Corporate Controller
Private-equity-backed structural steel platform | South Central Indiana
Industry: Structural steel fabrication
Ownership: Private equity sponsor, post-platform-acquisition
Stage: Early operational transformation
Location: South
Central Indiana, on-site
Reports to: President and PE sponsor, with Board exposure
Scope: HoldCo with three operating companies
THE COMPANY
A structural steel fabricator headquartered in central Indiana, backed by an experienced private family office sponsor and is in the early stages of a multi-year operational transformation.
The Controller will own the day-to-day accounting and finance function across the group of operating companies. This is a hands-on role. The right candidate is comfortable doing the work, not just supervising it. A CFO will be added later as the platform grows into M&A and exit preparation.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Accounting and Monthly Close
- Own the general ledger across both legal entities. Maintain a clean trial balance and reconciled balance sheet.
- Lead the monthly close. Target business-day-15 in the first 90 days, business-day-10 within six months, and business-day-7 by year-end.
- Perform or supervise account reconciliations, journal entries, accruals, and intercompany eliminations between the operating companies.
- Oversee AP and AR processes, vendor onboarding, customer billing, and collections in coordination with the accounting team.
Job-Cost and Work-In-Process Accounting
- Own job-cost accounting across all active fabrication projects. Track estimated cost, actual cost, and estimate-to-actual variance by job.
- Maintain work-in-process accounting and percentage-of-completion revenue recognition. Reconcile WIP monthly with full over and under billings analysis.
- Coordinate with project managers and operations leadership to ensure shop-floor data (PowerFab production status, outside-processor costs, station throughput) and field data (ProjectSite) is captured accurately in financial reporting.
- Track inventory across raw steel, in-process, and finished goods. Run cycle counts and physical inventory procedures.
Lender and Sponsor Reporting
- Own all lender deliverables: monthly financial reporting packages, covenant compliance certificates, borrowing-base certificates, and audit and field-exam coordination.
- Prepare the monthly sponsor reporting package including P&L, balance sheet, cash flow, KPIs, and 13-week cash forecast.
- Maintain the borrowing-base calculation. Accuracy here is non-negotiable. Borrowing-base errors put the credit facility at risk.
- Serve as the primary point of contact for the annual financial statement audit, working with outside auditors on requests, schedules, and adjustments.
Cash and Treasury
- Manage daily cash positioning across operating and real estate entity bank accounts. Maintain the 13-week cash flow forecast.
- Manage benefits accruals and employer tax filings.
- Coordinate with outside tax advisors on federal, state, and local tax compliance, including multi-state nexus, sales and use tax on fabricated materials, and any applicable credits or incentives.
Systems and Process
- Maintain the current accounting system and own data integrity across the GL, job-cost ledger, and AP/AR subledgers.
- Participate actively in the evaluation and implementation of a manufacturing-grade ERP. The Controller will be the finance lead on the ERP project, working alongside operations and the eventual CFO.
- Document accounting policies, close procedures, and internal controls. Build the playbook a successor or expanding team can follow.
- Maintain clean separation between the operating companies, including intercompany journal entries and consolidated reporting.
CANDIDATE PROFILE
Required Experience
- 10+ years of progressive accounting experience in a manufacturing, construction, or project-based business, including at least 3 years as a Controller or Assistant Controller.
- Hands-on expertise in job-cost accounting, WIP, and percentage-of-completion revenue recognition. Structural steel, heavy fabrication, machining, or industrial construction experience strongly preferred.
- Direct experience with lender reporting, covenant compliance, borrowing-base certificates, and annual audits.
- Track record of running a monthly close on a tight cadence, including WIP reconciliation and over and under billings analysis.
- Comfortable owning the work, not just reviewing it. This role does not have a large staff to delegate to. The Controller will personally touch journal entries, reconciliations, and reports.
Strongly Preferred
- CPA
- Quickbooks and Vista ERP experience
- Prior exposure to Tekla, PowerFab, or comparable structural steel detailing and production systems.
- Experience operating across multiple legal entities (operating company plus real, sister subs, or post-acquisition integration).
- Experience as part of an ERP implementation, especially in a manufacturing setting.
- Prior experience reporting to a private equity sponsor or institutional lender.
Personal Attributes
- Detail-oriented. Comfortable closing the month while also fielding a lender request and reconciling an inventory variance.
- Direct communicator. Surfaces problems early. Does not paper over reconciliation issues.
- Operationally curious. Willing to walk the shop floor to understand why job costs are running over.
- Builder mindset. Comfortable in an environment where systems and processes are still being put in place.
- Team player/leader; ability to coach finance staff on process improvements and internal controls
CAREER PATH
This role has a defined upward path. The platform's growth thesis includes add-on acquisitions and an eventual exit, which will require a CFO. The Controller who succeeds in this seat is well-positioned to grow into VP Finance or CFO as the platform scales, or to become a senior member of the finance team under an incoming CFO.
COMPENSATION AND PROCESS
Competitive base salary and performance-based annual bonus tied to platform value creation. Specific compensation will be calibrated to the candidate's experience.
Confidentiality is required. All inquiries will be handled discreetly. Qualified candidates should submit a resume and a brief note describing relevant experience to the contact identified in the search materials.
Equal Opportunity Employer.