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Director of accounting & finance vs finance controller

The differences between directors of accounting & finance and finance controllers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-8 years to become both a director of accounting & finance and a finance controller. Additionally, a director of accounting & finance has an average salary of $127,871, which is higher than the $105,869 average annual salary of a finance controller.

The top three skills for a director of accounting & finance include CPA, GAAP and internal controls. The most important skills for a finance controller are CPA, payroll, and financial controller.

Director of accounting & finance vs finance controller overview

Director Of Accounting & FinanceFinance Controller
Yearly salary$127,871$105,869
Hourly rate$61.48$50.90
Growth rate17%17%
Number of jobs100,20997,342
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 75%Bachelor's Degree, 70%
Average age4646
Years of experience88

What does a director of accounting & finance do?

A director of accounting and finance is in charge of overseeing all financial activities and decisions in a company and supervising its workforce. Their responsibilities revolve around spearheading the development of financial plans and strategies, coordinating with analysts and consultants, gathering and analyzing financial data, and reporting all sales progress to executives through documents and presentations. They must also set goals and objectives, allocate budgets to different departments, prepare comprehensive sales forecasts, and lead employees while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

What does a finance controller do?

A financial controller is primarily in charge of the daily finance activities and accounting functions of a company. Their responsibilities typically revolve around preparing and organizing financial reports, analyzing data and looking out for any discrepancies or inconsistencies, and overseeing the company's overall revenues and expenditures. A financial controller must also maintain documentation, participate in risk assessment and budgeting activities, and develop strategies for profit growth. Furthermore, one must coordinate with other department staff to ensure accuracy, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

Director of accounting & finance vs finance controller salary

Directors of accounting & finance and finance controllers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Director Of Accounting & FinanceFinance Controller
Average salary$127,871$105,869
Salary rangeBetween $88,000 And $184,000Between $71,000 And $156,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CAYonkers, NY
Highest paying stateNew JerseyNew York
Best paying companyFried FrankSage Memorial Hospital
Best paying industryHealth CareTechnology

Differences between director of accounting & finance and finance controller education

There are a few differences between a director of accounting & finance and a finance controller in terms of educational background:

Director Of Accounting & FinanceFinance Controller
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 75%Bachelor's Degree, 70%
Most common majorAccountingAccounting
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Director of accounting & finance vs finance controller demographics

Here are the differences between directors of accounting & finance' and finance controllers' demographics:

Director Of Accounting & FinanceFinance Controller
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 67.1% Female, 32.9%Male, 61.5% Female, 38.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 9.4% White, 63.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 10.2% White, 63.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage11%11%

Differences between director of accounting & finance and finance controller duties and responsibilities

Director of accounting & finance example responsibilities.

  • Implement the firm's financial policy while managing day to day accounting and oversight of accounting staff and financial vendors.
  • Manage ERP implementation for both development and general construction operations.
  • Lead business validation process to produce accurate and timely portfolio consolidation results while ensuring favorable audit and SOX compliance opinions.
  • Manage financial accounting and reporting for all client entities, including consolidations and inter-company reconciliations, with recommendations for process improvements.
  • Champion and manage the integration of account reconciliation software to improve the efficiency and accuracy of inter-department and company-wide account reconciliations.
  • Assist CPA with yearly audit requirements and enter adjusting journal entries.
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Finance controller example responsibilities.

  • Lead the implementation of a fully integrate ERP system resulting in increase financial integrity.
  • Supervise a staff of seven in the areas of A/P, A/R, G/L, financial reporting and payroll.
  • Coordinate annual financial audit with external CPA firm and implement internal controls to satisfy recommendations from auditors.
  • Develop and implement procedures with internal controls for all financial and operational processes to ensure GAAP compliance.
  • Prepare all accounts for the month-end closing process and additionally gather information for daily/monthly reconciliations and journal entries.
  • Work with outside CPA on year-end tax planning; ensure the timely filing and payment of corporate taxes.
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Director of accounting & finance vs finance controller skills

Common director of accounting & finance skills
  • CPA, 7%
  • GAAP, 7%
  • Internal Controls, 5%
  • Financial Data, 5%
  • Balance Sheet, 4%
  • Financial Reports, 4%
Common finance controller skills
  • CPA, 7%
  • Payroll, 7%
  • Financial Controller, 7%
  • GAAP, 5%
  • General Ledger, 5%
  • Internal Controls, 5%

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