Sr. Manufacturing Financial Analyst

Position Summary

We are seeking a Senior Manufacturing Finance Analyst to support North American Operations and Supply Chain. This is a hands-on manufacturing finance role that partners closely with plant leadership and operations teams to improve financial performance, strengthen cost visibility, and support better operational decision-making.

The ideal candidate enjoys working in the details while also understanding the bigger business picture. This role will be deeply involved in manufacturing costing, variance analysis, inventory, financial reporting, forecasting, and operational performance.

You will play a key role in analyzing manufacturing costs and performance, identifying opportunities for improvement, and providing actionable financial insights that help operations make better decisions.

Key Responsibilities

Business Partnership

• Partner directly with plant leadership, operations, and supply chain teams to improve financial and operational performance.
• Provide clear, actionable financial insights related to:
• Manufacturing cost and productivity
• Inventory and working capital
• Material costs and savings opportunities
• Labor and overhead performance
• Capacity and utilization
• Support forecasting, budgeting, and operational planning.
• Analyze financial and operational trends to identify risks and opportunities.
• Perform ad hoc analysis to support business decisions and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Translate financial results into clear recommendations for non-finance partners.

Manufacturing Finance & Reporting

• Support and coordinate month-end financial close activities for manufacturing operations.
• Prepare and review balance sheet reconciliations and supporting schedules.
• Monitor and explain budget versus actual results.
• Analyze plant spending, cost trends, and operational performance.
• Analyze inventory valuation, accuracy, and movement.
• Evaluate capacity, utilization, productivity, and manufacturing efficiency.
• Analyze job and product line margins and identify key drivers of performance.
• Ensure financial information is accurate, timely, and supported by appropriate controls.

Costing & Variance Analysis

• Maintain and improve standard costing processes.
• Analyze manufacturing cost variances, including:
• Direct labor
• Material
• Overhead
• Purchase price
• Usage and efficiency
• Investigate significant variances and identify root causes.
• Partner with operations and supply chain to develop corrective actions and cost improvement opportunities.
• Support cost roll processes and ensure manufacturing costs are appropriately reflected in financial results.
• Identify trends and recurring cost issues and communicate them to plant leadership.

Inventory & Working Capital

• Analyze inventory levels, valuation, accuracy, and trends.
• Partner with operations and supply chain to identify excess, obsolete, and slow-moving inventory.
• Support inventory reconciliation and cycle-count processes.
• Analyze working capital trends and identify opportunities to improve inventory performance.
• Assist with identifying and resolving inventory costing and transaction issues within the ERP system.

Process Improvement

• Identify opportunities to improve manufacturing finance processes, reporting, and controls.
• Support continuous improvement and cost-saving initiatives across manufacturing operations.
• Standardize financial reporting, analysis, and performance metrics where appropriate.
• Improve the availability and usefulness of financial information provided to plant leadership.
• Participate in cross-functional projects involving finance, operations, supply chain, and other business functions.
• Help identify opportunities to improve ERP processes, data accuracy, and financial reporting.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.

Experience

• 3–5 years of experience in manufacturing finance, cost accounting, plant accounting, or operations finance.
• Strong experience with standard costing and manufacturing variance analysis.
• Experience supporting manufacturing plants or operations teams.
• Experience with inventory accounting and manufacturing cost structures.
• Strong Excel and Financial Analysis Skills.
• ERP experience preferred; Epicor experience is a plus.

What We're Looking For

• A hands-on finance professional who enjoys working in the details and understanding how manufacturing operations drive financial results.
• Strong manufacturing cost accounting and analytical skills.
• A practical problem solver who can move beyond identifying a variance to understanding why it happened and what should be done about it.
• Comfortable working directly with plant leadership and operations teams.
• Able to communicate financial information clearly to non-finance professionals.
• Strong attention to detail without losing sight of the broader business objectives.
• Self-starter who takes ownership and follows issues through to resolution.
• Comfortable working independently while collaborating across finance, operations, supply chain, and other functions.
• Curious and willing to challenge processes and identify opportunities for improvement.

Why This Role Matters

This position provides a direct connection between manufacturing operations and financial performance. The Senior Manufacturing Finance Analyst will help plant leaders understand the financial impact of operational decisions, identify opportunities to improve cost and productivity, and ensure that financial information accurately reflects what is happening on the manufacturing floor.

This is an ideal opportunity for a finance professional who wants to be more than a reporting resource and play an active role in improving manufacturing performance.

 

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