Chief Financial Officer in Hartland, Wisconsin at WATERTRONICS LLC

Watertronics is seeking an accomplished, strategic, and results-driven Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to join our executive leadership team. The CFO will provide financial leadership that supports the company's continued growth, operational excellence, and long-term business strategy. Reporting directly to the President/CEO, this executive will serve as a trusted advisor, partnering across the organization to drive profitability, optimize performance, manage risk, and support strategic decision-making.

As a leader in custom-engineered water management solutions, Watertronics operates in a highly customized engineer-to-order manufacturing environment with international business operations. The ideal candidate is a proven financial executive with extensive manufacturing experience and a demonstrated track record of leading finance organizations within globally operating manufacturing companies. This individual must be equally comfortable developing long-term financial strategy and engaging in the day-to-day operational decisions that drive business success.

Strategic Financial Leadership

• Develop and execute financial strategies that align with the company's long-term business objectives.
• Serve as a key member of the executive leadership team, providing financial insight and strategic recommendations to support growth and operational excellence.
• Lead the annual budgeting, forecasting, and long-range financial planning processes.
• Develop meaningful financial metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) to improve business performance and support executive decision-making.
• Evaluate acquisitions, capital investments, expansion opportunities, and other strategic initiatives through comprehensive financial analysis.

Financial Management & Operations

• Provide executive oversight of all accounting, financial reporting, treasury, budgeting, forecasting, tax, and cash management functions.
• Ensure accurate and timely financial reporting in accordance with applicable accounting standards and regulatory requirements.
• Manage company cash flow, banking relationships, financing arrangements, and insurance programs.
• Lead the annual audit process and coordinate all federal, state, and local tax filings.

Manufacturing Finance Leadership

• Partner closely with Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Sales to improve operational and financial performance.
• Oversee cost accounting, inventory valuation, standard costing, labor reporting, and manufacturing variance analysis.
• Monitor project profitability and gross margins throughout the lifecycle of engineer-to-order projects.
• Analyze manufacturing costs and operational performance to identify opportunities for increased efficiency, cost reduction, and profitability.
• Provide executive sponsorship and financial leadership for the company's transition from Microsoft Dynamics NAV (Navision) to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central in 2027, ensuring successful implementation, strong financial controls, and alignment with operational objectives.

Global Business & Risk Management

• Provide financial leadership for the company's international operations, including foreign business activities, international financial reporting considerations, and cross-border business support.
• Ensure compliance with all applicable domestic and international financial regulations.
• Maintain a strong internal control environment and sound corporate governance practices.
• Identify and mitigate financial, operational, and business risks while protecting company assets.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or Business Administration is required.
• CPA and/or MBA strongly preferred.
• Minimum of 10 years of progressive financial leadership experience.
• Minimum of 5 years serving in a senior financial leadership or Chief Financial Officer role.
• Extensive experience within a manufacturing environment is required, preferably supporting engineer-to-order, industrial equipment, or custom manufacturing operations.
• Demonstrated experience supporting international business operations is required, including financial oversight of global manufacturing, international customers, subsidiaries, or distribution networks.
• Expert knowledge of cost accounting, inventory management, financial planning and analysis, budgeting, forecasting, treasury management, and cash flow optimization.
• Experience leading ERP implementations, optimization projects, and business systems improvements.
• Proven ability to influence executive decision-making through strategic financial analysis and business partnership.
• Strong leadership, communication, organizational, and change management skills with the ability to build high-performing teams.

Physical Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative of those required to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.

This position regularly requires sitting, standing, walking, using hands to operate office equipment, and communicating effectively with employees, customers, and business partners.

Work Environment

This position is primarily office-based with frequent interaction throughout the manufacturing facility. The CFO is expected to maintain a visible presence within operations and collaborate closely with cross-functional teams. Occasional domestic and international travel may be required to support business operations, strategic initiatives, customer engagements, and supplier relationships.