH
08.1995 - 10.1996
- Prepared financial statements for all seven companies, month-end close, quarterly tax returns, accounts receivable, credit and collections, and assisted with accounts payable
Internship
Alphabet Kent Division, Inc.
Kent, OH
12.1993 - 08.1995
- Assisted with month-end closings, accounts payable, human resources and cost variance analysis
Education
Masters of Business Administration -
Baldwin-Wallace College
Berea, OHBachelors of Business Administration - Accounting
Kent State University
Kent, OHSkills
- Financial strategy development
- Financial analysis and reporting with ERP system expertise
- Mergers and acquisitions
- Resource allocation optimization reducing costs increasing profitability
- Teamwork and collaboration with the business to become a key contributor to decision making
- Analytical and critical thinker with effective communication
- Executive leadership
- Strategic planning and execution
- Project management
- Organizational development
- Change and growth management
- Transformative leadership
Accomplishments
- Proven leader with designing process improvements, implementing controls and establishing accounting guidelines
- Provided cash visibility resulting in investment interest income of over $800k within the first year of employment
- Identified security risks and implemented controls to reduce risks of fraud
- System implementation leader for Oracle and Hyperion including leading a team of employees and consultants over nine months to map history to a new chart of accounts, data tie-out and created new financial statements for a $750M enterprise
- Recognized for my leadership skills in managing teams in several states as well as internationally.
- Key management leader on the acquisition team in which once the deal closed, I had one week to learn the system of the new company, identify key players and meet with business executives to identify where that business fits and how they want to see it mapped into the financial reporting of that entity. Absorbed the work and reduced overhead spending to ensure it was a profitable acquisition.
- I have used the following systems: NetSuite, Jobscope, D Edwards, Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Navision, Oracle, Hyperion, AS 400, QuickBooks, Shopify and Springboard.
Timeline
Vice President of Finance
Mazzella Lifting Technologies
08.2024 - 12.2025
Corporate Controller
Mazzella Companies
10.2022 - 08.2024
Controller
Walnut Ridge Strategic Mgmt. Company
02.2018 - 10.2022
Controller
Bass Security Services, Inc.
05.2012 - 02.2018
Director, Accounting
Agilysys Inc.
10.2005 - 05.2012
Financial Reporting Manager
Agilysys Inc.
05.2005 - 10.2005
General Accounting Manager
Western Enterprises a Scott Fetzer Company
01.2001 - 05.2005
Financial Manager
Bonne Bell, Inc.
05.1998 - 01.2001
Corporate Accountant
Norandex, Inc.
10.1996 - 05.1998
Staff Accountant
Allied Consolidated Industries
08.1995 - 10.1996
Internship
Alphabet Kent Division, Inc.
12.1993 - 08.1995
Bachelors of Business Administration - Accounting
Kent State University
Masters of Business Administration -
Baldwin-Wallace College