Corporate Controller

Location: Toronto, Ontario
Travel: Approximately 10–20%
Reports to: North American Financial Controller, with a dotted line to Business Unit leadership
Industry: Industrial / Engineered Solutions

What if your next Controller role put you inside the business, not simply reporting on it?

Our executive search team has been retained to identify a Business Unit Controller for a growing international organization with expanding operations across North America.

This is a highly visible finance leadership opportunity for someone who wants to work directly alongside Business Unit General Managers and North American finance leadership, providing the financial insight, discipline and commercial guidance needed to help multiple business units perform and grow.

You will take ownership of the day-to-day financial reporting and analysis for multiple business units while becoming a trusted financial partner to the leaders running them.

This is not a role for someone who simply wants to close the books and report the numbers.

The organization is looking for a Controller who can understand the story behind the numbers, identify opportunities and risks, challenge assumptions, and help business leaders make better decisions.

As Business Unit Controller, you will become an integral member of both the Business Unit management teams and the North American Finance function.

You will take ownership of financial reporting, analysis and controls across multiple business units while partnering directly with operational and commercial leadership.

Your mandate will include:

• Taking day-to-day ownership of the financial reporting for multiple business units
• Partnering directly with Business Unit General Managers to provide financial guidance and support better business decisions
• Delivering accurate and timely financial statements, management reporting and performance analysis
• Leading the monthly, quarterly and year-end financial close processes for your assigned business units
• Preparing and analyzing balance sheets, profit and loss statements and other financial reports
• Completing balance sheet reconciliations and ensuring the integrity of financial information
• Analyzing actual performance against budgets, forecasts, prior-year results and strategic plans
• Providing clear commentary on business performance, financial trends, risks and opportunities
• Supporting annual budgeting, forecasting and longer-term financial planning
• Conducting product costing, margin and profitability analysis
• Monitoring and communicating capital expenditure projects
• Reviewing excess and obsolete inventory
• Supporting accounts receivable collection and working-capital management
• Identifying opportunities for cost reduction and improved operational efficiency
• Working across Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Payroll and other shared finance functions
• Maintaining accurate reporting across ERP and financial consolidation systems, including Hyperion
• Supporting audit, tax and internal reporting requirements
• Ensuring compliance with applicable Canadian financial, tax and regulatory requirements
• Leading special projects in partnership with Business Unit General Managers and North American finance leadership

Success in this role goes beyond producing accurate financial statements.

The strongest Business Unit Controller will become a trusted financial partner to the business.

You will bring greater visibility to performance, help leaders understand what is driving their results, and provide the financial insight needed to make better decisions.

You will help create:

Better financial visibility. Stronger accountability. Smarter decisions. More profitable growth.

As the organization continues to expand, your ability to build strong financial processes and provide meaningful commercial insight will play an important role in helping the business scale.

We are looking for an experienced finance professional who combines strong technical accounting knowledge with commercial business judgment.

You may currently be a Controller, Business Unit Controller, Finance Manager, Plant Controller or senior accounting professional ready to take on broader ownership across multiple business units.

The strongest candidates will bring:

• Proven experience as a Controller or in a similar senior finance role
• A strong understanding of accounting principles, financial controls and financial reporting
• Experience managing monthly, quarterly and year-end close processes
• Strong experience with budgeting, forecasting and financial analysis
• The ability to analyze complex financial information and communicate the key business implications clearly
• Experience identifying and resolving financial discrepancies and irregularities
• Strong knowledge of Canadian accounting and tax requirements, including GST, HST and RST
• Working knowledge of Canadian payroll taxes and corporate income tax requirements
• Experience with product costing, margin analysis or inventory would be highly valuable
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Excel and financial systems
• Experience working with ERP and financial reporting or consolidation platforms
• Strong organizational skills and exceptional attention to detail
• The ability to work effectively across finance, sales, operations and senior leadership
• A CPA designation or equivalent recognized accounting qualification
• A degree in Accounting, Finance or a related field

Experience working within an international, industrial, manufacturing, distribution or multi-business-unit organization would be particularly valuable.

This opportunity will suit someone who sees finance as a business function, not simply a reporting function.

You are likely:

• Commercially minded and naturally curious about how a business makes money
• Comfortable challenging assumptions and asking the right questions
• Analytical without losing sight of the bigger picture
• Highly accountable and capable of owning the financial responsibilities of a business unit from top to bottom
• Able to translate complex financial information into clear business insights
• Comfortable working directly with General Managers and senior leadership
• Self-directed and capable of managing multiple priorities with limited oversight
• Detail-oriented while still able to think strategically
• Comfortable operating in a fast-moving environment where priorities can change
• Motivated by improving processes, solving problems and helping the business perform better

You understand that great financial leadership is not about telling the business what happened last month.

It is about helping the business understand why it happened, what it means and what to do next.

Many Controller roles keep finance at arm's length from the business.

This one puts you directly alongside the people running it.

You will have the opportunity to partner with multiple Business Unit General Managers, work closely with North American finance leadership, and influence the financial performance of a growing international organization.

You will have meaningful ownership, visibility across the business and the opportunity to help build the financial discipline and insight required to support continued growth.

For the right finance leader, this is an opportunity to move beyond reporting the numbers and become a true strategic partner to the business.

The numbers tell the story. Your role is to help the business write what happens next.