How to hire a controller/finance manager

How to hire a controller/finance manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step controller/finance manager hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a controller/finance manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new controller/finance manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a controller/finance manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a controller/finance manager, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A controller/finance manager's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, controller/finance managers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents controller/finance manager salaries for various positions.

   Type of Controller/Finance Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Controller/Finance Manager	Financial managers are responsible for the financial health of an organization. They produce financial reports, direct investment activities, and develop strategies and plans for the long-term financial goals of their organization.	$39-82
   Accounting Manager/Controller	An accounting manager/controller is responsible for spearheading and overseeing the daily operations in a company's accounting department. They monitor the company's budgets, including its costs and expenditures, and produce financial reports... Show more	$31-63
   Corporate Controller	A corporate controller is a professional who is responsible for supervising the overall daily accounting operations of an organization. Integral to the financial health of the organization, corporate controllers are required to help the organization with strategic financial decisions through forecasting reports and financial statements... Show more	$47-100

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • CPA
   • Internal Controls
   • External Auditors
   • SOX
   • Internal Audit
   • Oversight
   • Payroll
   • GAAP
   • Project Management
   • Reconciliations
   • Risk Management
   • Sarbanes-Oxley
   • Balance Sheet
   • Financial Management

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage the preparation of monthly reporting packs and board presentations with robust variance analysis, commentaries and forward looking KPIs.
   • Review balance sheet reconciliations and assist with variance analysis.
   • Authore internal control guidelines and provide training to employees & suppliers to promote compliance with SOX and corporate policies.
   • Engage process and control owners to assess impact of business changes and associate risk to ensure changes comply with SOX requirements.
   • Perform all treasury functions and partners distributions.
   • Assist in implementing computerize ERP software system.

   More controller/finance manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your controller/finance manager job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A controller/finance manager salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a controller/finance manager in Tennessee may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level controller/finance manager usually earns less than a senior-level controller/finance manager. Additionally, a controller/finance manager with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average controller/finance manager salary

   $119,732yearly

   $57.56 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level controller/finance manager salary

   $83,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 18, 2025

   Average controller/finance manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$145,714	$70
   2	California	$137,127	$66
   3	District of Columbia	$137,088	$66
   4	New York	$134,725	$65
   5	Washington	$132,836	$64
   6	New Jersey	$129,018	$62
   7	Michigan	$123,702	$59
   8	Illinois	$117,947	$57
   9	Virginia	$106,240	$51
   10	North Carolina	$106,070	$51
   11	Arizona	$105,875	$51
   12	Georgia	$102,239	$49
   13	Texas	$101,233	$49
   14	Colorado	$99,180	$48
   15	Florida	$91,096	$44

   Average controller/finance manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Genentech	$163,626	$78.67
   2	Bloomberg	$149,659	$71.95	52
   3	Novo Nordisk	$148,866	$71.57	1
   4	Deutsche Bank	$144,944	$69.68	20
   5	Mars	$144,498	$69.47	1
   6	Barclays	$138,251	$66.47	2
   7	Bristol-Myers Squibb	$137,470	$66.09
   8	Henkel	$137,079	$65.90	1
   9	Citi	$135,947	$65.36	33
   10	Metalor Technologies International SA	$135,087	$64.95
   11	The Clorox Company	$134,590	$64.71	1
   12	MetLife	$131,689	$63.31	5
   13	Fluor Corporation	$130,572	$62.77	8
   14	Walgreens	$130,409	$62.70	8
   15	KORE	$129,877	$62.44
   16	Infineon Technologies	$128,758	$61.90
   17	BAE Systems	$127,317	$61.21	30
   18	Microsoft	$126,717	$60.92	109
   19	Ernst & Young	$126,501	$60.82	2,509
   20	Aramark	$125,383	$60.28	42

4. Writing a controller/finance manager job description

   A good controller/finance manager job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a controller/finance manager job description:

   Controller/finance manager job description example

   Responsible for executing the accounting and controlling functions for a region of Veolia North America's Municipal portfolio of business in conjunction with management in order to provide professional financial support, expertise and guidance to internal clients including financial management, operational management and other members of M&C Finance Department. Primary emphasis and focus for this position centers on building and analyzing the financial statements of Veolia's operational locations in the region. This includes comparison of reported results to budgets, forecasts, prior year trends in addition to the creation of ad-hoc analyses. Singularly important to these comparisons is consistent adherence to general accounting processes in the proper recording of assigned balance sheet components, revenue recognition practices and principles, COS matching and capital budgeting and expenditure reporting. Compliance with these practices ensures accurate and timely population of all required disclosures for internal and external reporting purposes.
   Primary Duties / Responsibilities
   
   Executes upon the general accounting structure and processes of the organization for the regional business in conjunction with the policies and directives of the M&C Finance Department and its management
   
   Responsible for financial statement presentation including: revenue recognition principles and practices, managing revenue and expense accruals to properly reflect incurred and earned activity according to the matching principle, provisions, and SG&A activity. This includes, but is not exclusive to, ensuring the integrity of balance sheets, income statements and cash flow reporting.
   
   Oversees and manages a staff of 3 or 4, including billing specialist(s) and financial analyst(s)
   
   Preparation and review of the accounts receivable and allowances for contract customers.
   
   Compliance with and execution of the detailed month-end closing schedule for M&C Finance under guidance provided by the corporate M&C Finance team, acting as the liaison to the operational and overhead teams (non-financial personnel) to assist them with variance analysis, trends, projections and compliance with deadlines and expectations.
   
   Proposes changes to accounting and operational processes to enhance the automation and efficiency of the department.
   
   Proposes changes to accounting and operational processes to further the aims of a strong internal control environment, which ensures the safeguarding of company assets.
   
   Provides and analyzes financial and operating results of the business including review of internal and external financial reporting. Appraisals include comparisons in terms of revenues, costs, profitability and liquidity in comparison to budgets, forecasts and prior year trends.
   
   Contributor to the preparation of Monthly Operating Report (MOR) for assigned reporting package, prepares bridges focusing on comparisons of working capital and profitability versus budget, forecasts and prior year results and preparing/analyzing monthly Flash and dashboard reporting.
   
   Participation in the formulation of budgets and forecasts for assigned business units under the direction of management, working jointly with the operational and SG&A organizations to ensure the accuracy of the output prepared.
   
   Coordination and preparation of audit workpapers as required by the external audit process, working closely with senior management to complete all audit requirements.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find controller/finance managers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any controller/finance managers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level controller/finance managers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your controller/finance manager job on Zippia to find and recruit controller/finance manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit controller/finance managers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new controller/finance manager

   Once you have selected a candidate for the controller/finance manager position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new controller/finance manager. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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