What is a financial controller? If this question is currently confusing you and you don’t know if you should hire a financial controller, then we have got you covered.
Managing business finances is an uphill task and requires your attention to detail and the company’s wider goals. If you miscalculate or commit a costly accounting error, it is more probable that your business finance may go upside down.
To avoid any such slip-ups and errors, a large-scale business needs to hire someone who understands, calculates and manages the finances accurately and efficiently. So, a financial controller is a person a company needs to manage their accounting department, making their business achieve its goals in record time and more effectively.
In this blog, we are going to discuss the following important points, helping the owners and managers of a business who are going to hire an accounting controller or are interested to know about them! So, let’s explore the conversation!
What is a Financial Controller?
A financial controller, as the name suggests, is a person who controls the finances of a company. Also known as an accounting controller, a financial controller supervises the accounting, budgeting, monitoring and forecasting of the company, ensuring the company is on the right track of its development and is achieving its goals with a positive outlook on the future progress.
If a company’s finances derail for some reason like financial errors, fraud or security violations, he puts them back on track by analysing, correcting and helping companies get out of the financial quagmires to resume their business growth. In other words, we can say he is a financial pro who is reliable enough in dealing with all the accounting affairs of a company efficiently and precisely.
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What are the Responsibilities of a Financial Controller?
We have listed down some of the key responsibilities an accounting controller is supposed to perform. So, his responsibilities consist of the following tasks when hired to manage the finances of a company.
- Preparing financial reports
- Budgeting
- Monitoring of the reports and financial duties
- In-depth analysis of financial reports to provide an insightful information, leading to make key decisions
- Choose the right financial tools to make the finances more efficient
- Prevention of frauds
- Audit process coordination
- Analysing and managing financial risks
- Maintaining proper record of accounting and functions and processes
- Developing strategies to ensure financial growth
What are the Reasons to Hire an Accounting Controller?
Above all, there’s no denying the fact that hiring an accounting controller helps a business manage its accounting tasks efficiently and without any error. However, we have listed some of the major benefits of hiring an accounting controller to help you decide if your business needs a business analyst.
- Expert Financial Analyst
- Helps staff and increase the overall efficiency
- Watch over the inaccurate figures and corrects them on time
- Determine if a company needs a new funding source
- Provide a list of important business metrics and track them
- Prevents the probability of financial fraud and scams
- Avoid or reverts the errors in the finances
- Identify and prevents security breaches
Difference Between a Financial Controller and a CFO
While hiring an accounting controller, you come across some of the terms of CFO as well. In other words, the responsibilities of a financial controller and a CFO go hand in hand. However, a CFO has a larger pool of responsibilities and takes an active role in the progress of a business.
More importantly, a CFO goes beyond maintaining ledgers and financial records and provides sound financial reports helping a company forecast and foresee the future of a company. In other words, they provide in-depth financial analysis helping a corporation make sound decisions to increase their sales and ultimately expand the company without any financial losses.
On the other hand, the role of an accounting controller is limited to only the accounting department where he oversees and supervises all the monetary details to ensure they are accurate and error-free.
What Businesses Need to Hire an Accounting Controller?
In small-scale to medium-sized businesses, an internee or the owner himself can control the finances. However, an organisation will hire a senior accounting manager to manage and maintain all the financial records just like an expert.
If you’re self-employed you can manage your bookkeeping and financial records yourself. However, if you are not an expert in dealing with all your finances accurately, you can hire the services of an expert financial analyst.
Similarly, a business with two or three employees might not need a financial controller. However, large corporations cannot move forward without a financial expert and a CFO as the risk of occurring financial glitches are higher at such advanced accounting levels. So, the company size and expertise truly help if you need a financial controller or a CFO.
Let’s Wrap Up!
In conclusion, a financial controller is a key head of the financial department. He is responsible for managing all the financial and bookkeeping records and processes. Moreover, he is responsible for making the finances transparent and efficient using his expertise, knowledge and experience. So, you must hire an executive financial manager to make your finances more accurate and up-to-date. By now, you have an idea of ‘what is a financial controller’ and you know much about his responsibilities and duties.
Let’s discover a professional and experienced accounting controller who will manage your business finances accurately and precisely. Don’t find them anywhere? Hop on to Accounting Firms to access the UK’s best financial controllers
Disclaimer: This article provides general commentary on, and analysis of, the subject addressed. We strongly advise that you consult an attorney or tax professional to receive legal or tax guidance tailored to your specific circumstances.