Position Summary
The Controller leads all site finance and accounting activities, ensuring accurate financial reporting, strong internal controls, and timely decision support to Operations. This role owns the month-end close and forecasting process, drives cost/working-capital performance, and partners with local leadership to improve profitability, operational efficiency, and compliance with corporate policies and accounting standards.
Key Accountabilities
- Finance Leadership & Business Partnering: Serve as the primary finance partner to local operational leadership; translate site performance into financial results and actionable insights. Prepare regular operational metrics, month-end close, forecast updates, and annual plans. Analyze key drivers (labor, yield, efficiency, overtime, materials, freight, overhead absorption) and recommend corrective actions.
- Financial Reporting, Close, and Controls: Own month-end and year-end close processes, including journal entries, reconciliations, accruals, inventory valuation, and reporting packages. Maintain strong documentation, internal controls, and audit readiness while ensuring compliance with corporate accounting policies.
- Costing, Inventory, and Operational Finance: Oversee standard costing governance, including BOM/routing integrity, labor/overhead rates, periodic cost rolls, and product profitability models. Lead variance analysis and partner cross-functionally to improve working capital performance across inventory, receivables, and payables.
- Budgeting, Forecasting, and Long-Range Planning: Lead annual business plans, periodic forecasts, and long-range strategic financial outlooks. Build and maintain models for volume/mix sensitivity, margin bridges, and productivity initiatives.
- Treasury, Cash, and Capital: Manage site-level cash planning and working capital. Partner on capital expenditure planning, including business cases, ROI analysis, approval packages, fixed asset tracking, and post-implementation reviews.
- People Leadership & Compliance: Lead, coach, and develop the local finance team. Support site quality and safety compliance requirements relevant to the role, and perform other duties as assigned.
Qualifications
- Education: Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field. Professional accounting designation (CPA or equivalent) preferred.
- Experience: 5+ years of progressive finance and accounting experience within a fast-paced industrial or manufacturing environment. Proven ownership of month-end close, cost accounting, and operational performance reporting.
- Technical: Strong understanding of standard costing, inventory valuation, variance analysis, and internal controls. Advanced Excel skills required. Prior experience with enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems required.
- Leadership: Demonstrated ability to manage a team, influence cross-functional peers, and drive continuous improvement in a production environment.
Core Competencies
- Financial Acumen & Internal Controls
- Operational Mindset & Cost Driver Analysis
- Strategic Thinking & Problem Solving
- Effective Multi-Level Communication
- Leadership & Talent Development
- Integrity & Accountability
When referencing this job, please use Reference # 302136
----- DISCLAIMERS -----
This position for employment is for a current vacancy with Highspring’s client. You must currently reside within the Greater Toronto Area and be permitted to work in Canada to be considered for this opportunity. A recruiter will be in touch with you if your profile meets our client’s requirements for this role.
By submitting to this position, you agree that you will be giving Vaco by Highspring the exclusive right to present you as a candidate for the foregoing position. Additionally, you agree to be included in our talent pool for future hiring for similarly qualified positions. You further agree that you have represented information about yourself accurately and have not affirmatively misrepresented your qualifications. Lastly, you also agree to maintain as confidential, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any information you learn from Vaco by Highspring about the position and you will limit disclosure of information about the position only to the extent necessary to perform any obligations in furtherance of your application. In exchange, Vaco by Highspring agrees to exercise reasonable efforts to represent you through all solicitation, job screening and resume dispersal.
Vaco by Highspring values a diverse workplace and strongly encourages women, people of colour, LGBTQ+ individuals, people with disabilities, members of ethnic minorities, foreign-born residents, and veterans to apply. The company is also committed to ensuring that persons who need them are provided with reasonable accommodations; if one is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact [email protected] .
Vaco by Highspring respects your privacy and is committed to providing transparent notice of our policies in English here and in French here. Additionally, the company uses AI to perform preliminary screenings, focused on ensuring minimum job requirements noted in the position are satisfied. Further assessment of candidates beyond this initial phase will be conducted by recruiters and hiring managers. Vaco/Highspring does not know and cannot opine on if its client’s use of AI products in hiring.
Pay Transparency Notice
Determining compensation for this role (and others) at Vaco by Highspring depends upon a wide array of factors including but not limited to:
- the individual’s skill sets, experience and training;
- licensure and certification requirements;
- office location and other geographic considerations;
- other business and organizational needs.
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Having said that Vaco by Highspring believes that the salary range referenced reasonably estimates the base compensation for an individual hired into this position. The individual may also be eligible for discretionary bonuses and/or participation in medical, dental, and vision benefits as well as the company’s retirement plan (or similar retirement benefits).
