Plant controller vs finance director

The differences between plant controllers and finance directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-8 years to become both a plant controller and a finance director. Additionally, a finance director has an average salary of $118,518, which is higher than the $99,550 average annual salary of a plant controller.

The top three skills for a plant controller include internal controls, GAAP and plant management. The most important skills for a finance director are CPA, financial analysis, and payroll.

Plant controller vs finance director overview

	Plant Controller	Finance Director
Yearly salary	$99,550	$118,518
Hourly rate	$47.86	$56.98
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	47,555	90,012
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	8	8

What does a plant controller do?

A plant controller works at factories where they are primarily in charge of administrative duties and ensuring that operations adhere to budgets, schedules, and standards. As a plant controller, they are also responsible for gathering and analyzing financial data, analyzing cost reports, preparing financial statements, maintaining databases, performing audits and risk assessments, and overseeing the accounting team procedures. Additionally, they also supervise staff operations and address issues and concerns while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

What does a finance director do?

A finance director's role is to oversee all financial activities and aspects of a company or organization. One of their duties is to gather necessary financial data and cultivate reports on essential matters such as revenue and budget, provide risk assessments and estimates, implement vital policies, and allocate funds within the company. Furthermore, a finance director must also devise strategies and recommend innovative methods for financial gains, while in adherence to the organization's policies and regulations.

Plant controller vs finance director salary

Plant controllers and finance directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Plant Controller	Finance Director
Average salary	$99,550	$118,518
Salary range	Between $72,000 And $136,000	Between $76,000 And $183,000
Highest paying City	Reno, NV	Palo Alto, CA
Highest paying state	Nevada	California
Best paying company	Arkema	Meta
Best paying industry	Finance	Manufacturing

Differences between plant controller and finance director education

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

	Plant Controller	Finance Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Plant controller vs finance director demographics

Here are the differences between plant controllers' and finance directors' demographics:

	Plant Controller	Finance Director
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 75.9% Female, 24.1%	Male, 65.1% Female, 34.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.7% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 13.4% Asian, 7.9% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 9.4% White, 64.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between plant controller and finance director duties and responsibilities

Plant controller example responsibilities.

Manage and correct balance sheet issues including property taxes, miscellaneous accruals, inventories, and capital work- in-progress accounts.
Implement Sarbanes-Oxley internal control policy and procedures which lead to successful annual internal and external audits.
Manage general accounting functions, including monthly financial statements and audit reports, and monthly account reconciliations.
Manage monthly closing process including, account reconciliations, account analysis, preparation of monthly financial statements and other management reports.
Participate in the implementation of an ERP system that accomplish key strategic initiatives including job costing and a perpetual inventory system.
SAP (at the plant level) and Hyperion (at the corporate level) are used in financial reporting.

Show more

Finance director example responsibilities.

Manage treasury functions considering the inflationary situation and changes in economic patterns to minimize any negative impact they may involve.
Improve internal controls and operating efficiency by training accountants and converting general ledger reconciliations to GAAP formats.
Prepare financial data and footnotes for independent CPA annual audit financial statements.
Develop financial models in Hyperion to aggregate sales data and allocate expenses for profitability analysis.
Complete Sarbanes-Oxley procedural requirements for entire incentive development, administration and reporting process.
Develop an electronic billing capacity and are the first Montana health care provider to bill Medicaid electronically.

Show more

Plant controller vs finance director skills

Common plant controller skills

Internal Controls, 6%
GAAP, 5%
Plant Management, 5%
Continuous Improvement, 5%
Reconciliations, 4%
Financial Analysis, 4%

Common finance director skills

CPA, 7%
Financial Analysis, 6%
Payroll, 4%
Work Ethic, 4%
Oversight, 4%
Financial Management, 4%

Plant Controller vs. similar jobs

Plant Controller related careers

Plant Controller related jobs

What similar roles do

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse executive management jobs

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z