Financial Controller

Join the future of news

We’re on a mission to deliver riveting storytelling for all of America. At The Washington Post, you’ll help reinvent news. Our work is driven by a deep investigative spirit and enhanced by innovation to bring audiences closer to the stories that matter most.

About Our Team

The Washington Post is powered by the passion and talent of our people. It takes all of us to reinvent news. Beyond our award-winning News and Opinions teams, we work across many departments, including Brand & Events, Communications, Customer Care, Engineering & Product, Finance, Human Resources, Legal, Marketing & Advertising, Print Operations, and Sales.

Why This Role Matters

The Financial Controller plays a critical leadership role in ensuring the integrity, transparency, and long-term sustainability of The Washington Post’s financial operations as a privately held media organization. Reporting to the Acting CFO, this role provides enterprise-wide stewardship of global accounting, financial reporting, governance, and systems evolution—supporting informed decision-making and responsible growth. 

This role is designed for a strategic financial leader who can lead meaningful transformation while maintaining rigorous accounting discipline. In the near term, the Financial Controller will assess current-state accounting operations, systems, and team capabilities and lead a deliberate redesign of the controllership function. This includes rethinking how accounting work is structured, enabled by technology, and experienced by the team. Over time, the scope of this role will expand, further strengthening enterprise-wide financial stewardship. 

As a highly visible leader, the Financial Controller balances hands-on execution with enterprise leadership—providing trusted stewardship in a complex, evolving environment while shaping the future of how accounting operates at The Washington Post. 

What Motivates You 

• Leading financial stewardship in a privately held media organization where integrity, discretion, and long-term thinking are essential 
• Challenging legacy processes and assumptions to reimagine how accounting work can be performed and delivered 
• Driving transformation that goes beyond incremental improvement to reshape operating models, team culture, and ways of working 
• Serving as both a strategic leader and a hands-on expert when the work or moment requires it 
• Building strong, capable teams through active coaching, clear expectations, and a commitment to continuous development 

How You’ll Support the Mission 

Strategic Accounting & Financial Leadership 

• Provide enterprise leadership for global accounting operations, including general ledger, close, consolidation, and statutory reporting. 
• Establish and advance a long-term vision for the controllership function aligned with organizational strategy and the needs of a privately held media company. 
• Assess, redesign, and modernize accounting processes, operating models, and organizational structure to support scale, resilience, and effectiveness. 
• Operate as a “player-coach,” moving seamlessly between strategic leadership and hands-on accounting work as needed during periods of transformation, team development, and systems change. 

Financial Reporting, Controls & Governance 

• Maintain final accountability for the accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of all internal and external financial reporting. 
• Own the worldwide consolidation and end-to-end accounting close process. 
• Develop, maintain, and enforce global accounting policies and standards to ensure consistency and compliance, including revenue recognition. 
• Design, implement, and maintain a strong internal control environment appropriate to a privately held enterprise. 
• Oversee financial reporting controls and internal audit activities. 
• Prepare and present financial reports, analyses, and insights to senior leadership. 

ERP, Systems & Technology Transformation 

• Lead the evaluation, selection, and migration of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, including assessment of tradeoffs, risks, and long-term implications. 
• Own the future-state accounting systems architecture and ensure alignment with business strategy, scalability needs, and data integrity standards. 
• Provide hands-on leadership during system migrations, recognizing and mitigating change and execution risk. 
• Drive optimization of existing and new systems to improve automation, accuracy, and transparency across accounting operations. 

Audit, Risk & Stakeholder Partnership 

• Serve as the primary liaison with external auditors, including coordination of pension and 401(k)-related audits. 
• Partner with internal stakeholders to deliver high-quality, timely, and informative financial reporting. 
• Collaborate with FP&A to ensure reporting supports internal decision-making and provides meaningful operational insights. 
• Assume leadership of enterprise Risk functions as the role evolves, strengthening governance and risk awareness across the organization. 

People Leadership & Culture Building 

• Build, develop, and lead a high-performing global accounting organization, recognizing that the current team is capable and still developing. 
• Actively coach and mentor leaders and individual contributors, setting a high bar for performance, accountability, and growth. 
• Establish a strong team culture and identity grounded in excellence, trust, inclusion, and continuous improvement. 
• Create clarity around roles, expectations, and development pathways to support both near-term transformation and long-term capability building. 

Skills and Experience You Bring 

• Deep technical accounting expertise with the ability to apply standards in complex, real-world business environments 
• Demonstrated experience leading ERP evaluation, selection, and migration initiatives, including ownership of future-state system design 
• Proven ability to lead and sustain transformation, including rethinking operating models and ways of working 
• Comfort operating as both a strategic leader and hands-on practitioner during periods of change 
• Strong judgment, integrity, and discretion in handling sensitive and confidential information 
• Ability to translate accounting and financial concepts into clear, actionable insights for non-finance stakeholders 
• Experience operating effectively in highly visible leadership roles with critical deadlines and competing priorities 

Minimum Qualifications 

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance 
• CPA designation 
• 5+ years of experience leading teams to include people managers 
• 10+ years progressive experience in accounting or financial management, including senior-level leadership responsibility at Big 4 or similar organization with revenue and systems complexities 
• Experience leading ERP system evaluations and migrations 
• Experience with global accounting operations, financial reporting, and audit coordination 
• Experience in media, advertising, or directly related industries. 
• Experience with automation or leading automation strategy and implementation 
• Strong written and verbal communication skills 

Preferred Qualifications 

• Public accounting experience 
• Experience in a privately held, multi-entity, or complex organizational environment 
• Prior responsibility for or partnership with risk management, internal audit, or governance functions 
• Experience leading accounting or finance transformations during periods of organizational or systems change 

Collaboration makes us stronger. That’s why our offices are designed with open layouts, modern technology, and easy access to transportation. With certain exceptions for newsgathering and business travel, we work on-site five days a week.

Compensation and Benefits

Wherever you are in your life or career, The Washington Post offers comprehensive and inclusive benefits for every step of your journey:

• Competitive medical, dental and vision coverage

• Company-paid pension and 401(k) match

• Three weeks of vacation and up to three weeks of paid sick leave

• Nine paid holidays and two personal days

• 20 weeks paid parental leave for any new parent

• Robust mental health resources

• Backup care and caregiver concierge services

• Gender affirming services

• Pet insurance

• Free Post digital subscription

• Leadership and career development programs

Benefits may vary based on the job, full-time or part-time schedule, location, and collectively bargained status.

The salary range for this position is:

$149,900 - $278,300 Annual

The actual salary within this range will depend on individual skills, experience, and qualifications as they relate to specific job requirements. This position may be eligible for a bonus or incentive program, and a member of the Talent Acquisition team will discuss bonus payment terms and conditions during the interview process.