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.
Regional controller responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real regional controller resumes:
- 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.
- Direct accounting functions, including monthly close, accounts receivable/payable, reconciliations and regional payroll administration.
- Provide feedback to operators as well as their CPA's and lenders.
- Serve as the design team lead for the national share service and ERP initiatives.
- Complete all treasury functions include but not limit to the preparation of power of attorney.
- Develop and maintain relationships with regional banks and CPA firms to facilitate growth and territory expansion.
- Supervise A/R, A/P and monthly, quarterly and year end close for a small manufacturing firm.
- Finance lead for ERP replacement of JD Edwards to develop processes and use technology for financial reporting and budgeting/forecasting.
- Select and implement Hyperion financial systems.
- Improve SOX compliance by establishing delegation of authority and segregation of duty matrix.
Regional controller skills and personality traits
We calculated that 7% of Regional Controllers are proficient in Internal Controls, CPA, and Payroll. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Detail oriented.
We break down the percentage of Regional Controllers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Internal Controls, 7%
Established, implemented and monitored appropriate internal controls and policies to ensure conformance and compliance with GAAP and other statutory requirements.
- CPA, 6%
Developed and maintained relationships with regional banks and CPA firms to facilitate growth and territory expansion.
- Payroll, 6%
Administered payroll and employee benefits, and implemented an automatic direct deposit payroll system.
- GAAP, 5%
Developed and created managerial reports, coordinating and monitoring financial budgets; ensured financial reporting in accordance with GAAP.
- Internal Audit, 4%
Hired and trained business control analysts helping to enhance compliance to company policies and procedures and significantly improving internal audit findings.
- Financial Reports, 4%
Provide monthly analysis, financial reports and area work-in-progress reports while interacting with general manager.
"internal controls," "cpa," and "payroll" are among the most common skills that regional controllers use at work. You can find even more regional controller responsibilities below, including:
Analytical skills. One of the key soft skills for a regional controller to have is analytical skills. You can see how this relates to what regional controllers do because "to assist executives in making decisions, financial managers need to evaluate data and information that affects their organization." Additionally, a regional controller resume shows how regional controllers use analytical skills: "implemented comprehensive erp system, plant management applications including touch screen for plant data collection, time accounting and delivery. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling regional controller duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "financial managers must be able to explain and justify complex financial transactions." According to a regional controller resume, here's how regional controllers can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "organized and scheduled internal audit, financial restatements and external communication to minimize the impact in the market. "
Detail oriented. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of regional controllers is detail oriented. This skill is critical to many everyday regional controller duties, as "in preparing and analyzing reports, such as balance sheets and income statements, financial managers must be precise and attentive to their work in order to avoid errors." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "review month-end closing process including detailed review of balance sheet reconciliations and sox compliance review. "
Math skills. For certain regional controller responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "math skills." The day-to-day duties of a regional controller rely on this skill, as "financial managers need strong skills in certain branches of mathematics, including algebra." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what regional controllers do: "consolidated over one hundred legal entities financial results including numerous foreign subsidiaries and reported results and related operating statistics to management. "
Organizational skills. A commonly-found skill in regional controller job descriptions, "organizational skills" is essential to what regional controllers do. Regional controller responsibilities rely on this skill because "because financial managers deal with a range of information and documents, they must have structures in place to be effective in their work." You can also see how regional controller duties rely on organizational skills in this resume example: "improved and streamlined organizational procedures of day-to-day operations resulting increased efficiency and timeliness of financial reports. "
The three companies that hire the most regional controllers are:
- Revolution Foods4 regional controllers jobs
- Suffolk Construction4 regional controllers jobs
- Hill International3 regional controllers jobs
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Compare different regional controllers
Regional controller vs. Manager finance planning and analysis
A manager finance planning and analysis oversees the daily operations of a company's financial planning department. They typically have administrative duties such as setting goals and guidelines, establishing timelines and budgets, delegating tasks among teams and staff, and reviewing financial reports regularly. They also perform research and assessments, gather and analyze financial data from different departments, coordinate staff, and solve issues and concerns when any arise. Additionally, as a manager, they must lead and empower staff to reach goals while implementing company policies and regulations.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, regional controller responsibilities require skills like "cpa," "internal audit," "cash management," and "balance sheet reconciliations." Meanwhile a typical manager finance planning and analysis has skills in areas such as "customer service," "financial models," "hyperion," and "visualization." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Managers finance planning and analysis really shine in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $109,735. Comparatively, regional controllers tend to make the most money in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $96,404.On average, managers finance planning and analysis reach higher levels of education than regional controllers. Managers finance planning and analysis are 7.7% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Regional controller vs. Manager/finance accounting
A manager of finance accounting's role is to oversee the financial activities in a company or organization. Their responsibilities revolve around coordinating with other departments to gather financial data, analyze the revenues and expenditures, and develop written reports and presentations. A manager of finance accounting must also maintain accurate financial records, identify any errors or inconsistencies, and perform support tasks for staff when necessary. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the team, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real regional controller resumes. While regional controller responsibilities can utilize skills like "payroll," "journal entries," "capital expenditures," and "financial oversight," managers/finance accounting use skills like "customer service," "hr," "shared services," and "treasury."
Managers/finance accounting may earn a lower salary than regional controllers, but managers/finance accounting earn the most pay in the government industry with an average salary of $92,198. On the other hand, regional controllers receive higher pay in the manufacturing industry, where they earn an average salary of $96,404.managers/finance accounting earn similar levels of education than regional controllers in general. They're 2.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Regional controller vs. Accounting manager
An accounting manager is responsible for supervising and monitoring the overall accounting department operations. Duties of an accounting manager include reviewing account information and account statements, processing invoices, analyzing financial data, performing account reconciliations, assisting with tax processing and audit reports, and generating financial reports for presentation with the board. An accounting manager must have excellent knowledge of the accounting principles and legislation to assist the team with the company's financial goals. Accounting managers must have the outstanding analytical, critical thinking, and decision-making skills to develop the best competitive financial strategies.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from regional controller resumes include skills like "payroll," "internal audit," "financial performance," and "financial management," whereas an accounting manager is more likely to list skills in "customer service," "payroll processing," "general ledger accounts," and "accruals. "
Accounting managers earn the highest salary when working in the finance industry, where they receive an average salary of $99,773. Comparatively, regional controllers have the highest earning potential in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $96,404.Most accounting managers achieve a similar degree level compared to regional controllers. For example, they're 4.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Regional controller vs. Accounting director
An Accounting Director supervises the general accounting and financial reporting functions, as well as financial services within a company or organization. They also ensure that all transactions and financial policies for their organization meet federal regulations and standards.
Types of regional controller
Updated January 8, 2025
