Unit controller vs assistant controller

The differences between unit controllers and assistant 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 unit controller and an assistant controller. Additionally, a unit controller has an average salary of $104,008, which is higher than the $91,447 average annual salary of an assistant controller.

The top three skills for a unit controller include financial analysis, payroll and financial reports. The most important skills for an assistant controller are reconciliations, CPA, and GAAP.

Unit controller vs assistant controller overview

	Unit Controller	Assistant Controller
Yearly salary	$104,008	$91,447
Hourly rate	$50.00	$43.96
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	55,537	58,643
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 76%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	8	8

What does a unit controller do?

The duties of a unit controller depend on one's line of work or industry of employment. In a corporate setting, their responsibilities typically revolve around performing administrative tasks such as planning and producing business plans, coordinating with different departments or officials to gather data, overseeing sales and expenditures, preparing and processing documentation, managing the schedules and budgets, and devising strategies to identify new business opportunities. They may also present progress reports and sales forecasts to senior managers or executives. Furthermore, as a unit controller, it is essential to lead and encourage the workers to reach goals.

What does an assistant controller do?

An assistant controller is an individual who supports and reports to the corporate controller about all the organization's accounting-related activities such as managerial accounting and financial activities. Assistant controllers are instrumental in maintaining the accountability of the organization's financial resources and protecting the assets of its investors. They delegate data entry tasks with junior accounting staff and coordinate financial audits with the vice president and chief financial officer (CFO). The minimum educational attainment of an assistant controller is to obtain a bachelor's degree in finance or accounting related field.

Unit controller vs assistant controller salary

Unit controllers and assistant controllers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Unit Controller	Assistant Controller
Average salary	$104,008	$91,447
Salary range	Between $70,000 And $153,000	Between $63,000 And $132,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Stamford, CT
Highest paying state	California	Connecticut
Best paying company	Wacker Chemie	Cloudflare
Best paying industry	Technology	Finance

Differences between unit controller and assistant controller education

There are a few differences between a unit controller and an assistant controller in terms of educational background:

	Unit Controller	Assistant Controller
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 76%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Unit controller vs assistant controller demographics

Here are the differences between unit controllers' and assistant controllers' demographics:

	Unit Controller	Assistant Controller
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 69.3% Female, 30.7%	Male, 49.8% Female, 50.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.4% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 10.0% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 9.1% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between unit controller and assistant controller duties and responsibilities

Unit controller example responsibilities.

Manage global consolidation of month end closing including review/analysis of financial statements ensuring adherence of GAAP guidelines.
Maintain and update the ERP system and average actual batch costing.
Provide training to finance and operation staff for the new ERP system.
Implement online expense report system and online account reconciliations along with lead the accounts payable outsourcing project.
Assess and close A/P & A/R ledger on a monthly basis, validate content and resolve various issues.
Prepare consolidated financial statements in accordance with GAAP.

Assistant controller example responsibilities.

Lead divisional capital management through ROI analysis on new products and other capital investments to maximize returns.
Facilitate the implementation of ERP system, which increase productivity in efficiently and effectively manage the functionality of the organization.
Initiate ongoing departmental projects to automate daily tasks which include the calculations for income distributions and the daily income account reconciliation.
Maintain timely and accurate general ledger account reconciliations, oversee treasury management, and handle fixed asset tracking and reporting.
Direct balance sheet and inter-company reconciliations according to GAAP and ensure compliance across accounting, payroll, and inventory management systems.
Oversee corporate financial internal controls including a complete re-write of all standard operating procedure documentation and supporting annual SOX audit work.

Unit controller vs assistant controller skills

Common unit controller skills

Financial Analysis, 9%
Payroll, 8%
Financial Reports, 6%
Internal Controls, 5%
Close Process, 5%
Financial Data, 5%

Common assistant controller skills

Reconciliations, 9%
CPA, 8%
GAAP, 7%
Internal Controls, 5%
Payroll Processing, 5%
External Auditors, 5%

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Unit Controller
Unit Controller vs Assistant Controller

Updated January 8, 2025

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