Job Information
WSP USA Project Financial Advisor in Boston, Massachusetts
This Opportunity
The Project Financial Advisor (PFA) acts as a trusted strategic finance partner to project delivery teams, ensuring alignment of financial outcomes with enterprise objectives. The role spans the entire project lifecycle, from pricing and pursuit through contract execution, revenue recognition, and close-out, by delivering disciplined financial governance, insightful analysis, and commercial advisory. PFAs advise on profitability, working capital management for projects and compliance while enabling informed decision-making and proactive risk mitigation across a portfolio of projects of varying complexity.
Your Impact
Job Duties and Responsibilities:
Strategic Financial Partnering & Commercial Advisory
Contribute to the sound financial management of projects by working as an active strategic financial partner to Project Managers, ensuring adherence to contractual obligations and financial terms
Advise on bidding commercials and early-stage pursuit financial decision-making and analysis, including pricing and margin analysis, financial guardrails, risk provisions, and sensitivity trade-offs
Provide financial input into commercial strategy and delivery planning; advise on project financial strategy and risk mitigation opportunities
Advise on project funding, billing methods, and rates for assigned projects
Promote a value-creation mindset by highlighting margin-improvement opportunities and cost-to-serve efficiencies
Advise on financial impact of subcontracts to ensure alignment with prime contract and profitability objectives
Financial aspects of Contract Execution, Structure & Policy Compliance
Monitor execution of customer contracts for financial nuances (fee type, caps, retentions, deliverable-based triggers i.e., scheduled billing, milestones, CPFF)
Review and validate project structure in PPM: WBS, funding, billing methods, rates, tax, revenue method, and project/contract master data
Ensure compliance with financial policies, delegations of authority, and revenue recognition standards
Coordinate and review DBE/WBE/XBE reporting requirements
Forecasting, Planning & Strategic Alignment
Perform margin impact and financial impact calculations and provide support in identifying reasons for variability in project margins
Monitor the monthly project-level forecast cycle for assigned projects, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and alignment with FP&A targets
Perform project level scenario planning and variance analyses to model project revenue and margin impact under dynamic conditions
Review project budgets and forecasts for appropriateness and adequacy of assumptions
Track mitigation action plans to close gaps and report progress to Managers
Perform revenue adjustment, whenever required, throughout project delivery; advise of other financial adjustments
Manage sub-contracting activities including requisition and PO creation (in alignment with Procurement), supplier/subcontractor invoice processing, and AP payment requests
Project/Portfolio Performance Management
Contribute to project portfolio reviews through analyses and commentary on key drivers (e.g., margin erosion, forecast accuracy, working capital risks, revenue recognition, change control)
Review key measures and financial tracking, including client-specific reporting requests
Monitor performance against KPIs and flag variances promptly to Finance Business Partners with recommended corrective actions
Participate in review meetings with Project Managers; deliver actionable insights on key performance drivers, risks, and required decisions
Perform root cause analysis on recurring financial variances and recommend corrective actions
Obtain approval for Work at Risk (WAR) and monitor exposure to closure
Prepare and maintain client closeout documentation, including final reports, retention invoice, and compliance certificates, as necessary
Audit, Assurance & Customer/Regulatory Responses
Respond to customer audit requests, coordinate evidence and formal responses with Controllership and Delivery
Review and collaborate with project team on finance-specific responses to audit requests (internal or external)
Ensure records, calculations, and decision logs are audit-ready and retained per policy.
Cross-Functional Integration & Escalation Resolution
Collaborate with PFOs, Billing, Collections, Cash App, FP&A, Controllership, and business teams to address escalations
Proactively escalate recurring issues through management to contribute to process improvement initiatives that enhance financial outcomes
Identify and assign time and cost transfers and allocations; review and adjust project costs as needed
Finance Business Partnering Activities
Ensure corporate financial governance and controls are well understood, consistently applied, and effectively communicated across the business
Identify and address financial exceptions across a portfolio of projects, resolving issues at source to maintain project integrity
Support Operations and Business Finance teams in delivering initiatives aimed at improving efficiency and financial performance
Identify future cost pressures and potential loss-making projects, ensuring the business is made aware and mitigations are put in place
Interpret P&L for specific region / business line / sector to identify key drivers of financial outcomes and opine with actionable financial insights
Who You Are
Required Qualifications
Suitable qualifications/accreditations in Accounting/Finance/Business relevant to the jurisdiction(s) you are operating within
Bachelors degree or equivalent
3-5 years of project finance or commercial finance experience in engineering, construction, or professional services
Solid grasp of project accounting, financial reporting, EAC/ETC forecasting processes, and margin analysis
Experience in commercial support (e.g., project integration, contracts, WIP/ Revenue Recognition)
Demonstrated experience supporting a multi-project portfolio with hands-on forecasting and reporting accountability
Advanced Excel skills and proficiency in MS Office and ERP tools (Oracle preferred)
Experience with PowerBI or other data visualization tools (advantageous)
Self-starter who can work independently as well as collaboratively
Comfortable working in a fast-paced environment with multiple priorities
Exceptional stakeholder relationship management and engagement skills with the ability to influence delivery, commercial, and finance leadership
Critical thinking and problem-solving skills required to apply learned subject matter and technical knowledge to reach conclusions from data collation, documentation, statistical analysis, and arriving at the most effective, economical, and logical solution.
Effective/Strong Capable interpersonal and communication skills when interacting with others, expressing ideas effectively and professionally to an accounting and non-accounting audience
Strong planning, prioritization, and time management abilities
Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities with a focus on actionable insights
Proven track record of upholding workplace safety and ability to abide by WSP’s health, safety and drug/alcohol and harassment policies.
WSP Benefits:
WSP provides a comprehensive suite of benefits focused on a providing health and financial stability throughout the employee’s career. These benefits include coverage related to medical, dental, vision, disability, and life; retirement savings; paid sick leave; paid vacation (or other personal time); paid parental leave; and paid time off for purposes of bereavement, voting, and/or attendance at naturalization proceedings.
Compensation:
Expected Salary (all locations): $65,300.00 - $101,800.00
WSP USA is providing the compensation range that the company in good faith believes it might pay and offer for this position, based on the successful applicant’s education, experience, knowledge, skills, abilities in addition to internal equity and specific geographic location. WSP USA reserves the right to ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and offer additional benefits and other compensation, depending on circumstances not related to an applicant’s sex or other status protected by local, state, and/or federal law.
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About WSP
WSP USA is the U.S. operating company of WSP, one of the world's leading engineering and professional services firms. Dedicated to serving local communities, we are engineers, planners, technical experts, strategic advisors and construction management professionals. WSP USA designs lasting solutions in the buildings, transportation, energy, water and environment markets. With more than 15,000 employees in over 300 offices across the U.S., we partner with our clients to help communities prosper.
www.wsp.com
WSP provides a flexible and agile workplace model while meeting client needs. Employees are also afforded a comprehensive suite of benefits including medical, dental, vision, disability, life, and retirement savings focused on providing health and financial stability throughout the employee’s career.
At WSP, we want to give our employees the challenges they seek to grow their careers and knowledge base. Your daily contributions to your team will be essential in meeting client objectives, goals and challenges. Are you ready to get started?
WSP USA (and all of its U.S. companies) is an Equal Opportunity Employer Race/Age/Color/Religion/Sex/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity/National Origin/Disability or Protected Veteran Status.
The selected candidate must be authorized to work in the United States.
NOTICE TO THIRD PARTY AGENCIES:
WSP does not accept unsolicited resumes from recruiters, employment agencies, or other staffing services. Unsolicited resumes include any resume or hiring document sent to WSP in the absence of a signed Service Agreement where WSP has expressly requested recruitment/staffing services specific to the position at hand. Any unsolicited resumes, including those submitted to hiring managers or other business leaders, will become the property of WSP and WSP will have the right to hire that candidate without reservation – no fee or other compensation will be owed or paid to the recruiter, employment agency, or other staffing service.