Plant Controller

We are partnering with a growing manufacturer that is looking for a Plant Controller to serve as the strategic finance leader for a fast-scaling manufacturing site in the Greater Boston area. This person will own the financial and operational performance, long-term profitability, and will be working closely with site leadership, operations, and Commercial Finance.

This role offers a Hybrid work schedule (3 days on-site, 2 days remote).

Expected compensation range is $160,000-190,000 plus expected bonus of around 20%

Plant Controller Key Responsibilities

Cost Strategy & Financial Leadership

• Own and evolve standard cost structures for the site, aligned with government program requirements and cost accounting standards
• Drive rigor in billable rates and cost methodologies, ensuring compliance with CAS/FAR and US GAAP
• Develop activity-based costing frameworks that improve visibility into cost drivers and accountability

Operational Finance & Performance Management

• Serve as the primary finance business partner to site leadership, turning financial performance into operational decisions
• Lead forecasting, financial close, and variance analysis, clearly articulating key drivers and risks
• Identify and address sources of manufacturing inefficiency, including labor variance, material waste, and overhead absorption gaps

Strategic Planning & Profitability

• Partner with Commercial Finance on long-range product profitability strategy and scenario modeling
• Support make-vs-buy decisions, capital investments, and cost structure optimization
• Drive initiatives that strengthen the long-term cost competitiveness of the product portfolio

Partnership & Influence

• Build strong relationships with operations leaders, engineers, and site stakeholders to drive shared ownership of results
• Influence decisions across functions without direct authority
• Communicate complex financial insights in clear, actionable terms for non-finance audiences

Systems, Processes & Compliance

• Oversee inventory controls, cycle counts, and ERP data integrity (SAP)
• Drive process standardization, automation, and scalability across financial workflows
• Ensure compliance with government accounting requirements and internal control frameworks

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, or a related field; MBA, CPA, or CGFM preferred
• Significant manufacturing finance experience, ideally in aerospace, defense, or government contracting
• Deep expertise in standard costing, billable rate structures, and cost accounting methodologies
• Proven ability to build cost models and turn financial insights into operational improvements across planning, assembly, and test
• Strong analytical skills, with a track record of identifying inefficiencies and partnering cross-functionally on solutions
• Strong influencing skills and success partnering with senior operations leaders
• Experience with SAP, financial modeling tools, and data analysis platforms preferred
• Ability to lead change and standardize processes in a fast-scaling, complex manufacturing environment