Thomas Shears Email & Phone Number

Hamilton, On, Ca

Halton, Ontario, Canada

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Reporting to CEO, I manage a team of bookkeeping professionals to deliver full cycle accounting services to a variety of clients. I am the primary point of contact for a multi-national construction client, overseeing daily accounting functions (AR, AP, Payroll, WCB, and sales tax compliance).I provide financial analysis for clients to assist owners to understand financial results, and consult on how to improve processes and outcomes. LoAllay lightens the load for startups and small businesses.As well, I am the chief financial officer for LoAllay Inc overseeing all internal finance management. I train and coach team members on processes and to improve performance deficiencies. - Over 100 clients managed- Full cycle accounting and tax compliance (income tax and sales tax)- Payroll processing - 150+ employees, bi-weekly- Active in business development and client on-boarding.

Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

Reporting to the Global Disputes Manager, led process to resolve accounts receivable disputes to maximize cashflow. Created solutions to accelerate dispute resolution for large-scale portfolios characterized by complex projects, contractual issues, and multiple industries. Collaborated with finance and operations colleagues (Customer Care to CFO) to resolve existing, and to prevent future, disputes by improving processes. Coached AR Specialists and Dispute Owners on dispute resolution processes to drive process improvements. Worked as a remote member of a globally distributed team.• Designed dashboards to drive operational performance and inform CFO of progress for GE Oil & Gas. Reduced open disputes by 70% (~$77M to ~$24MM) though collaboration with business partners.• Facilitated reduction of disputes by 56% (~15.5MM to ~6.8MM) for GE Power through collaboration with business partners.

Mississauga, On

Created dashboards, data visualizations, and ad-hoc reports for multiple businesses and functions globally. Collaborated with business partners in operations to understand challenges and provide analysis to drive the required behaviors and outcomes. Developed effective Excel tools to automate recurring data analysis requirements. Created/maintained standard operating procedure (SOP) documentation for all recurring reports/dashboards managed. Worked as a remote member of a globally distributed team.• Led receivables reconciliation process between GE Healthcare NAM (Oracle) and DWH – developed tool to standardize monthly reconciliation of ~110K open items automatically and generate required adjusting entries. Reduced cycle time for month-end process by 50%.

Mississauga, On

Designed and implemented process to measure, monitor, and resolve open aged credit notes for GE businesses globally. Collaborated with Operation and Finance colleagues (Customer Care/Project Management to CFO) to refine and improve processes to prevent future build-up of aged items. Coordinated teams globally on process and KPIs used. Leveraged Excel VBA to automate processes to drive accurate and timely performance reporting.• Facilitated 55% reduction in open credit notes (46K to 21K items).• Developed advanced dashboard calculator utilizing VBA – 92% efficiency gain in report production (from ~24 hours to produce one bi-weekly report to ~4 hours to produce two weekly reports).

Mississauga, On

Evaluated and managed credit terms for all customers for GE Water & Process Technologies in North America. Liaised with HQ risk team and CFO for limits in excess of $0.5MM and approved limits below $0.5MM. Collaborated with Commercial Operations, Project Management, and Finance to negotiate acceptable credit terms and to resolve open receivables. Managed all collections activity for business, with extensive exposure to complex construction project related collections.• Delivered 46% ($5.7MM) decrease in 31-90 day past due balances and reduced total past due by 65% ($8.9MM) despite a 29% increase in overall AR.

Oakville, On

Evaluated and managed credit terms for all customers, in collaboration with Treasurer and CFO. Lead collections process in collaboration with project management teams. Managed cash application process for North American entities. Responsible for maintenance, reconciliation, and journal entries for all AR related ledgers. Subject matter expert on Canadian and US sales tax compliance for all customers/projects. Maintained standby letters of credit portfolio and reviewed/approved documentary letters of credit. Managed all documentary letter of credit claims. Created and maintained receivables cashflow forecasting for NAM.

Bachelor Of Commerce (Bcom), Accounting And Finance

Business Administration Diploma (Dipl.B Honours), Accounting And Finance