Plant controller vs regional controller

The differences between plant controllers and regional 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 plant controller and a regional controller. Additionally, a regional controller has an average salary of $102,904, 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 regional controller are internal controls, CPA, and payroll.

Plant controller vs regional controller overview

	Plant Controller	Regional Controller
Yearly salary	$99,550	$102,904
Hourly rate	$47.86	$49.47
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	47,555	57,984
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 80%
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 regional controller do?

It is the responsibility of a regional controller to manage the financial reports and finances of the company in a specific geographic location. The regional controllers prepare and coordinate financial reports to ensure compliance with corporate policy and government regulations. They oversee the accounting activities of the corporation. It is their job to coordinate and prepare both external and internal financial statements. They also need to develop skills and knowledge in internal controls, financial management, accounting, payroll, and financial performance.

Plant controller vs regional controller salary

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

	Plant Controller	Regional Controller
Average salary	$99,550	$102,904
Salary range	Between $72,000 And $136,000	Between $68,000 And $153,000
Highest paying City	Reno, NV	Santa Rosa, CA
Highest paying state	Nevada	California
Best paying company	Arkema	Sharp
Best paying industry	Finance	Manufacturing

Differences between plant controller and regional controller education

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

	Plant Controller	Regional Controller
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 80%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Plant controller vs regional controller demographics

Here are the differences between plant controllers' and regional controllers' demographics:

	Plant Controller	Regional Controller
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 75.9% Female, 24.1%	Male, 73.4% Female, 26.6%
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, 7.8% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 15.0% Asian, 8.5% White, 64.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between plant controller and regional controller 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.

Regional controller example responsibilities.

Manage daily accounting, treasury, and investment functions.
Lead effort to document all significant processes to gain compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley guidelines including reconciliation criteria and coding guidelines.
Manage implementation and ongoing compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley financial accountability reporting, liaising with counterparts to ensure uniform application of standards.
Administer general ledger activity, including reconciliations, journal entries, and financial closing.
Prepare and process journal entries, including accounts receivable, inventory, prepay expenses and accruals.
Make all adjusting and closing journal entries, weekly, monthly, and quarterly, including accruals and inventory.

Plant controller vs regional controller skills

Common plant controller skills

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

Common regional controller skills

Internal Controls, 7%
CPA, 6%
Payroll, 6%
GAAP, 5%
Internal Audit, 4%
Financial Reports, 4%

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Plant Controller
Plant Controller vs Regional Controller

Updated January 8, 2025

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