Role Summary

A PE-backed North American industry leader is seeking a high-energy finance leader to serve as Area Controller. Reporting directly to the Chief Financial Officer, this role will be instrumental in driving financial performance, establishing reporting discipline, and partnering with regional operations to support strategic growth.

The successful candidate will combine strong technical finance capabilities with a hands-on leadership style. You will have full ownership of accounting operations and financial reporting for your area, including month-end close, management reporting, and all controllership functions—while maintaining alignment with corporate finance policies and standards. You will drive accountability across your team and serve as a trusted business partner to operational leaders. Beyond leading your area, you will contribute meaningfully to the broader finance organization and collaborate with peer Area Controllers to drive enterprise-wide initiatives and share best practices.

This is an opportunity to make a significant impact in a high-growth environment with a clear mandate to modernize finance practices and support strategic initiatives including M&A integration.

Why This Role

• Market Leadership: Join the #1 player in its regional markets with a proven track record of growth and margin expansion
• High-Growth Platform: Be part of an organization with significant expansion plans and active M&A activity
• Direct Impact: Report to the CFO with visibility to PE sponsors and executive leadership
• Build & Lead: Shape a finance function and team during a transformational period
• Enterprise Influence: Contribute to the broader finance organization and maintain alignment with corporate finance policies and standards
• M&A Exposure: Participate in integration efforts and support ongoing acquisition activity

Key Responsibilities

Accounting Operations & Financial Reporting

• Own full accounting operations for the area, including month-end and quarter-end close, journal entries, reconciliations, and financial statement preparation
• Ensure accuracy, timeliness, and completeness of all financial reporting packages and deliverables
• Lead the development of annual budgets, monthly forecasts, and quarterly projections with a rigorous commitment to meeting deadlines
• Establish and maintain reporting cadence and discipline across the finance team
• Review and approve monthly financial reports, synthesizing variances into clear root-cause analysis for leadership
• Maintain high integrity with regard to financial accounting and reporting policies
• Ensure alignment with corporate finance policies, procedures, and accounting standards; implement and enforce consistency across area operations
• Ensure compliance with internal controls and accounting standards across all area finance activities

Strategic Partnership & Business Support

• Partner closely with area operations leaders to drive overall performance and strategic positioning
• Provide financial and operational analysis and value-added decision support to business leaders
• Develop business cases to support new initiatives and process improvements, including postimplementation analysis
• Participate in strategic business planning; lead the development and maintenance of financial models for revenue projections and scenario analysis
• Identify opportunities to support effective decision-making while ensuring strategic alignment and operational execution

Enterprise Contribution & Corporate Alignment

• Contribute meaningfully to the broader finance organization beyond area-specific responsibilities
• Collaborate with peer Area Controllers to share best practices, align on standards, and drive consistency across the organization
• Serve as a key link between area operations and corporate finance, ensuring two-way communication and alignment on policies, priorities, and initiatives
• Participate in enterprise-wide finance initiatives and special projects as assigned by the CFO
• Bring a solutions-oriented mindset to cross-functional challenges, proactively identifying and resolving issues

M&A Integration & Value Creation

• Support M&A integration activities, including financial due diligence, synergy tracking, and postclose integration
• Conduct post-implementation look-back analysis on acquisitions and new business initiatives
• Develop and track KPIs to measure business performance and integration success

Team Leadership & Development

• Lead, develop, and hold accountable a team of finance professionals
• Provide ongoing coaching, support, and clear direction to team members
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, ownership, and accountability within the finance function
• Assess team structure and capabilities; recommend and implement organizational changes as needed

Qualifications

Required

• CPA designation
• 10+ years of progressive finance experience
• Demonstrated experience leading and developing finance teams
• Strong financial modeling and analytical capabilities
• Experience supporting M&A activity (due diligence, integration, synergy realization)
• Proven ability to develop and track KPIs that drive business performance
• Finance-related undergraduate degree

Preferred

• Experience in asset-intensive, route-based, or field services industries
• Background working within a PE-backed environment
• Experience with multi-site, decentralized operations

Critical Competencies

The following competencies listed below define the role of Area Controller.

• Ownership & Accountability – Takes full ownership of outcomes, not just tasks. Drives accountability across the team and does not allow deliverables to slip. Comfortable making decisions and escalating issues appropriately without ceding responsibility.
• Solutions-Oriented Leadership – Approaches challenges with a bias toward action and problem-solving. Brings solutions rather than just identifying problems. Demonstrates resourcefulness and creativity in overcoming obstacles.
• Proactive Communication – Communicates early and often with stakeholders. Surfaces issues alongside proposed solutions. Keeps leadership informed without being asked. Builds trust through transparency and follow-through.
• Business Partnership – Builds strong working relationships with operational leaders. Understands the business deeply and provides insights that drive better decisions. Balances financial rigor with commercial pragmatism.
• Execution Orientation – Thinks strategically and acts tactically. Delivers results in a fast-paced, dynamic environment. Handles ambiguity well and maintains momentum despite imperfect information or competing priorities.
• Continuous Improvement – Possesses a desire to effect change and make a difference. Identifies opportunities to improve processes, reporting, and team capabilities. Comfortable working with multiple data sources and data imperfections.

Remuneration & Benefits

• Highly competitive compensation package, commensurate with experience.

If interested, please contact:

Sal Rocco – StoneWood Group, Toronto
Bus: 416.500.7100
[email protected]