Financial Controller Services
With expert leadership in your corner, you can build a more resilient accounting arm with the guardrails and efficiency to ease reporting and decision making. A fractional financial controller can manage your accounting and glean financial insights while keeping costs low.

Do you need a financial controller or a CFO? Find out with a quick consultation.
Financial Controller Services
With expert leadership in your corner, you can build a more resilient accounting arm with the guardrails and efficiency to ease reporting and decision making. A fractional financial controller can manage your accounting and glean financial insights while keeping costs low.
Do you need a financial controller or a CFO?
Find out with a quick consultation.
What You’ll Learn
- What financial controller services entail
- The difference between a financial controller and a CFO
- When it’s time to hire freelance controller services
- How to assess a candidate
What You’ll Learn
- What financial controller services entail
- The difference between a financial controller and a CFO
- When it’s time to hire freelance controller services
- How to assess a candidate
Get More From Your Financial Reporting & Analysis with an Accounting Controller
A financial controller is the leader for your accounting function. They’re responsible for maintaining compliance,
accurate and timely books, financial reporting and analysis and the underlying processes that support it all.

Paro controllers can take on a variety of high-level duties, including:
- Managing your accounting team and liaising across departments, vendors & leadership.
- Optimizing inventory accounting, revenue recognition & monthly reporting.
- Improving financial reporting quality with data management & budgeting controls.
- Bringing automation and midcycle optimizations to streamline month-end close.
- Implementing ERP (enterprise resource planning) systems for cross-functional agility.
- Turning complex financial data into strategic insights to boost resilience.
Get More From Your Financial Reporting & Analysis with an Accounting Controller
A financial controller is the leader for your accounting function. They’re responsible for maintaining compliance, accurate and timely books, financial reporting and analysis and the underlying processes that support it all.
Paro controllers can take on a variety of high-level duties, including:
- Managing your accounting team and liaising across departments, vendors & leadership.
- Optimizing inventory accounting, revenue recognition & monthly reporting.
- Improving financial reporting quality with data management & budgeting controls.
- Bringing automation and midcycle optimizations to streamline month-end close.
- Implementing ERP (enterprise resource planning) systems for cross-functional agility.
- Turning complex financial data into strategic insights to boost resilience.
“Working with Paro has been a very rewarding experience. The team was able to
quickly identify a truly remarkable candidate for a CFO/Comptroller role, onboard her to our
team and deliver on mission-critical budgeting and financial operations.”
– Shanon Marks, CEO
“Working with Paro has been a very rewarding experience. The team was able to quickly identify a truly remarkable candidate for a CFO/Comptroller role, onboard her to our team and deliver on mission-critical budgeting and financial operations.”
– Shanon Marks, CEO



How Financial Controller Services Upgrade Your Accounting
How Financial Controller Services Upgrade Your Accounting
Financial Controller vs. CFO: What’s the Difference?
Financial controllers and CFOs are often seen as interchangeable, especially in small- to
medium-sized businesses (SMBs) where the same person routinely plays both. An adept controller
can perform several high-level duties, but some roles are better suited for a Paro CFO.
“Paro has helped fill our immediate need for Controller-level support.
Working with their expert in a remote capacity has also helped identify
holes in our internal processes that we are correcting.”
– Dan S., President and Founder
Financial Controller vs. CFO: What’s the Difference?
Financial controllers and CFOs are often seen as interchangeable, especially in small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) where the same person routinely plays both. An adept controller can perform several high-level duties, but some roles are better suited for a Paro CFO.
“Paro has helped fill our immediate need for Controller-level support.
Working with their expert in a remote capacity has also helped identify
holes in our internal processes that we are correcting.”
– Dan S., President and Founder
When to Hire Accounting Controller Services
At Paro, we’ve perfected our pool of experts so you can spend more
time looking ahead and less time on recruiting.
- You’re managing upticks after a downturn.
A part-time financial controller can jump in to meet immediate demands without overspending on capacity or expertise you don’t need. - You’re preparing to build an in-house team.
You’re growing but not ready to hire full-time. Paro’s controllers will shape your finance and accounting function so your future hire can hit the ground running. They can even help you hire the right talent. - You need more disciplined finances after growth.
As your revenue grows, so do your financial reporting requirements. Around the $10M mark is the time to hire a part-time financial controller to align with GAAP and other accounting standards. A fractional controller can also help your growing team implement or improve systems and processes. - You want to free people up and gain efficiency.
Financial controller services go beyond the capabilities of your bookkeeper, accountant and CEO, who often attempt the role in smaller, leaner companies. A controller can also relieve an overtaxed CFO who’s focused on the big picture. - Your controller has given notice.
While Paro controllers are often hired as interim solutions, they do also provide long-term services due to their high impact and low cost.
When to Hire Accounting Controller Services
At Paro, we’ve perfected our pool of experts so you can spend more time looking ahead and less time on recruiting.
- You’re managing upticks after a downturn.
A part-time financial controller can jump in to meet immediate demands without overspending on capacity or expertise you don’t need. - You’re preparing to build an in-house team.
You’re growing but not ready to hire full-time. Paro’s controllers will shape your finance and accounting function so your future hire can hit the ground running. They can even help you hire the right talent. - You need more disciplined finances after growth.
As your revenue grows, so do your financial reporting requirements. Around the $10M mark is the time to hire a part-time financial controller to align with GAAP and other accounting standards. A fractional controller can also help your growing team implement or improve systems and processes. - You want to free people up and gain efficiency.
Financial controller services go beyond the capabilities of your bookkeeper, accountant and CEO, who often attempt the role in smaller, leaner companies. A controller can also relieve an overtaxed CFO who’s focused on the big picture. - Your controller has given notice.
While Paro controllers are often hired as interim solutions, they do also provide long-term services due to their high impact and low cost.
“When we got lean, we went down to only me as the person with any financial reporting background in the business, and it was getting to be too much. Our auditors were saying, ‘Hey, you need someone with some expertise here.’”
– Jess Jankowski, President & CEO
Tell us about your goals.
Book a Consultation
“When we got lean, we went down to only me as the person with any financial reporting background in the business, and it was getting to be too much. Our auditors were saying, ‘Hey, you need someone with some expertise here.’”
– Jess Jankowski, President & CEO
Tell us about your goals.
Book a Consultation
Hiring a Controller: Find the Skills You Need
At Paro, we’ve perfected the way we recruit so you don’t have to.
What you need:
How Paro delivers:
Comprehensive knowledge of accounting principles and practices



Paro experts average 10+ years’ experience at major firms and possess an MBA or master’s degree in accounting or CPA/CMA title.
A diverse skill set spanning technical, leadership and communication expertise





Every expert completes a robust vetting process and skills assessment, ensuring experts walk the walk across over 55 industries.
Adaptability—as accounting standards and the tools of accounting controllership evolve, procedures from just 5 years ago can become outdated.





Paro experts regularly update their experience, skills and background info to provide up-to-date value.
Hiring a Controller: Find the Skills You Need
At Paro, we’ve perfected the way we recruit so you don’t have to.
What you need:
How Paro delivers:
Comprehensive knowledge of accounting principles and practices



Paro experts average 10+ years’ experience at major firms and possess an MBA or master’s degree in accounting or CPA/CMA title.
A diverse skill set spanning technical, leadership and communication expertise





Every expert completes a robust vetting process and skills assessment, ensuring experts walk the walk across over 55 industries.
Adaptability—as accounting standards and the tools of accounting controllership evolve, procedures from just 5 years ago can become outdated.





Paro experts regularly update their experience, skills and background info to provide up-to-date value.
Financial Controller Services FAQ
No, it’s not. While an accountant can manage your books and provide some level of advisory, a controller takes it a step further by reporting more complex financial insights from those books. A controller also puts internal controls in place to ensure accuracy, efficiency and discipline throughout the accounting cycle.
Generally, yes, a controller should either have a master’s of business administration (MBA) or be a certified public accountant (CPA), if not both. At Paro, we make sure your expert has the qualifications and experience your business needs.
A controller and a comptroller perform similar duties in their respective roles, but comptrollers are often found in the governmental sector rather than for-profit businesses.
Outsourced controllers are hired on a freelance or fractional basis to fulfill a specific need, whether it’s to improve reporting, meet compliance obligations or backfill an employee. An interim controller can hold down the fort until you find a full-time fit.
Outsourced controllers yield significant cost savings, as there’s no need to pay benefits, provide workspace or spend resources on recruiting.
Financial Controller Services FAQ
No, it’s not. While an accountant can manage your books and provide some level of advisory, a controller takes it a step further by reporting more complex financial insights from those books. A controller also puts internal controls in place to ensure accuracy, efficiency and discipline throughout the accounting cycle.
Generally, yes, a controller should either have a master’s of business administration (MBA) or be a certified public accountant (CPA), if not both. At Paro, we make sure your expert has the qualifications and experience your business needs.
A controller and a comptroller perform similar duties in their respective roles, but comptrollers are often found in the governmental sector rather than for-profit businesses.
Outsourced controllers are hired on a freelance or fractional basis to fulfill a specific need, whether it’s to improve reporting, meet compliance obligations or backfill an employee. An interim controller can hold down the fort until you find a full-time fit.
Outsourced controllers yield significant cost savings, as there’s no need to pay benefits, provide workspace or spend resources on recruiting.