Plant Controller

About the Client

Our client is a global supplier of sophisticated plastic components and designfocused multifunctional surfaces primarily serving the automotive sector as well as industrial consumer goods medical and other markets. The companys products align with industry trends like weight reduction and vehicle electrification innovative operating concepts highquality surface finishes and a heightened focus on convenience and safety.

With 30 sites worldwide the company operates through production sales and technology hubs employing just under 4000 staff members. They serve customers and platforms globally emphasizing technological expertise and collaboration with clients in design and engineering. The company boasts longterm relationships with many leading automotive and industrial OEMs.

Summary of Position

The Plant Controller works closely with the Plant Manager and management team on various complex and essential accounting and business management activities. These include financial reporting and budgeting KPI development and tracking inventory cost accounting and reporting standard cost development and maintenance manufacturing variance analyses fixed asset/tooling accounting and product/customer/project profitability analyses. This role excludes accounting and reporting of cash accounts receivable and accounts payable which are managed through a shared services organization.

Job Duties & Essential Functions

• Prepare monthly plant financial packages and participate in monthly financial review meetings with the leadership team.
• Maintain accuracy of financial reporting and balance sheet account reconciliations for all accounts on the facilitys trial balance.
• Partner with Plant Manager and other plant leadership functions to develop and track the annual budget and periodic forecast updates for the facility products and customers.
• Ensure successful completion of the annual budgeting process resulting in the development of monthly financial statement forecasts (income statement balance sheet cash flow and KPIs).
• Reconcile inventory subledgers to the general ledger including overseeing processes for capturing and posting production and inventory transactions.
• Provide Plant Manager with weekly KPI data consistent with other facilities.
• Establish and maintain reserves for excess and obsolete inventory. Partner with Operations and Purchasing for the timely disposition of slowmoving and obsolete inventory.
• Assist Operations in developing and implementing annual physical and cycle count procedures with a focus on frequent cycle counting processes.
• Work with Plant Manager and local operations team to define optimal inventory levels set improvement targets report deviations and establish improvement actions.
• Perform budgeting and cost analyses to develop and maintain standard material labor and overhead rates for ERP product costing applications.
• Review and analyze New Product BOMs Engineering Change Notices and overall facility BOM management and associated financial impacts.
• Prepare frequent materials labor and overhead expense reports and analyses for management.
• Analyze and report on manufacturing variances engaging with the Plant Manager and their team to explain variances assist in root cause analysis and issue mitigation.
• Manage capital expenditure programs including project setup cost tracking and asset transfer.
• Provide Sales Operations and Engineering with calculations and recommendations for inventory/project/customer product costing and sales pricing strategies.
• Maintain the customer sales database ensuring proper sales cutoff and data maintenance per the General Ledger.
• Review actual gross margins by customer and product each period to identify substandard profitability report key drivers and assist in improvement plans.
• Assist the Sales/Inventory/Operations Planning Manager (SIOP) with sales forecasting margin analysis and inventory obsolescence review.
• Serve as a location ERP expert for usage upgrade and maintenance of the facilitys ERP systems.
• Complete other duties/tasks as assigned by the Divisional Controller or Plant Manager.

Qualifications (Knowledge Skills & Abilities)

• Bachelors degree in Accounting or Finance; CPA preferred.
• Five to seven years of financial analysis/cost accounting experience in a complex manufacturing environment.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills are required; database and reporting/consolidation software experience is a plus. Must be adept at new software and programs.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to communicate professionally at all organizational levels.
• Team player with strong organizational leadership and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work independently and influence others with strong problemsolving and project management skills.
• Capability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines simultaneously.
• Selfstarter with effective decisionmaking and followthrough skills.
• Ability to work effectively with a diverse work group at all organizational levels.