Fractional Controller Services
Controller-grade financial leadership without the full-time hire. The senior layer most companies are missing between their bookkeeper and their CFO.
The role most companies actually need
Somewhere between $2M and $50M in revenue, almost every company hits the same wall. The bookkeeper is competent but can’t close the month with three-statement integrity. The CFO conversation feels premature — or the equity math doesn’t work yet. What’s missing is the controller in the middle: the person who owns the close, signs off on the numbers before they leave the building, designs the controls, and answers the hard questions when the CEO needs a real answer.
That’s the role SeaBreeze fills. Not a bookkeeper who calls themselves a controller. Not a CFO charging $400/hour to reconcile bank statements. A working controller who has spent years inside the books of pharma manufacturers, engineering firms, e-commerce companies, foreign-owned subsidiaries, and specialty manufacturers — and brings that pattern recognition to your company.
Why this matters more than most companies realize
The hidden cost of not having controller-level oversight isn’t a line item — it shows up as missed variances no one explained, balance sheet accounts that haven’t been reconciled in months, cash forecasts that disagree with the bank, and the slow erosion of trust between leadership and the finance function. By the time an auditor or investor surfaces the issues, the cleanup cost is multiples of what it would have cost to do it right monthly.
A senior controller catches those issues before they compound. The role pays for itself in audit fees alone for most companies; the strategic clarity is the bonus.
What’s included
Monthly close & financial reporting
P&L, balance sheet, and cash flow statement prepared monthly with three-statement integrity checks before anything reaches leadership or investors. Close packages include variance analysis with written commentary — not a spreadsheet with red and green cells, but actual explanation of what moved and why.
Cash flow forecasting
13-week rolling cash forecasts for operational visibility and longer-horizon models for capital planning. Built in a way you can maintain after the engagement, not a black box only the consultant can update.
Investor & board reporting
Proforma financials, growth models, and board packages. Built for companies raising capital or reporting to existing investors, with the kind of three-statement rigor that survives a serious diligence process.
Intercompany & multi-entity reporting
Consolidations, intercompany account reconciliations, and reporting structures for foreign-parent / US-sub relationships — including the documentation foreign parents expect.
Year-end close & audit support
PBC list preparation, schedule build-out, auditor liaison, and clean-up of the issues that always surface in the first audit. The goal is to make the audit a confirmation, not a discovery process.
Policy & process design
Procure-to-pay, order-to-cash, and record-to-report workflow documentation. Internal control matrices. Month-end close playbooks. Custom company policies for commissions, expense reporting, and approval thresholds.
Financial model forensics
When the numbers don’t tie and no one can figure out why, that’s the work. A recent engagement: diagnosed a recurring $162,244 balance sheet imbalance across twelve periods in roughly thirty minutes, traced it to disbursements reducing retained earnings without a corresponding cash deduction, and rebuilt the cash flow statement from scratch using the indirect method.
Need short-term coverage instead?
If your controller is heading out on maternity leave, paternity leave, FMLA, or extended absence, SeaBreeze also offers dedicated interim controller coverage — a different engagement model built for time-bound leave windows with structured handoff on both ends. Learn more about interim controller coverage.
Books not in shape yet?
If your books are months behind, your prior year close is still open, or your balance sheet has accounts no one has reconciled in a while, the right starting point is a focused cleanup engagement before ongoing controller work begins. Learn more about books cleanup and catch-up services.
How engagements work
Engagements typically run six months minimum, with most clients staying on indefinitely as the relationship proves out. Monthly retainer pricing based on scope — no hourly billing surprises.
Three to ten clients at any given time, with the active count sized to the combined requirements and complexity of the current portfolio. When the practice is at capacity, new prospects join a short waitlist.
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