Director of Financial Operations

Job Description

Job Description

Scope of Job:  The Director of Financial Operations stands at the intersection of finance and operations ensuring a smooth flow of information and oversight across both domains. This role involves monitoring the financial health of the company’s operations and supply chain, implementing budgetary controls, and providing strategic financial insights to support decision-making processes. By tracking and analysing operational and supply chain metrics, understanding standards and variances, controlling inventory, and driving timely financial reporting, the Director of Financial Operations aids in steering the company towards its financial and operational goals while ensuring operational and supply chain efficiencies. 

At the core of this role is the management and coordination of ERP process improvements and alignment of systems ensuring the design and structure provide a strong foundation in identifying areas for financial improvement. The information provided must align operational activities with the overall financial strategy of the company, thereby fostering a cohesive environment for sustainable growth and profitability.

The Director of Financial Operations will oversee a team of plant-based controllers and cost accountants supporting plant-level operations with operational metrics, financial reporting, pricing support, and cost determination. This role will ensure consistent and accurate tracking of production costs across all sites, drive efficiency initiatives, and provide insights to improve plant profitability. 

Essential Job Functions and Responsibilities:

• Cost Accounting Oversight: Manage the plant controllership and cost accounting function for all locations ensuring processes are effective and accurately tracking production costs, variances, and operational efficiencies. Oversee product costing, standards revisions, gross margin analysis, inventory control and accounting and reconciliations for manufacturing. 
• ERP Oversight:  Manage the design, structure and flows of the ERP system to provide alignment of data and transactions for efficient and effective use in managing the business. Develop and maintain cost accounting systems, policies, and procedures that align with the organization's financial goals.
• Process Improvement: Identify inefficiencies and bottlenecks in operational processes and implement strategic solutions to enhance productivity and reduce costs. Continuously evaluate workflows for optimal performance and alignment with organizational goals. Analyse operational data and reports to identify trends, issues, and opportunities for process improvements.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with procurement, production, supply chain, sales, and finance teams to ensure alignment of cost objectives and pricing strategies. Work together and collaborate to ensure inventory levels meet customer needs while minimizing carrying costs and allocating resources optimally, minimizing waste and ensuring the availability of necessary items for uninterrupted operations. Create and maintain dashboards with weekly performance indicators to inform and influence management. Facilitate communication and collaboration across departments to ensure operational goals are met.
• Risk Management : identify potential threats and develop strategies to mitigate them, ensuring smooth operation and financial stability. Forecasting, evaluating, and responding to risks in a way that minimizes impact while finding opportunities for improvement.
• Financial Forecasting : Precision in predicting future revenues, expenses, and resource needs to maintain the organization’s financial health and operational efficiency. Proactively manage budget allocations and mitigate financial risks through informed strategic planning and decision-making.
• Pricing and Cost Determination: Oversee the price board process, ensuring accurate and timely pricing aligned with business objectives and market conditions. Support Commercial and FP&A teams to perform comparative price and margin analysis to successfully secure the business at optimal margins.
• Financial Reporting: Prepare plant-level financial reports and analyse cost data to identify trends and improvement opportunities. Ensure plant leadership has complete visibility and understanding of performance and specific actions plans to drive results. Present financial information in a way that resonates with both technical and non-technical audiences to drive business action
• Operational Support: Collaborate with plant managers and operations teams to develop strategies for cost control, process improvements, and efficiency gains. Be the business partner to think outside the four walls to what is possible for the operations in driving profitability. Lead special projects aimed at operational innovation, such as implementing new technology or systems to enhance productivity.
• Leadership and Team Development: Provide direction, mentorship, and development opportunities for the plant-based cost accounting team. Set clear goals and objectives and ensure they are engaged with each leadership and have a full understanding of the operations.
• Budgeting and Forecasting: Support the development of plant budgets, forecasts, and operational performance metrics. Ensure year-over-year improvements set a new bar for standard performance.
• Collaborate with production and supporting departments to ensure the food safety and quality of our products. 
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Education:  Bachelor’s degree in appropriate discipline required; master’s degree or CPA preferred.

Experience: 10 years of experience in manufacturing accounting and systems, with a focus on cost accounting and financial reporting. Experience managing a team within a multi-site food manufacturing environment. Experience with ERP systems; Oracle preferred.

Competencies : Business Acumen, Financial Analysis, Financial Modeling, Financial Forecasting, Financial Reporting, Internal Controls, Budget Development, Cost Accounting, Variance Analysis, Margin Analysis, Operational Metrics, ERP Structure, Process Improvement, Operational Efficiency, Cost Control, Strategic Planning, Leadership, Mentorship, Team Development, Strong Communication Skills, Analytical skills, Problem Solving and Operational Excellence.

Physical Requirements:  Requires prolonged sitting and use of computer.