Controller

Lakeview Industries; Minnesota; On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Lakeview Industries seeks a Controller to lead Finance, IT, and Customer Service, turning data into actionable information that informs decisions.

You will own monthly, quarterly, and annual financial statements, manage the close calendar, and mentor a small team while shaping strategy and internal controls across the organization.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance is required.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in an accounting department with month-end close ownership.
• Experience leading people and developing a team.
• Experience setting goals for a department and driving results.
• Working knowledge of ERP systems and strong Excel skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead Finance, IT, and Customer Service teams and set strategic direction.
• Own monthly, quarterly, and annual financial statements and close processes.
• Define key metrics and provide variance, cost-driver, and trend analyses.
• Drive budgeting, forecasting, and cash/collections management.
• Oversee customer profitability, pricing recommendations, and service impact on margin.
• Ensure IT governance, ERP improvements, and data integrity across functions.

Skills

Advanced Excel

ERP systems

Leadership

Financial analysis

Strategic thinking

Education

Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance

Tools

Excel

Job description

We are looking for a future-focused leader who will use their financial expertise to grow a culture of turning data into usable information that drives informed decisions. This role owns the timely and accurate issuance of monthly financials, projections, and weekly and monthly scorecards, along with the analysis of trends that helps the business predict rather than react.

The scope of this position reaches beyond Finance. The Controller leads our Finance, Information Technology, and Customer Service functions, and is accountable for the customer experience that comes out of those departments as well as the financial results behind it. The right person will set strategy and structure across all three areas, mentor the Customer Service Supervisor who runs that department day to day, and dig into root cause drivers rather than symptoms. This is a leader who connects what customers experience to what shows up in the numbers.

Scope & Team

This position has four direct reports and a total team of eight.

• IT Specialist, who directs our outsourced IT managed services provider
• Customer Service Supervisor, who supervises a team of four

Job Responsibilities

Leadership

• Provide leadership, coaching, and direction to four direct reports across Finance, IT, and Customer Service
• Mentor the Customer Service Supervisor on the day-to-day management of the team while owning the strategy, staffing model, and long-term direction of the department
• Leverage an experienced team by reviewing their work, coaching, and clearing obstacles rather than absorbing the work yourself
• Set strategic goals and clear expectations across Finance, IT, and Customer Service, developing the team and driving accountability for results.

Finance & Accounting

• Own the accuracy and timely issuance of monthly, quarterly, and annual financial statements, reviewing and approving the work prepared by the Staff Accountant II
• Hold the team to the close calendar, surfacing risks before they become missed deadlines
• Define key financial metrics and provide variance, cost-driver, and trend analysis that turns financial results into actionable business decisions.
• Maintain inventory valuation, standard costing, and margin analysis, and explain what is moving them
• Lead the recurring profitability review, analyzing margin by customer, product line, and job, and bring findings and recommendations to the leadership team
• Review customer profitability and make customer specific recommendations on pricing changes
• Proactively analyze operational trends and customer buying patterns, and make recommendations that shape business decisions
• Ensure proper administration of tariffs, including classification, country of origin, duty calculations, coordination with purchasing and our customs brokers, and the records that support duty treatment
• Drive the annual budget process and interim forecasting, using the Staff Accountant II on assigned sections
• Manage daily cash and cash flow reports projecting cash needs at weekly and monthly intervals or as needed
• Set credit and collections policy, and support the AR Specialist on escalated and high-risk accounts
• Own accounts payable at the policy level, including approval limits and payment timing, with daily execution handled by the Staff Accountant II
• Serve as the senior technical accounting resource for the company and lead the external audit, acting as primary contact for auditors and banking partners
• Coordinate with the company's external tax advisors by organizing and delivering required financial data on schedule, and ensure invoices are processed and paid on time
• Continually assess, execute, and improve policies, procedures, and internal controls throughout the organization

Customer Service

• Accountable for the customer experience that comes out of these departments, from purchase order receipt through delivery, invoicing, and issue resolution
• Own the targets behind the service metrics the Supervisor reports, including on-time delivery, customer satisfaction, and response and resolution time, and run a regular review against them
• Connect service performance to financial performance by identifying where errors, rework, expedites, and escalations are costing margin
• Back the Customer Service Supervisor on escalations and stay close to the health of our largest accounts
• Own the structure of the department, including the staffing model, role levels, coverage, and the standards the team is held to
• Ensure HubSpot and EDI are used consistently so customer service data is reliable enough to make decisions from
• Coordinate new EDI set-up with 3 rd party provider and ERP system and validate testing
• Align with the CS team, partner with Sales, Purchasing, Production, and Logistics so customer commitments are realistic and consistently met
• Build repeatable processes and documentation so service quality does not depend on any single person
• Utilize new functions within our ERP system and AI as applicable to improve the efficiency of the department and the customer experience

Information Technology

• Build the technology strategy and roadmap jointly with the IT Specialist & third party security provider, who bring the technical views and best practices while this role sets priorities, sequencing, and spend
• Hold a standing one to one with the IT Specialist, and review the project list, open tickets, and open vendor cases monthly
• Stay close to the recurring operating rhythms of the department and review them on their scheduled cadence
• Own the relationship with the outsourced IT managed services provider at the contract, scope, and service level, while the IT Specialist directs day to day delivery and holds them accountable
• Review the outcome of the monthly service review with the outsourced managed services provider
• Own the company's security posture and CMMC compliance, driving the maturity model roadmap with our third party security partner and tracking assigned remediation items through to completion on schedule
• Confirm that CMMC requirements hold up in day to day practice, including access control, media handling, training, and incident response
• Evaluate the CMMC implications of new systems, vendors, and contracts before commitments are made
• Own our ERP system from the business side and help lead system improvements, integrations, and data integrity efforts
• Partner with the CFO to evaluate and implement AI tools responsibly across the organization, ensuring adoption aligns with company standards and data security requirements
• Own the technology capital plan, including the equipment replacement schedule and the annual capital request
• Advance software and systems implementations and other departmental or company-wide improvements through research, planning, and execution
• Ensure our internal and external IT processes are providing a good customer service experience for the rest of the organization
• Build a department where standards, documentation, and processes are repeatable and sustained as the business grows

Cross Functional

• Own the Order to Cash process end to end across Customer Service, Finance, and IT, and understand how each step affects the financial statements and the customer experience
• Work across the organization with all departments to drive continuous improvement company wide
• Help build strong, repeatable processes throughout the organization
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications & Experience

Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance
• Minimum 5 years of experience in an accounting department, including ownership of the month-end close in a manufacturing environment
• Demonstrated experience leading people, including leading through a supervisor or other leadership role
• Experience building and developing a team, including hiring, coaching, and performance management
• Experience setting goals for a department and holding a team accountable to results
• Experience reviewing and approving the work of others rather than preparing all of it personally
• Experience owning or working closely with a customer facing or service function, with a clear view of how service performance affects financial results
• Working knowledge of ERP systems
• Advanced Excel skills with the ability to summarize large amounts of data into formats that are explainable to all levels of the organization

Qualifications

• Strong accounting, analytical, and critical thinking skills
• Comfortable leading a function outside their own technical expertise by setting expectations, asking good questions, and verifying results
• Comfortable moving between long term strategy and the detail of a reconciliation or a customer escalation
• Ability to prioritize and meet deadlines across three departments at once
• Communicates effectively with office personnel and the manufacturing floor at all levels of leadership
• A self-starter who drives change and continuous improvement
• Not satisfied with the status quo, always asking why, and willing to solve tough problems

Preferred Experience

• Experience overseeing an IT function or an outsourced managed services provider, including contract and vendor performance management
• EOS or similar operating experience
• Cost accounting experience in a manufacturing setting
• Experience leading across multiple functions effectively and simultaneously
• Strong track record of process improvement and employee development

Salary Range: $110,000–$150,000 per year