New Opportunity: Corporate Controller

Corporate Controller
ABOUT THE COMPANY
With roots going back to the 1960’s, Forest City Trading Group (FCTG), may have started as a small lumber yard run by two immigrant brothers, but has since grown into North America’s largest wholesale lumber product distributor. FCTG facilitates the distribution of products across 6 continents through our network of 12 operating companies and over 750 employees. The company’s impact is far-reaching, especially when considering that one in every ten houses today is built using products sourced and sold by our operating companies.
As proponents of forest sustainability, FCTG actively supports suppliers who use sustainable forest management practices that promote forest sustainability and result in long-term environmental, social, and economic benefits.
POSITION SUMMARY
Reporting directly to the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), the Corporate Controller is a senior finance leader and trusted business partner to the CFO and management team. This role owns the integrity of the Company's accounting, reporting, and control environment while advancing the finance function through improved processes, disciplined decision-making, and effective deployment of technology.
This is a hands-on leadership role. The Controller will operate in the details with responsibility for managing the full accounting cycle for corporate and operating companies, commodity position accounting, physical and financial settlement, and daily treasury operations—while building a scalable, high-performing finance organization. The role also operates in a matrixed environment, requiring strong influence skills to align and uplevel financial operations across Operating Companies, and partners closely with the trading desk, risk management, operations, legal, and external auditors.
CORE RESPONSIBILITIES
Leadership & Culture
- Build, lead, and develop a high-performing corporate accounting and finance team
- Foster a positive, accountable culture at corporate and Operating Company levels
- Hire, develop, and retain talented accounting, treasury, and shared services professionals
- Serve as a stabilizing force during system change, organizational growth, or market volatility
- Assess subsidiary finance capabilities; develop structured plans to up-level talent, processes, and controls
Business Partnership & Cross-Functional Influence
- Serve as a key finance partner to the CFO, Operating Company Controllers, and operations leadership
- Lead through influence in a matrixed environment—aligning subsidiary Controllers around corporate standards without relying on direct authority
- Translate financial information into clear, actionable insights for corporate and subsidiary audiences
- Collaborate with the trading desk to ensure accounting treatment aligns with economic reality and business intent
Technical & Functional Oversight
- Financial reporting and accounting, including trader compensation, commodity futures, and mark-to-market accounting
- Daily treasury operations and internal cash/collateral management
- Tax coordination and oversight, including pass-through partnership structures
- Budgeting, forecasting, and financial planning
- Internal controls, risk management, and policy oversight
- Foreign exchange and cross-currency hedging for international procurement and sales
- Shared services leadership: expense approvals, vendor setup, purchase order controls, and finance policies
Decision Support & Systems
- Apply cost-benefit and ROI thinking to financial and operational decisions
- Drive automation of routine reporting workflows to free capacity for higher-value analysis
- Lead ERP implementation and optimization; evaluate best-practice accounting policies as the business evolves
Subsidiary Finance Uplift
- Establish a structured approach to evaluating financial maturity across Operating Companies
- Develop and maintain a corporate finance playbook that subsidiary Controllers can adopt and execute
- Provide hands-on coaching and technical guidance to Operating Company finance teams
- Drive consistent consolidation standards, intercompany accounting, and reporting cadences across subsidiaries
- Identify and escalate risks in subsidiary financial operations before they affect corporate reporting integrity
KEY ATTRIBUTES
- Trusted Leader & Business Partner: Close thought partner to the CFO; credible with Operating Company Controllers, traders, and senior management. Leads with integrity, sound judgment, and practical business sense.
- Relationship Builder & Matrix Navigator: Builds trust-based relationships across corporate and subsidiary teams. Leads through influence rather than direct authority in a matrixed environment.
- Subsidiary Uplift Leader: Assesses and elevates Operating Company finance capabilities through coaching, playbooks, and structured engagement—raising the bar on controls, talent, and reporting quality.
- Hands-On & Detail Oriented: Ensures accuracy and follow-through across all finance processes.
- Process & Technology Focused: Continuously seeks better ways to operate. Leverages ERP and other tools to improve efficiency and data quality; leads system implementation and optimization.
- Positive, Accountable Leader: Creates a high-accountability finance culture at both corporate and subsidiary levels. Leads by example and develops strong teams.
IDEAL CANDIDATE PROFILE
- Leadership Track Record: Demonstrated ability to build high-performing finance teams
- Matrix Leadership: Proven success influencing and driving change without direct authority over Operating Company teams
- Relationship Builder: Naturally builds trust across organizational levels—someone subsidiaries want to partner with, not just report to
- Strategic and Tactical Range: Operates at a senior level strategically and at the transactional level when the business requires it
- Technology Proficiency: Demonstrated curiosity and initiative in experimenting with and adopting emerging technologies (including AI) to enhance financial reporting, forecasting, and process efficiency
- Change Leadership: Comfortable reassessing processes and building scalable financial infrastructure from a hands-on starting point
- Integrity & Judgment: High personal integrity and sound judgment in ambiguous, fast-moving environments
Interested in Learning More?
180one has been retained by Forest City Trading Group to manage this search. If interested in learning more about the opportunity, please contact
Tom Haley/ 503.334.1350/
tom@180one.com





