Controller

About the Role

We’re looking for an experienced Controller who is ready to take the next step toward CFO-level leadership. This is a hands-on role for someone who has mastered the fundamentals of accounting and financial reporting but wants to expand their impact beyond closing the books. You’ll own the financial function for a portfolio of approximately 5–7 clients, manage and develop accounting team members, and work directly with client leadership and cross-functional teams. The right person can advise a CEO in the morning and dig into a balance-sheet issue that afternoon.

Responsibilities

• Own the Accounting
  • Oversee day-to-day accounting and financial operations across 5–7 clients
  • Own and review month-end close, financial statements, reconciliations, journal entries, accruals, AP/AR, payroll, and other core accounting activities
  • Ensure balance sheets are accurate and financial reporting both is timely and reliable
  • Maintain strong accounting processes, internal controls, and documentation
  • Identify and resolve accounting issues and discrepancies
  • Coordinate with external tax professionals, auditors, and other financial partners
  • Stay close enough to the work to jump into the details when necessary
• Turn the Numbers Into Insights
  • Prepare and present monthly financial reporting packages
  • Analyze revenue, margins, expenses, cash flow, and other business drivers
  • Develop budgets, forecasts, cash flow projections, and financial models
  • Perform variance analysis and explain what is driving performance
  • Establish and monitor meaningful financial and operational KPIs
  • Identify trends, risks, and opportunities and turn them into actionable recommendations
  • Help clients improve financial visibility and make better business decisions
• Operate as a CFO-Level Partner
  • Serve as a trusted financial partner to business owners and leadership teams
  • Develop a deep understanding of each client’s business model, operations, and goals
  • Connect accounting, tax, cash flow, and operational performance to the bigger financial picture
  • Work cross-functionally with client teams on financial and operational initiatives
  • Help leadership teams think through financial implications of important business decisions
  • Continue developing from Controller-level financial ownership into CFO-level advisory
• Lead a Team
  • Manage, coach, and develop accounting team members
  • Review work and maintain a high bar for accuracy and quality
  • Delegate effectively without becoming disconnected from the details
  • Manage priorities and deadlines across multiple client engagements
  • Improve processes and help the team operate more efficiently as we grow

Requirements

• 8+ years of progressive accounting and finance experience
• Meaningful experience as a Controller or similar accounting leadership role
• Public accounting experience strongly preferred
• Tax experience highly valued
• CPA preferred
• Strong GAAP and technical accounting knowledge
• Demonstrated ownership of month-end close, financial statements, balance sheet, accounting operations, and internal controls
• Experience managing and developing accounting professionals
• Strong financial analysis, budgeting, forecasting, and cash flow management skills
• Strong Excel skills and comfort learning and working across financial technology platforms
• Experience working directly with business owners, executives, or senior leadership
• Ability to communicate financial concepts clearly to non-finance leaders
• Comfortable managing multiple clients, businesses, deadlines, and priorities
• Naturally curious. You want to understand why the numbers changed, not simply report that they changed
• Willing to roll up your sleeves when needed; no accounting task is “beneath” you

Qualifications

• Required Qualifications
  • Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or a related field
  • 8+ years of progressive accounting and finance experience, including significant experience in a Controller, Assistant Controller, Accounting Director, or comparable financial leadership role
  • Demonstrated experience owning the month-end and year-end close process, including financial statement preparation and review
  • Strong knowledge of U.S. GAAP and technical accounting principles
  • Strong understanding of the income statement, balance sheet, and statement of cash flows, including how activity flows between all three
  • Experience overseeing core accounting functions including general ledger, journal entries, reconciliations, accruals, AP, AR, payroll, fixed assets, and cash
  • Experience developing and maintaining accounting policies, procedures, and internal controls
  • Experience with budgeting, forecasting, cash flow planning, variance analysis, and financial modeling
  • Strong financial analysis skills with the ability to identify trends, understand business drivers, and turn financial data into actionable insights
  • Experience managing, reviewing, coaching, and developing accounting and finance team members
  • Experience working directly with business owners, executives, or senior leadership
  • Ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, entities, or client relationships simultaneously
  • Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and strong overall financial systems aptitude
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex accounting and financial concepts to non-finance stakeholders
  • Strong attention to detail, judgment, organization, and problem-solving skills
  • Comfortable operating as a hands-on financial leader, able to delegate and review work while also stepping into the details when necessary
• Preferred Qualifications
  • CPA license or active CPA designation strongly preferred
  • Public accounting experience strongly preferred
  • Experience in tax accounting, tax compliance, tax planning, or tax advisory
  • Strong understanding of how tax considerations affect cash flow, entity decisions, financial planning, and business strategy
  • Experience working with pass-through entities and privately held businesses
  • Experience coordinating with external tax professionals, auditors, bankers, attorneys, and other professional advisors
  • Experience managing a portfolio of multiple clients, engagements, companies, or business entities
  • Experience in Client Accounting Services (CAS), outsourced accounting, fractional Controller/CFO services, professional services, or consulting
  • Experience implementing or improving accounting systems, reporting processes, close procedures, and internal controls
  • Experience developing KPIs, management reporting, dashboards, and executive-level financial reporting
  • Experience presenting financial results, forecasts, risks, and recommendations to business owners or leadership teams
  • Exposure to CFO-level responsibilities, including strategic planning, scenario modeling, capital allocation, banking relationships, or other executive financial matters
  • Experience with modern accounting and financial technology platforms

Why This Role

You’ve already learned how to be a great Controller. This role is about expanding what you can do with that foundation.

Instead of seeing the financial challenges of one company, you’ll work across several businesses with different business models, leadership teams, and opportunities. You’ll remain close to the accounting while building deeper experience in the areas that distinguish strong CFOs: forecasting, cash management, analytics, tax strategy, executive communication, operational decision-making, and financial leadership.

If you started your career in public accounting or tax, moved into an operational Controller role, and are now looking for an opportunity to grow toward CFO-level leadership, we’d especially like to hear from you.

The person who thrives here is equally comfortable in the boardroom and the accounting system and understands that great financial strategy starts with great numbers.

Ideal Background

While there are multiple paths to being successful in this role, and we welcome them, an especially strong candidate may have started their career in public accounting, gained some experience in tax, then transitioned into industry and developed significant Controller-level experience. You have mastered the accounting fundamentals and know how to ensure the numbers are right. You also understand tax and appreciate how accounting decisions connect to the broader financial picture. Most importantly, you're ready for more! You want to move beyond reporting what happened and become a financial leader who helps businesses understand why it happened, what it means, and what they should do next.

You can advise a CEO in the morning and dig into a balance-sheet issue that afternoon. This role is designed for an experienced Controller who wants to continue developing the analytical, strategic, and advisory capabilities needed to operate at the CFO level.