30-60-90 day plan for controllers
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A controller is the person the CFO, the auditors and often the board rely on to say the numbers are right. That trust has to be earned in a new company, and the controller usually inherits books they did not build, controls they did not design and a team that was there before them. A 30-60-90 day plan for controllers should give them time to find what is wrong before signing anything, and then hold them to a close, a control environment and a set of written policies the CFO can depend on.
This plan is for the CFO or VP of finance hiring a controller at a company that already closes its books monthly and has an external audit or review. If the role is more about running the close and producing forecasts, see the 30-60-90 day plan for finance managers. For the general structure, see the 30-60-90 day plan template for new hires.
The controller's first job: know where the books are weak
A new controller is responsible for the balance sheet from the first close they sign off on. Before that point, they need an honest view of its condition. Ask for a written balance sheet review in the first 30 days that covers every account, not only the large ones.
| Area | What to look for | Usual source |
|---|---|---|
| Reconciliations | Accounts without a current reconciliation, missing support, reconciling items older than the team's threshold | Reconciliation tool or shared workpapers |
| Suspense and clearing accounts | Balances that should be zero and are not | Trial balance |
| Audit history | Prior-year audit adjustments, passed adjustments and management letter comments | Audit files and the auditors |
| Judgment areas | Revenue recognition, reserves, accruals, capitalization, leases | Policy memos, if any, and the close checklist |
| Systems | Manual journal entries, spreadsheets in the close, access rights in the ERP | ERP reports and the close checklist |
The 30-60-90 day plan
30-60-90 day plan — [Name], Controller, [company]
Reports to: [CFO / VP Finance] Start date: [date]
Team: [N] accountants, [AP / payroll / billing staff]
ERP: [system] Auditors: [firm], fiscal year end [date]
Public or private: [status; if public, filer status]
DAYS 1-30 — Review before signing
Goals:
- Observe the first month-end close end to end; sit with each
preparer on their reconciliations
- Complete a written balance sheet review covering every account
- Read the last audit report, adjustments and management letter;
meet the audit partner or manager
- Map key controls: who approves journal entries, vendor changes,
payments, payroll changes and system access
- Meet each team member one to one; learn what they own
Deliverables by day 30:
- Balance sheet review with risks ranked
- Controls map with segregation-of-duties gaps flagged
- Close calendar with actual completion dates from the first close
Check-in: day 30, with CFO
DAYS 31-60 — Own the close and fix the worst risks
Goals:
- Run the second close; review and sign off reconciliations
- Clear or escalate the highest-risk reconciling items
- Close at least one segregation-of-duties gap
- Draft or update policy memos for the top judgment areas
- Agree the audit plan, timeline and request list with auditors
Deliverables by day 60:
- Second close completed on the calendar
- Remediation log with owners and dates
- First policy memos reviewed by the CFO
Check-in: day 60
DAYS 61-90 — Make it repeatable
Goals:
- Run the third close with fewer late items than the first
- Assign every balance sheet account a named preparer and reviewer
- Present a close and controls roadmap for the next two quarters
- Set development goals for each team member
Deliverables by day 90:
- Three closes with completion dates tracked
- Roadmap agreed with the CFO
Check-in: day 90 — full reviewInternal controls and SOX
The controls work looks different depending on whether the company is public. Under Section 404(a) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, public companies must establish and maintain internal control over financial reporting and have management assess its effectiveness. The independent auditor attestation under Section 404(b) applies to accelerated and large accelerated filers; many smaller companies that qualify as non-accelerated filers are exempt from it. The SEC's compliance guide on accelerated filer definitions explains the categories (checked October 2026). This section is not legal or accounting advice; confirm the company's obligations with its auditors and counsel.
- Public company: the new controller should learn the control matrix, who tests the controls, open deficiencies and the timeline for the next quarter's certifications in the first 30 days. Their day-60 goals should include remediation of any deficiency in their area.
- Private company: there may be no formal control matrix at all. The day-30 controls map becomes the first version of one. Focus on the controls that prevent the most common losses: payment approvals, vendor master changes, journal entry review and access to the ERP.
- Pre-IPO or acquisition target: buyers and future auditors will test the controls. The plan should add a gap assessment against the control framework the company expects to adopt.
What "on track" looks like
| Checkpoint | On track | Worth a direct conversation |
|---|---|---|
| Day 30 | A specific, ranked balance sheet review; controls map with real gaps; auditors met | A review that says "books look fine" without evidence; no time with the preparers |
| Day 60 | Second close run on the calendar; worst risks cleared or escalated; first policy memos drafted | Controller doing the reconciliations personally instead of reviewing them; no remediation log |
| Day 90 | Third close tracked and improving; every account has an owner; roadmap agreed | Same late items every close; audit request list not started |
A filled example
Controller: Hannah Whitcombe (invented), joining a private 400-person manufacturer with an annual audit and a bank loan with financial covenants.
Day 30: Her balance sheet review found an inventory clearing account carrying an unexplained balance for over a year and two accrual accounts reconciled to schedules nobody could explain. The controls map showed one AP clerk could both add vendors and release payments. The first close took several days longer than the calendar said.
Day 60: Moved vendor master changes to the purchasing manager with a monthly change report she reviews. Traced most of the clearing balance to receipts never matched to invoices and booked the correction with CFO approval. Wrote policy memos for inventory reserves and capitalization.
Day 90: The third close finished closer to the calendar, with late items limited to the two newly reconciled accrual accounts. Every account had a named preparer and reviewer. She presented a two-quarter roadmap that included moving the covenant calculation from a personal spreadsheet into the close checklist.
The audit relationship
Auditors notice a controller change. Meeting the audit partner or manager in the first month, and asking what they found hardest about the last audit, saves time later. The new controller should agree the request list and timeline early, assign each request to an owner and hold a short status meeting during fieldwork. Surprises at the end of an audit usually trace back to a request list that nobody owned.
What the CFO owes the new controller
- Full ERP and reconciliation access before the first close, including approval rights where the role will need them.
- The honest history: known errors, restatements or audit findings, lender requirements, and any open disputes with tax authorities.
- An introduction to the auditors and to key business partners such as operations, sales operations and payroll.
- Support for unpopular fixes. Closing a segregation-of-duties gap often means taking a permission away from someone senior.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Result | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Signing off the first close without a review | The controller owns errors made before they arrived | Observe the first close; take ownership from the second |
| Doing the work instead of reviewing it | The team never improves and the controller burns out | Named preparer and reviewer for every account |
| Policies left in people's heads | Inconsistent judgment calls and audit questions | Written memos for the main judgment areas by day 60 |
| Auditors met only at fieldwork | Late requests and surprise adjustments | Agree the plan and request list by day 60 |
Adapting the plan
- Assistant controller: narrow the scope to a set of accounts or a subsidiary, and make day 90 about owning that part of the close rather than the whole.
- Small company controller who also does FP&A: combine this plan with the forecasting goals in the finance manager plan, and expect to do more of the reconciliation work personally.
- Multi-entity or international groups: add intercompany reconciliation, consolidation and foreign currency to the balance sheet review, and meet the local finance leads in the first month.
If the role is still open, the controller screening questions separate candidates who ran a control program from those who supplied schedules to one. The 30-60-90 day plan for accountants is the companion plan for the staff the controller will review, and the internal auditor screening questions help if the controls work needs a dedicated hire.
Questions people ask
Should a new controller run the first month-end close?
Usually not alone. A new controller learns more by observing the first close closely while the existing team runs it, then reviewing the result line by line. They should take ownership from the second close, once they know where the judgment calls and the weak reconciliations are.
What should a new controller review first?
The balance sheet. Every account should have a current reconciliation with support, and any stale reconciling items, unexplained suspense balances or accounts nobody owns are the controller's first risks. The prior year's audit adjustments and any management letter comments come next, because they show where the books have been wrong before.
Does a private company controller need to worry about SOX?
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act applies to public companies, so most private companies are not subject to it. Many private companies still need sound internal controls for lenders, investors, audits or a future sale or listing, and a new controller should review those controls whatever the company's status. Confirm specific obligations with your auditors and counsel.
How is a controller's plan different from a finance manager's?
A finance manager's plan centers on running the close and producing forecasts. A controller's plan centers on the integrity of the books: the balance sheet, internal controls, accounting policies and the relationship with the auditors. In smaller companies one person may do both, and the plan should combine the two.