Lean Controller

Strong Hold • Louisville, KY

12d • Hybrid

About The Position

We are searching for a high-energy, hands-on Controller to own the financial heartbeat of our operations during a pivotal growth. This is a unique "hybrid" leadership role: you will lead and professionalize our existing traditional finance team and processes, ensuring bulletproof GAAP compliance and reporting, while simultaneously partnering with the VP of Finance to transition the organization toward Lean Accounting and Value Stream Costing. You will serve as both a financial steward and a Lean business partner, helping the organization bridge the gap between traditional oversight and a streamlined, value-focused future.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance; CPA or CMA strongly preferred.
• 8+ years of progressive accounting leadership, including at least 3 years managing direct reports within a manufacturing environment.
• Deep expertise in inventory management, GAAP compliance, and heavy ERP usage.
• Proven experience with Lean, continuous improvement, or operational excellence initiatives.
• Experience transitioning an organization away from traditional standard costing is highly desirable.
• A self-starter who can juggle high-stakes priorities (like capital projects and audits) while independently researching and implementing fixes in a high-velocity setting.
• Proficiency in leveraging AI/automation, advanced Excel, or data visualization tools (like Power BI) to uncover insights faster.
• Lean Financial Thinking: A focus on process simplicity, transparency, and the elimination of waste.
• Leadership & Influence: The ability to guide diverse teams and influence operations and engineering leaders.
• Systems Thinking: Understanding how financial metrics reinforce Lean behaviors like reducing lead time and improving flow.

Nice To Haves

• CPA or CMA strongly preferred.
• Experience transitioning an organization away from traditional standard costing is highly desirable.

Responsibilities

• Manage the finance and accounting team with a winning mindset, overseeing month-end close, financial reporting, and the accurate preparation of balance sheets and income statements.
• Coach and mentor a diverse finance team to increase their understanding of Lean concepts.
• Ensure accuracy and integrity of financial reporting in accordance with GAAP and maintain strong internal controls while minimizing unnecessary bureaucracy.
• While maintaining current reporting, work with the VP of Finance to implement Lean accounting practices that simplify reporting and eliminate non-value-added activities.
• Assist in transitioning financial reporting to value stream-based income statements, providing visual information that enables frontline leaders to make better decisions.
• Identify bottlenecks and "waste" in existing finance processes—such as excessive manual transactions or complex reconciliations—and implement automation or AI-driven tools to boost speed.
• Maximize our ERP system (Dynamics GP or similar) to fuel better decision-making in our fast-moving production world.
• Work side-by-side with manufacturing and supply chain leaders to shift focus away from traditional cost accounting - viewing it as a necessary but low-value accounting exercise—while aggressively solving production-level issues in BOMs, inventory management, and manufacturing orders that drive financial variances and reconciliations.
• Provide "no-fluff" recommendations on costs, inventory, and profitability to support rapid growth and operational agility.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level