How to hire a cost controller

How to hire a cost controller, step by step

Here's a step-by-step cost controller hiring guide:

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

What does a cost controller do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your cost controller job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a cost controller for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a cost controller to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a cost controller that fits the bill.

   This list presents cost controller salaries for various positions.

   Type of Cost Controller	Description	Hourly rate
   Cost Controller	Accountants and auditors prepare and examine financial records. They ensure that financial records are accurate and that taxes are paid properly and on time... Show more	$24-54
   Accounting Analyst	An accounting analyst is responsible for supporting the accounting operations of an organization, analyzing financial transactions and financial statements, and resolving account discrepancies. Accounting analysts interpret financial data by consolidating account transactions, performing account reconciliation, and managing account receivables... Show more	$20-37
   Certified Public Accountant	A certified public accountant (CPA) acts as an advisor to small businesses and chief financial officers to Fortune 500 companies. They typically work for both small and large public accounting firms... Show more	$23-57

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Project Management
   • Cost Analysis
   • Financial Statements
   • Cost Estimates
   • Variance Analysis
   • Cost Data
   • Project Budget
   • Accruals
   • Purchase Orders
   • Cost Control
   • WBS
   • ERP
   • Training Programs
   • GAAP

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Improve project process by developing and implementing cost structure, then manage job-specific code of accounts for WBS approvals.
   • Manage treasury, open several new accounts, establish new procedures and controls, monitor daily activity.
   • Prepare monthly write-ups reports for the cost performance and EAC forecast
   • Identify wrongly charge WBS in order to control the budget release under each WBS element.
   • Facilitate capital project team's operating expense budgets, forecast, variance comments, accruals, and reporting.
   • Analyze purchase order commitment to calculate accruals.

   More cost controller duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the cost controller job description is a good way to get more applicants. A cost controller salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a cost controller in Nebraska may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level cost controller. Additionally, a cost controller with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average cost controller salary

   $76,697yearly

   $36.87 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level cost controller salary

   $51,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 13, 2025

   Average cost controller salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$96,443	$46
   2	Massachusetts	$91,009	$44
   3	New York	$90,816	$44
   4	Washington	$87,660	$42
   5	Virginia	$81,498	$39
   6	Maryland	$77,910	$37
   7	Pennsylvania	$76,737	$37
   8	Texas	$74,686	$36
   9	Colorado	$68,731	$33
   10	North Carolina	$67,269	$32
   11	Michigan	$65,110	$31
   12	Tennessee	$62,705	$30
   13	Minnesota	$62,571	$30
   14	Missouri	$61,448	$30
   15	Florida	$61,434	$30
   16	Iowa	$58,639	$28

   Average cost controller salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	NOVA Chemicals	$94,220	$45.30
   2	Technip USA Corporation	$91,408	$43.95
   3	Seadrill	$87,386	$42.01
   4	Hargrove Engineers + Constructors	$84,175	$40.47	1
   5	Kforce	$83,884	$40.33	27
   6	HOW	$83,273	$40.04
   7	Nestlé	$82,920	$39.87
   8	Belcan	$77,092	$37.06	8
   9	Hyatt Hotels	$74,995	$36.06
   10	Tenneco	$74,606	$35.87	1
   11	CyberCoders	$74,557	$35.84	1
   12	LanceSoft	$74,305	$35.72	1
   13	Schneider Electric Industrial Services	$74,194	$35.67	2
   14	Randstad North America, Inc.	$73,498	$35.34	7
   15	CMA CGM	$72,348	$34.78	3
   16	Wanzek Construction	$72,117	$34.67
   17	LaBella Associates	$71,772	$34.51	4
   18	Arlanxeo Usa LLC	$70,654	$33.97
   19	M R Co	$70,591	$33.94	2
   20	Amec Foster Wheeler	$70,591	$33.94

4. Writing a cost controller job description

   A cost controller job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a cost controller job description:

   Cost controller job description example

   LaBella Associates was established in 1978 and is a certified Great Place To Work. We are headquartered in Rochester, NY with offices across New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Maine, Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Madrid, Spain. LaBella is a multi-disciplined architectural and engineering firm dedicated to client satisfaction through teamwork, respect, and trust. We provide services that take a project from start to finish-from an initial study to determine a project's feasibility to construction administration and start up, and everything in between.
   
   We are currently hiring a Scheduler / Cost Controller in LaBella's Program Management Services Division at our client's office in Augusta, ME.
   
   The Program Management Services Division at LaBella provides comprehensive management services for complex projects and multi-year capital programs. Project teams are established to provide a customized mix of business consulting, project management, financial control and monitoring, administrative, and technical support services.
   
   The Scheduler/Cost Controller is responsible for producing a variety of regular and ad-hoc reports in support of our project planning and control initiatives. Working closely with the project team, they play a key role in ensuring that policies, procedures, and standards are adhered to. The Scheduler/Cost Controller is responsible for developing, implementing, preparing, reconciling and maintaining valuable project control data and reports for projects. Scheduler/Cost Controller assists with meeting the client's objectives by preparing monitoring project and developer financial attributes, analyzing variances, and initiating corrective actions.
   Responsibilities Develop and Maintain project schedules through project close-out. Monitor and report on project costs and commitment to budget and forecast. Verify accuracy of cost information - including confirmation that costs have been properly coded and allocated to the project budget. Review and evaluate cost trends and their impact on project progress. Monitor project change control and ensure change order register match the project financial plan(s). Assess progress measurement and develop/update progress curves for the project progress reporting. Prepare needed regulatory reporting and status reports. Qualifications Associates Degree in Accounting or related field Three (3) years of experience in project cost controls Preference will be given to candidates with Certified Assistant Project Manager (CAPM) certification. Four (4) years of scheduling experience. Experience in a electric utility environment Experience working in a highly regulated environment. Experience demonstrating strong attention to detail. SAP Experience
   The offer of employment for this position will be conditioned upon a satisfactory criminal background check.
   
   Company Perks
   Health/Dental Insurance 401k Plan Short & Long Term Disability Profit Sharing Paid Time Off Verizon Wireless Discount Gym Reimbursement Tuition Reimbursement Referral Bonus Program Wellness Program Team Building Events Community Service Events LaBella Associates does not accept unsolicited resumes from recruiting professionals or agencies, nor do we accept resumes from any source that does not reference a specific, open position. LaBella Associates will not be responsible for any fees arising from the use of resume submitted by recruiting professionals or agencies that do not have a current placement fee agreement with LaBella Associates. All initial communication with recruiting professionals or agencies must go through human resources.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right cost controller for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with cost controllers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit cost controllers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your cost controller job on Zippia to find and attract quality cost controller candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as efinancialcareers, financialjobsweb.com, careerbank, financial job bank.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit cost controllers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates 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 cost controller

   Once you've found the cost controller candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   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 cost controller. 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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How much does it cost to hire a cost controller?