Financial controller job description
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What is included in a financial controller's job description?
A financial controller is responsible for financial planning and analysis, forecasting, budgeting, and internal control. A financial controller may also be responsible for financial reporting to management and the board of directors, as well as compliance with government regulations.
In smaller businesses, a financial controller may wear many hats and have additional responsibilities such as accounts payable and receivable, human resources, and information technology. Larger organisations typically have staff who specialise in each of these areas.
A financial controller typically has a degree in accounting or finance, and may have certification as a certified public accountant (CPA) or a chartered accountant (CA).
A financial controller may work in any industry, but companies with annual sales greater than $1 billion are more likely to employ a financial controller.
What is the main role of a financial controller?
A financial controller's responsibilities generally include ensuring the company's financial health by overseeing all accounting operations. They must develop financial strategies and share analysis findings with management and executives.
What are some typical duties of a financial controller?
A financial controller's typical duties include:
- Tracking, reporting, and analysing budget variances
- Reviewing the company's financial statements to ensure they are accurate
- Preparing accurate financial statements including month-end reports for management, including profit and loss statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements
- Recommending changes in policies or procedures that will improve financial performance
- Forecasting future financial performance
- Preparing and analysing budgets
- Providing accurate financial reports to management
- Ensuring compliance with government regulations
What are the responsibilities of a financial controller?
A financial controller has many responsibilities, such as:
- Ensuring accuracy of financial statements
- Overseeing all financial planning and analysis
- Forecasting future performance
- Recommending changes to improve financial performance
- Utilising updated technologies for their job
A financial controller is also responsible for their own upskilling, as well as recommending upskilling for others in the finance department, particularly junior staff.
A financial controller may choose to take additional business-related courses post degree. Many employers also require professional certification such as a certified public accountant (CPA) or chartered accountant (CA).
What does a financial controller do day to day?
A financial controller collaborates with managers to develop budgets for the business, usually on a monthly or quarterly basis. They monitor actual performance versus budget forecasts and report variances to management.
A financial controller also works closely with managers across all departments of the organisation, as well as external parties such as vendors and customers.
Developing financial models and cash flow projections is another part of this process. A financial controller may analyse results from these models to make recommendations for future activities such as marketing campaigns, and new product launches.
As part of their job, financial controllers also analyse financial results each month or quarter (depending on company accounting policy) to prepare monthly reports for the management team, as well as quarterly and year-end financial statements.
They may also be involved with mergers and acquisitions, which requires an understanding of complex accounting issues such as purchase price allocations.
A financial controller works within the general framework of a company's overall accounting and reporting system and makes sure that all relevant information is available for management use in running the business.
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