Controller – Grand Rapids

Posted on March 4, 2026

Controller

Wolverine Crane & Service, Inc.

Location: Grand Rapids, MI
Employment Type: Full-Time
Salary Range: Based on experience

About Wolverine Crane & Service, Inc.

Wolverine Crane & Service, Inc. is a privately held, employee-owned company specializing in the design, manufacturing, installation, and service of overhead crane systems and material handling solutions. For decades, Wolverine has built a formidable reputation across the Midwest for engineering excellence, practical innovation, and responsive customer service.

Our purpose is simple: to help our customers move materials safely, efficiently, and reliably—every day. We do this by combining strong engineering fundamentals with hands-on industry experience and a culture that values accountability, teamwork, and continuous improvement.

Wolverine is an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) company. That means our employees are also owner-sharing directly in the company’s success and long-term growth. As we continue to expand our engineering capabilities and geographic reach, we are investing in talented professionals who want to develop their careers while helping shape the future of the organization.

Position Summary

The Controller is responsible for overseeing all accounting operations, financial reporting, budgeting, cost accounting, and internal controls. This role partners closely with the CEO, and operations leadership to provide timely financial insight, improve margins, and support disciplined growth.

This is a working manager role—expect a mix of strategic oversight and hands-on execution.

Key Responsibilities

Financial Reporting & Close

Own the monthly, quarterly, and annual close process
Prepare timely and accurate financial statements (P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow)
Analyze and explain variances vs. budget, forecast, and prior periods
Ensure GAAP compliance and consistency

Be Operationally Embedded

Spend time with production and estimating
Understand job costing deeply
Help refine labor standards and overhead absorption
Challenge margin assumptions

Cost Accounting & Manufacturing Finance

Maintain and improve job costing, labor absorption, overhead rates, and WIP reporting
Analyze margins by job, customer, and product line, and location
Partner with operations to identify cost drivers and margin improvement opportunities
Oversee inventory accounting, cycle counts, and physical inventories

Budgeting, Forecasting & Planning

Lead annual budgeting and rolling forecasts
Develop cash flow forecasts and working capital plans
Provide scenario analysis for pricing, capital investments, and growth initiatives

Own Cash & Working Capital

Drive AR discipline and DSO improvement
Improve inventory turns
Manage bank relationships and covenants
Forecast cash weekly or bi-weekly

Cash Management & Controls

Manage AR, AP, payroll, and general ledger
Monitor and improve DSO, inventory turns, and cash conversion cycle
Maintain banking relationships, debt compliance, and covenant reporting
Establish and enforce internal controls and accounting policies

Leadership & Cross-Functional Support

Supervise accounting staff (typically 1–3 people)
Coordinate with external CPA firm for tax filings and year-end review/audit
Support ownership with ad hoc financial analysis and decision-making
Assist with ERP usage, reporting improvements, and process automation

Systems & Tools

Quickbooks
Excel power user (pivot tables, lookups, financial models)
Payroll and inventory systems

Qualifications

Required

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance
5–10 years of progressive accounting experience
QuickBooks Expertise
Manufacturing and job-costing experience required
Strong understanding of WIP, absorption costing, and inventory accounting

Preferred

Experience in an ESOP is preferred
CPA or CMA
Prior experience in a $10M–$50M manufacturing environment

Key Success Traits

Detail-oriented but business-minded
Comfortable “rolling up sleeves”
Able to translate numbers into operational insight
Strong communicator with non-financial leaders
Practical, not overly theoretical

Equal Opportunity Employer

Wolverine Crane & Service, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.

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Controller – Grand Rapids

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