Participants will build the practical skills and toolset required to operate as an effective controller—focusing on the steward and operator roles—with emphasis on career management, team leadership, financial performance, data and analytics, risk, and relationship management. Participants will examine realistic scenarios to prioritize development areas, design action plans for new or evolving roles, and strengthen how controllership supports organizational value.

• Finance professionals transitioning to, or ne in, a controllership role. 
• Experienced controllers seeking updated tools, ideas, and a structured refresher on operational management. 

By the end of this course, participants should be able to: 

• Distinguish the controller’s four roles (steward, operator, catalyst, strategist) and prioritize personal development areas. 
• Establish an onboarding and 90-day action plan for a new controllership role, including quick wins and stakeholder mapping. 
• Align finance operations with organizational needs by strengthening HR, hiring/retention, performance management, and policy frameworks. 
• Build a performance-measurement toolkit—linking financial and non-financial indicators, data analytics, and dashboards to decision-making. 
• Use AI to support the work of the controller in daily operations. 
• Implement core risk, internal control, and relationship-management practices to support the business and safeguard integrity.

Topics include: 

• Today’s controller: roles, responsibilities, and value creation. 
• Managing your career: effectiveness, time/email management, technical breadth, balance, and change readiness. 
• Working with your team: starting as a new controller; accounting/finance essentials; data analysis and AI skills; small vs. large organization nuances; NFP/public sector considerations.
• Supporting the business: HR policies and procedures, hiring/retaining talent, performance management, financial management, analytics, data integrity, cybersecurity, and use of AI. 
• Interactions and influence: connector mindset, risk management, internal control, fraud awareness, and key relationship strategies. 
• Mini-cases and worksheets to apply concepts to practical decisions.

Course Content Created: July 2026

Presenter

About This Product

On-Demand Courses by CPA PRO are either video recordings from live seminars, or video recordings produced specifically for the on-demand audience. Slides and any corresponding handout materials are included where available.These titles are eligible for Verifiable CPD Hours – in order to claim these hours as verifiable, you will be required to successfully complete a short quiz. You will be able to print or save your electronic certificate of completion.

Note that some courses comprise both formal instruction and self-directed exercises. In such cases, participants must complete both components to claim full CPD hours, or must reduce their reported CPD hours accordingly.

Please note that not all on-demand courses include downloadable materials such as course notes or slides.

How to get started

After completing your purchase, go to mylms.bccpa.ca. Log in using your CPABC Online Services credentials. Click Go to Your Courses and Materials to access your Learning Center. Select your course title to begin.