1. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-State Tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
Corporate controllers are tasked with supervising all accounting and financial functions of the organization. They manage their investments, oversee cash management activities, and deal with mergers and acquisitions. They develop and implement financial policies, conduct financial risk assessments, and prepare annual budgets and forecasts. Additionally, they guide financial decisions by establishing and monitoring policies and procedures. Also, they review and improve financial controls and tax return procedures. Corporate controllers ensure adherence to financial management and accounting regulations and often manage the accounting department.
Most corporate controllers possess a bachelor's or a master's degree in accounting, business administration, or finance. They have professional certifications like Certified Public Accountant (CPA) or Certified Management Accountant (CMA). They have at least five years of related work experience. The core skills include leadership, collaboration, time management, and organization skills. These experts earn an average annual salary of $136,488. It falls between $89,000 and $210,000.
There are certain skills that many corporate controllers have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed analytical skills, communication skills and detail oriented.
If you're interested in becoming a corporate controller, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 77.5% of corporate controllers have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 17.7% of corporate controllers have master's degrees. Even though most corporate controllers have a college degree, it's impossible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of finance director you might progress to a role such as director of accounting & finance eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title director of accounting & finance.
What Am I Worth?
The role of a corporate controller includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general corporate controller responsibilities:
There are several types of corporate controller, including:
Accounting managers supervise the work of bookkeepers at accounting departments, making sure that every financial statement and report is delivered on time. They are responsible for personally managing distinguished clients' accounts, and maintaining a good relationship with the company's key customers is their business as well.
Accounting managers have the nose of a bloodhound when it comes to seeking out new business opportunities, and they are always up to date on the latest strategic financial speculations.
Never underestimate the power of accountants. Ask Al Capone. He/She would have never been caught if he/she had paid his/her taxes on time.
Have you ever been involved in managing the budget for a family trip? Well, you can think of a finance director as assuming that role, except on a larger scale. Instead of a family trip, they are tasked with overseeing the financial operations of a company.
Daily, a finance director is tasked with developing financial plans, preparing financial forecasts, assessing budgets of departments, and developing accounting policies. Besides that, they facilitate tax and audit activities, as well as assisting in developing a training program for accounting staff.
A finance director is required to have a bachelor's degree that is business-related, as well as at least 4-5 years of experience in a senior finance executive role. This role earns, on average, $60 per hour and offers flexibility to work in any industry they are interested in.
A finance vice president is responsible for directing all aspects of accounting operations, overseeing all transactions related to the general ledger, receivables, payables, payroll, and financial reporting. They analyze the company's financial results with respect to profits, trends, costs, and compliance with budgets. They issue regular status and ad hoc reports to senior management and provide strategic guidance around capital financing options to support company growth needs.
Further duties include developing and coordinating all relationships with lending/financial institutions, developing and maintaining all necessary accounting policies and systems, including general ledger and financial reporting, assisting senior management in financial planning and result management. Skills required for this position are strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and prioritizing and meeting deadlines.
They should also be able to multitask in a fast-paced environment with fluctuating priorities and deadlines, have the ability to work without direct supervision, and efficiently manage tasks and time. They need a bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, or business, but a master's degree would be preferred. They earn a whopping $159,272 a year, that's $76.57 an hour. This career is expected to grow by 16% and produce 104,700 new jobs by 2028.
Mouse over a state to see the number of active corporate controller jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where corporate controllers earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.
Rank | State | Number of Jobs | Average Salary |
---|---|---|---|
1 | California | 3,389 | $160,353 |
2 | Texas | 1,528 | $131,130 |
3 | New York | 1,381 | $135,721 |
4 | Illinois | 1,010 | $127,754 |
5 | Florida | 866 | $113,665 |
6 | Massachusetts | 855 | $157,103 |
7 | Washington | 771 | $153,247 |
8 | Pennsylvania | 720 | $144,704 |
9 | Virginia | 644 | $124,167 |
10 | Georgia | 621 | $127,979 |
11 | North Carolina | 572 | $112,453 |
12 | New Jersey | 551 | $133,727 |
13 | Colorado | 549 | $128,515 |
14 | Ohio | 528 | $123,111 |
15 | Minnesota | 457 | $119,279 |
16 | Maryland | 448 | $130,159 |
17 | Arizona | 399 | $138,459 |
18 | Michigan | 396 | $130,430 |
19 | Oregon | 349 | $119,567 |
20 | Wisconsin | 333 | $139,375 |
21 | Connecticut | 299 | $141,588 |
22 | Indiana | 290 | $120,310 |
23 | Missouri | 288 | $129,643 |
24 | Utah | 279 | $127,135 |
25 | Tennessee | 272 | $117,739 |
26 | South Carolina | 214 | $120,051 |
27 | Nevada | 163 | $136,255 |
28 | Alabama | 156 | $121,211 |
29 | Kentucky | 154 | $136,699 |
30 | Iowa | 147 | $125,685 |
31 | Arkansas | 136 | $110,106 |
32 | Kansas | 130 | $119,844 |
33 | Delaware | 124 | $145,741 |
34 | Oklahoma | 100 | $110,903 |
35 | New Hampshire | 99 | $127,087 |
36 | Louisiana | 99 | $112,287 |
37 | Nebraska | 90 | $109,634 |
38 | New Mexico | 81 | $122,072 |
39 | Montana | 71 | $109,863 |
40 | Rhode Island | 68 | $122,662 |
41 | Hawaii | 67 | $112,077 |
42 | Idaho | 63 | $119,921 |
43 | Mississippi | 63 | $111,071 |
44 | Maine | 57 | $130,395 |
45 | Alaska | 46 | $139,171 |
46 | North Dakota | 37 | $134,455 |
47 | South Dakota | 37 | $109,551 |
48 | Vermont | 34 | $133,985 |
49 | West Virginia | 34 | $113,816 |
50 | Wyoming | 31 | $116,385 |
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-State Tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
Evanston, IL • Private
In-State Tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$56,225
Enrollment
19,548
Vestal, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$9,808
Enrollment
13,990
Villanova, PA • Private
In-State Tuition
$53,308
Enrollment
6,819
San Diego, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$7,488
Enrollment
30,018
Waltham, MA • Private
In-State Tuition
$49,880
Enrollment
4,177
Boston, MA • Private
In-State Tuition
$53,948
Enrollment
17,238
Stony Brook, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$9,625
Enrollment
17,407
New York, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$51,828
Enrollment
26,339
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 7.4% of corporate controllers listed payroll on their resume, but soft skills such as analytical skills and communication skills are important as well.
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Corporate Controller templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Corporate Controller resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
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Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a corporate controller. The best states for people in this position are California, Massachusetts, Washington, and Delaware. Corporate controllers make the most in California with an average salary of $160,353. Whereas in Massachusetts and Washington, they would average $157,103 and $153,247, respectively. While corporate controllers would only make an average of $145,741 in Delaware, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Massachusetts
$157,103
Avg. Salary
2. Washington
$153,247
Avg. Salary
3. California
$160,353
Avg. Salary
Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | MetLife | $161,328 | $77.56 | 5 |
2 | Jobot | $148,244 | $71.27 | 4 |
3 | Ivax Research | $146,399 | $70.38 | 3 |
4 | Waldner's Business Environments | $146,029 | $70.21 | 4 |
5 | Toshiba America Business Solutions | $145,537 | $69.97 | 4 |
6 | Tegal Corporation | $145,490 | $69.95 | 4 |
7 | Robert Half | $145,460 | $69.93 | 53 |
8 | Vanguard Dealer Services | $145,148 | $69.78 | 6 |
9 | AIG | $144,196 | $69.33 | 9 |
10 | Waste Management | $142,631 | $68.57 | 4 |