Finance

 

The Controllers group is responsible for safeguarding the firm's assets: We help maintain the integrity of Goldman Sachs' finances and expenditures.

Through careful consideration and analyses of firm finances, objectives and strategies, we ensure that the firm's businesses continue to be profitable and efficiently run. Controllers also ensure that all business practices are in compliance with financial and regulatory requirements worldwide.

Since contact with virtually every part of the firm is essential to Controllers, professionals in the department experience Goldman Sachs businesses, products and sophisticated technology systems in depth. If you want to develop an in-depth understanding of financial services, Controllers is a great place to begin your career. You will receive continuous training, both formal and informal, and the support of senior members of our team.

The following represent the primary functions of Controllers:

Financial Reporting:

• Owning responsibilities for preperation of the firm’s SEC filings, including 10Qs and 10Ks and the firm's earnings release
• Drafting footnote, MD&A and earnings release disclosures
• Establishing firmwide accounting policies
• Providing technical accounting advice
• Evaluating complex business events and transactions, including identification of relevant accounting and tax disclosure requirements
• Evaluating new acquisitions, structured trades and other transactions to determine appropriate accounting treatment
• Working with accounting standard-setters on development of new accounting guidance 
• Reporting daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly profit and loss (P&L) and metrics to senior management
• Managing the firmwide budget and re-forecast process
• Managing the firmwide compensation process
• Coordinating support areas in the analysis and introduction of new products for all business units
• Assisting with the due diligence activities for GS acquisitions and coordinating support area efforts for integrating the entity into GS  

Funding:

• Understanding and controlling firm financing activities such as debt, stock borrow and repo
• Calculating and analyzing firm liquidity and balance sheet metrics
• Controlling highly structured funding transactions incorporating derivatives, special purpose entities and emerging markets
• Applying funding rates to inventory and discussion/review with traders and product controllers
• Maintaining relationships with main clients such as Corporate Treasury, Funding Desk and Global Securities Services/Prime Brokerage
• Providing support for the following Goldman Sachs committees: Finance, Structured Financing and Carry Policy

Product Control:

• Supporting trading desks within FICC and Equities Trading divisions
• Preparing and analyzing daily P&L
• Calculating and monitoring balance sheet
• Performing price verification to substantiate trader marks
• Ensuring that business lines and products are accounted for in accordance with GAAP
• Producing management reports for all levels of senior management
• Acting as business expert and information conduit for many other areas of Finance

Regulatory Reporting:

• Submitting regulatory returns to regulators worldwide
• Ensuring compliance with regulatory rules, notably the SEC in the US and the FSA in the UK
• Advising management on a wide array of regulatory matters and developments
• Overseeing legal entity financial reporting, including preperation of financial statements, regulatory filings and coordination of audits 

Consolidated Supervised Entity (CSE):

• Working closely with the details of the CSE capital computations
• Developing workflows and reconciliations as they pertain to the computation
• Participating extensively in systems development
• Interacting frequently with other areas to ascertain the appropriate regulatory capital impact of various products and businesses
• Ensuring compliance with the CSE framework 
• Overseeing legal entity financial reporting, including preperation of financial statements, regulatory filings and coordination of audits

Controllers Technology:

• Managing and executing technology projects for Controllers
• Focusing on the implementation and enhancement of Controllers financial systems, which includes performing analysis, design, development, testing and training
• Serving as a liaison between the business areas and technology to advise on best practices while promoting the division’s strategic goals and objectives
• Partnering with the Technology division to drive the development of their products, such as strategic systems architecture

IMD Controllers:

• IMD Corporate Controllers
  • Overseeing legal entity financial and management reporting, including preparation of financial statements, regulatory filings and coordination of audits
  • Reporting Asset Under Management & Revenue by region, channel and product
  • Establishing and monitoring accounting policies
  • Evaluating fund ownership structure for consolidation considerations
  • Monitoring and reporting firm investments in IMD funds
  • Preparing business performance package and metrics for Management Committee
  • Providing related party and other disclosure information for 10-K and 10-Q
• IMD Product Controllers
  • Instituting and monitoring valuation policies
  • Performing independent price verification
  • Originating fair value pricings
  • Executing performance calculations
  • Providing advice and support on structured trades
• IMD Fund Accounting
  • Overseeing fund financial statement preparation
  • Establishing accounting policies for funds
  • Reviewing investor P&L allocations
  • Coordinating investor reporting
  • Monitoring and supervising fund audits
  • Validating management and incentive fee calculations