Financial Controller

Our client is a highly successful Geelong based Food & Agribusiness, growing significantly over the past 20 years to service customers throughout Australia. An opportunity now exists for a commercial Financial Controller to join the executive leadership team based in Geelong, who will oversee both commercial and compliance portfolios. This role is well suited to an emerging finance leader capable of seamlessly moving between operational and strategic priorities, and who can adequately prepare the business for the scale required to achieve their strategic objectives.

The Financial Controller will be responsible for providing commercial and financial reporting insights to ensure the ongoing success and security of the business. The Controller forms part of the senior leadership team alongside the CEO and four General Managers (Agriculture, Operations, HR & Sales). The responsibilities included below are indicative of the role, but by no means exhaustive:  

• Oversight of budgeting, forecasting, reporting and financial modelling functions;
• Management of cashflows, funding and overall capital requirements of the business;
• Business partnering to CEO and Board with respect to commercial and financial planning including trends in revenue, sales, production and overall shareholder return metrics;
• Mentoring and management of a finance team of 3 people;
• Champion for Xero software & BI reporting suite, ensuring robust reporting infrastructure;
• Oversight of data and accessibility to drive quality decision making;
• Strict adherence to managing governance process for Quality, ATO, Compliance Audits and risk management processes;
• Taking a proactive approach to managing and enforcing the businesses HSE policies and procedures and adherence to relevant legislation; &
• Supporting the Board and providing regular reports and communications to shareholders.

The successful candidate will excel in a team environment partnering effectively with shareholders, staff, management peers, suppliers, service providers, customers and other stakeholders in the Geelong and regional Victorian communities. They will be highly pro-active, independent, show good judgement and be capable of executing their role with minimal instruction and supervision.

To be successful in securing this role, the Financial Controller will have:

• A Commerce/Accounting degree and be CAANZ/CPA qualified;
• 5+ years' + experience in progressive finance leadership roles including exposure to Boards & Directors.
• Commercial and strategic leadership experience within private enterprise (agriculture, beverage, food, FMCG or manufacturing preferred);
• Strong understanding of key business functions including production/manufacturing, HSE, Governance, IT and Quality Assurance;
• A current Victorian Driver's Licence;
• The resilience and tenacity to succeed in developing and improving risk management frameworks and corporate reporting standards;
• The highest standards of professionalism and personal presentation, pursuant to being a representative of such a recognisable and high-quality brand;
• Outstanding interpersonal skills, with an ability to develop and build rapport instantly with people; &
• A commercial basis for decision making, with an eye to business impact and efficiency gains.

Tom Hutchinson from TWH Advisoryhas been appointed as the advising consultant to our client on this assignment. Confidential enquiries regarding the role can be directed to him on or  The successful candidate will be subject to reference and background checks, a national police check and certification of educational qualifications prior to an offer being confirmed.