IntermediateBEHAVIORAL
Tell me about a time you managed the accounting for a multi-phase construction or services project—how did you track costs, budgets, and revenue recognition across phases?
Project Accountant
General

Sample Answer

I led accounting for a $12M, three-phase campus renovation over 18 months with a cross-functional team of 7. I created a phase-level P&L in our ERP, breaking costs into labor, materials, subs, and change orders, and mapped each to project cost codes. Every two weeks I reconciled actuals to budget and updated a rolling forecast; that process cut our forecast variance from 8% to 2% within one quarter. For revenue recognition I used percent-of-completion tied to certified progress reports and subcontractor invoices, which reduced revenue timing errors by $350K annually. I also ran monthly stakeholder reviews with PMs and procurement to address scope drift before it hit the ledger.

Keywords

Phase-level P&L and cost code mappingBiweekly reconciliations and rolling forecasts reducing variance from 8% to 2%Percent-of-completion tied to certified progress to avoid $350K revenue timing errorsCross-functional reviews with PM and procurement