Cost Accounting Manager, Americas - Hybrid - Quaker Houghton

Company Overview:

At Quaker Houghton, we are experts in the development, production and application of chemical specialties, process fluids, lubricants, and coatings for the manufacturing industry. We have been an integral part in the growth of the world’s largest industrial companies and to this day our experience and expertise show in the actions and dedication of our Associates worldwide. Today, we have a global presence, with our corporate headquarters located in Conshohocken, PA. Quaker Houghton is a global publicly traded company with a unique collaborative culture that supports career growth for its associates and offers competitive compensation and benefit programs.

Summary of Position:

The Cost Accounting Manager Americas within Finance will report to the Global Cost Accounting Business Services Leader and be responsible for driving the Standard Costing, Cost Accounting, Inventory, and variance management processes in the Americas region (U.S, Canada, Mexico, Argentina and Brazil), as well as realize related process improvements and standardization in these areas.

Cost accounting is defined as the finance process of assigning costs to cost objects that include Quaker Houghton (QH) products, services and any other activities that involve the QH. Cost accounting is the basis for providing operations, procurement, supply chain and commercial management tactical and strategic, financial, and operational feedback on the valuation of our inventories and product sales margins.

The cost accounting process serves as an input for both statutory and management reporting. It includes the costing of raw materials, intermediate products and finished products for all manufacturing including freight costs as well as project valuation linked to engineering projects. It includes branch(location) cost reporting, legal entity cost reporting, and group cost reporting (from raw material to finished goods across all legal entities) and requires close cooperation with the company’s procurement, operations, and supply chain teams.

Through supervision, management and support of the Americas cost accounting professionals, the Cost Accounting Manager Americas will drive execution, process management and governance in the Americas for the costing process. To be successful, this role will collaborate with key stakeholders in the Americas and across the globe, including cost accounting professionals in other regions, regional controllers, supply chain, commercial and the internal control and tax teams to understand the business and product costing processes and realize the future state process. This role is a “dual” role with responsibility to both drive processes and improvements, while also being the people manager for the Americas cost accounting team (a people manager and oversight role for a regional network of local process-oriented finance professionals and cost accountants).

What will you do?

• Work with the Global Cost Accounting Business Services leader to assist in and drive improving the Cost Accounting processes; this should consider all aspects of the operating model including performance targets, process, people, service delivery model, data, and technology

• Manage daily operations of the cost accounting processes in the Americas region, from standard cost setting to monthly variance analyses and reporting, inventory valuation and cost reporting

• Follow and communicate policies and procedures to establish a consistent approach across the organization for Costing processes

• Support change management initiatives aligned with overall change management strategy

• Act as a people manager and first point of contact for the regional Americas network of cost accountants, supporting the team through coaching and talent development

• For the costing process, drive understanding of the current state process and realize the design / develop end state process improvement under supervision of finance leaders. This in close cooperation with other functional/regional and global leaders

• Develop a culture of continuous improvement, automation, digitization, adherence, and proactively propose enhancement to Global Standards

• Ensure application of the global process design in the Americas region, governed by a set of clearly defined controls

• Act as the go-to for issue communication (and drive issue resolution) within the Americas Costing process

• Support transformation PMO activities including managing stakeholders, tracking budgets, coordinating with third party consultants, and delivering on defined KPI

Education, Experience and Training:

Bachelor’s degree (BS) in accounting, finance, or related field required. CPA or equivalent a plus.

Required Skills and Competencies:

• 7-9 years of progressive process specific experience, not only related to Cost Accounting processes but also to other finance and accounting processes, with 5-7 years of Cost Accounting experience.
• 3+ years overall experience in the manufacturing/diversified industrial products industry, preferably within chemical manufacturing.
• English professional level spoken and written is necessary. Spanish and Portuguese professional level considered as a plus.
• Strong experience in financial and management reporting.
• Solid understanding of accounting ERP systems is required, JD Edwards a plus.
• Accounting experience in a manufacturing organization, including experience in Bill of Materials and analysis of manufacturing variances required.
• Prior supervisory experience of international teams.
• Prior transformation experience preferred.
• Prior experience working for a public company with US GAAP and SOX requirements required.

What's in it for you:

• Competitive pay programs with excellent career growth trajectory
• Opportunities to see your efforts contribute toward the success of the business
• Work for a global leader in the industrial process fluids industry
• On-site Fitness Center and Cafeteria

Quaker Houghton is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating a diverse workforce. Quaker Houghton provides equal employment opportunity for all qualified candidates. Quaker Houghton does not discriminate against any candidate for employment based on race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, affectional or sexual orientation, pregnancy, age, creed, ancestry, national origin, citizenship, marital or domestic partnership or civil union status, veteran’s status, physical/mental disability, genetic information, or any other category protected by U.S federal, state, and/or local employment law. Furthermore, Quaker Houghton is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified candidates with physical and/or mental disabilities. Applicants with a disability who need assistance applying for a position may emailOneHR@quakerhoughton.com.