Controller

(Job ID: 1836)

South Orange County, California, California

Hybrid

Direct Hire

Services and Legal

$170,000 – $200,000 base

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Overview

Join a well-established manufacturing company as a Controller, where you will play a pivotal role in overseeing the financial health and operational effectiveness of the organization. This position, based in Southern California, offers an exciting opportunity to lead a dynamic finance team while working closely with senior leadership. With a focus on accounting, financial reporting, and audit procedures, you will ensure the company maintains robust financial systems and controls.

Title: Controller
Industry: Industrial Cleaning Services
Location: South Orange County, California

Responsibilities

Lead and manage all accounting operations, including accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, and general ledger activities.
Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and maintain internal controls over financial transactions.
Coordinate and oversee the annual audit process, ensuring timely and accurate financial reporting.
Analyze financial data to produce monthly and annual financial statements, providing insights to senior leadership.
Drive the annual budgeting process, comparing financial plans to actual results to identify and address variances.
Manage cash flow forecasting in collaboration with operations and departmental leaders.
Support the integration of finance with Human Resources, IT, and other functions to enhance organizational performance.

Qualifications

Must-Have:

Minimum of 10 years of progressive experience in accounting and finance, with a strong background in public accounting or audit.
Proven expertise in job cost accounting and percentage-of-completion (PoC) accounting.
Experience in managing audits, month-end close processes, and financial reporting in a fast-paced environment.
Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance; CPA certification strongly preferred.
Excellent communication skills, with the ability to convey complex financial concepts to non-financial stakeholders. Nice-to-Have:
Experience in a private equity-backed company or project-based environment.
Familiarity with accounting systems such as Great Plains or Microsoft Dynamics.
Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills.
Experience in the manufacturing or industrial services sectors.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do Accounting Manager hires fail?
Because companies hire for close execution when the real need is issue ownership and team leadership. Many candidates can manage a checklist. Far fewer can stabilize the function under pressure, improve weak processes, coach staff, and hold the line during audit, turnover, or reporting stress.
What are strong Accounting Manager candidates evaluating during the interview process?
They are usually trying to understand whether they are walking into a stable environment, a cleanup situation, or an under-resourced function. Strong candidates do not just evaluate title and compensation. They assess whether success is realistically achievable and whether leadership understands what the accounting team actually needs.
Why is manufacturing accounting and finance talent difficult to hire well?
Because manufacturing environments expose weak operators quickly. The work touches inventory, costing, margins, controls, operations, and often plant-level realities. Employers are not just hiring accounting knowledge. They are hiring someone who can function inside an operational business where the numbers have to connect to what is happening on the floor.
Is the CPA really required for roles like this?
Sometimes yes, and often functionally yes even when the posting says "preferred." At leadership levels especially, the CPA frequently acts as a credibility signal for hiring managers, auditors, lenders, investors, or boards. There are exceptions, but in many accounting searches it remains one of the clearest markers of technical foundation.
How do strong candidates typically evaluate opportunities like this?
Strong candidates rarely evaluate a role based on title alone. They look at what the position actually owns, how the function is viewed internally, whether the environment is stable or in transition, and what success will realistically look like in the first 6 to 12 months. Many first discover a role through a posting, but the strongest career decisions usually come from understanding the context behind the opportunity, not just the job description. In accounting and finance hiring, that level of context is often what separates a lateral move from a meaningful one. Learn more about how strategic accounting and finance searches differ from transactional recruiting.
Why is cost accounting experience often treated as a separate requirement?
Because cost accounting is not just a line item on a resume. In the right environments, it shapes how the business understands margins, inventory, production efficiency, and operating performance. Employers usually separate it out because general accounting strength alone does not guarantee sound judgment in a costing environment.

Controller — South Orange County, California, California | Pacific Executive Search