Financial Director

Overview

Savannah Riverboat Cruises has been a cornerstone of Savannah, Georgia’s Historic River Street for more than 35 years, operating the city’s only dining and sightseeing cruise vessels—the Georgia Queen and Savannah River Queen . Our business is rooted in high-volume hospitality, combining marine operations with complex food and beverage, restaurant, retail, and entertainment offerings.

We are seeking an experienced Director of Finance with a strong food and beverage finance background to lead financial operations and drive profitability across multiple hospitality outlets.

Position Overview

The Director of Finance is a hands-on hospitality finance leader responsible for overseeing all financial operations, with a strong emphasis on food and beverage cost control, inventory management, and labor efficiency . This role partners closely with culinary, beverage, and operations leadership to ensure financial discipline while supporting exceptional guest experiences.

The ideal candidate brings deep experience in high-volume F&B environments and understands the financial dynamics of perishable inventory, menu engineering, pricing strategy, and labor deployment.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead all finance and accounting functions for high-volume hospitality and food & beverage operations, including daily reporting, payroll, income audit, accounts payable, accounts receivable, and cash and credit card controls
• Oversee the full month-end close process, including journal entries, accruals, balance sheet reconciliations, and detailed food, beverage, and labor cost analysis
• Establish, monitor, and enforce food and beverage cost controls , including theoretical vs. actual food cost analysis, pour cost controls, waste tracking, and inventory accuracy
• Partner with culinary and beverage leadership on menu costing, pricing strategies, margin optimization, and product mix analysis
• Lead and improve inventory systems and processes , including physical counts, variance analysis, and cost of goods sold reconciliation
• Analyze and optimize labor costs , productivity metrics, scheduling efficiency, and staffing models aligned with cruise schedules and seasonal demand
• Ensure accurate POS reporting and revenue capture across dining, bar, retail, and ticketing operations
• Develop and manage annual operating budgets and rolling forecasts that reflect seasonality, volume fluctuations, and F&B demand patterns
• Provide actionable financial insights to operations leaders to support real-time decision-making
• Maintain strong internal controls and ensure compliance with all federal, state, local, and industry regulations

Leadership & Partnership

• Serve as a key financial partner to executive leadership, culinary teams, and operational managers
• Lead, train, and develop finance and accounting team members with a focus on accountability and operational support
• Translate complex financial data into clear, practical guidance for chefs, beverage managers, and hospitality leaders

Experience & Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance or Accounting required
• Minimum of five (5) years of progressive finance leadership experience in food & beverage–driven hospitality environments (restaurants, hotels, cruise lines, resorts, entertainment venues, or catering operations)
• Demonstrated expertise in food cost, beverage cost, inventory control, and labor management in high-volume operations
• Strong experience with POS systems, inventory platforms, and hospitality financial reporting tools
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel
• Deep understanding of F&B financial drivers and operational workflows
• Highly analytical with the ability to identify cost leakage and implement corrective action
• Hands-on leadership style with the ability to work directly with operational teams
• Strong communication and presentation skills
• High integrity, professionalism, and attention to detail
• Ability to work a flexible hospitality schedule, including evenings, weekends, holidays, and peak periods

Why Join Savannah Riverboat Cruises

• Unique, high-volume food and beverage operation in an iconic Savannah setting
• Opportunity to drive meaningful margin improvement and operational efficiency
• Senior leadership role with direct influence on culinary, beverage, and operational performance

#J-18808-Ljbffr