Cost & Management Accountant

Cpl Group; Leinster; On-site; EUR 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Cpl Group is seeking a Cost & Management Accountant to oversee costing, budgeting and profitability analysis across LV switchgear and data centre projects. You will own BOM costing, standard costs, overhead allocation and PPV, while partnering with project managers to drive financial insight and performance.

You will day-to-day analyse cost variances, supportMake-vs-Buy decisions, and maintain inventory valuation and COGS with SAP, ensuring IFRS 15 alignment for long-term contracts.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting or a related field.
• ACA, ACCA or CIMA qualified.
• 3-5 years of experience in cost or management accounting.
• Strong knowledge of standard costing, overhead allocation and absorption costing.
• Experience of product or job costing methodologies.
• High proficiency in Excel and financial modelling.
• Experience with ERP systems, particularly SAP.
• Experience in manufacturing, engineering, construction, energy or data centre environments.
• Exposure to bill of materials (BOM) costing and WIP accounting.
• Power BI or equivalent BI / reporting tool experience.
• Familiarity with IFRS 15 revenue recognition for long-term contracts.
• Experience partnering with project or programme managers in a project-based business.
• Background in process improvement or ERP implementation.

Responsibilities

• Own and maintain standard cost cards for all products and services, including LV switchgear, critical power systems and service offerings.
• Develop and update bill of materials (BOM) costing for manufactured and assembled power units as material inputs, labour rates or specifications change.
• Design, maintain and communicate overhead allocation and absorption costing rates across the business.
• Perform periodic cost reviews to ensure standard costs reflect current operational and market reality.
• Support make vs. buy and outsourcing decisions with structured financial analysis and clear recommendations.
• Produce monthly cost centre P&L reports and distribute to budget holders with clear, actionable commentary.
• Partner with departmental managers to help them understand, manage and challenge their cost base.
• Perform purchase price variance (PPV), material usage and labour efficiency analysis.
• Investigate cost and margin variances, identifying root causes and recommending corrective actions to Operations and Commercial leadership.
• Identify and quantify cost reduction and efficiency opportunities across the company's manufacturing and project operations.
• Produce profitability analysis by product, service line, channel and region monthly.
• Prepare gross margin bridges explaining movements vs. prior period, budget and forecast.
• Collaborate on sales and margin analysis to support commercial pricing and contract decisions.
• Ensure alignment between cost reporting and revenue recognition policies, particularly for long-term data centre project contracts.
• Own inventory valuation in line with company accounting policy, covering raw materials, WIP, finished goods, spare parts and power equipment stock.
• Perform monthly COGS reconciliation, working with the Finance Ops Team and Financial Reporting Accountant on supporting data.
• Reconcile inventory and WIP balances between SAP and operational project trackers.
• Coordinate periodic stock counts and resolve reconciling differences in a timely manner.
• Support on operational cost line inputs for the annual budget and rolling forecast cycle.
• Model the cost impact of volume changes, new contracts, material price movements and operational decisions.
• Participate in project review meetings, providing financial insight and constructive challenges.
• Track and report cost KPIs including budget adherence, cost-to-complete accuracy and forecast variance.
• Develop standardised cost models, financial templates and reporting tools to improve speed and consistency of analysis.
• Enhance automation and digitisation of cost tracking across the project and product lifecycle.
• Improve data accuracy, SAP discipline and financial governance across manufacturing and project operations.
• Train operational and project teams in financial control processes, cost tools and best practice.

Skills

Analytical thinking

Excel

Financial modelling

Communication

Collaboration

Problem solving

Prioritisation

Education

Bachelor’s degree in finance

ACA/ACCA/CIMA qualified

Tools

SAP

Power BI

MS Excel

Job description

Position Overview: Cost & Management Accountant

Reporting to the Project Costing Commercial Lead, we are seeking a detail oriented and analytical Cost & Management Accountant to support the financial performance analysis of multiple customer projects within our LV switchgear project portfolio. This role is critical to ensuring accurate cost tracking, forecasting and financial reporting across a range of data centre client projects. The ideal candidate will work closely with Program and Project Managers, Finance and Operations teams to provide insights that drive informed decision-making and project success.

Key Responsibilities:

Product & Service Costing

• Own and maintain standard cost cards for all products and services, including LV switchgear, critical power systems and service offerings
• Develop and update bill of materials (BOM) costing for manufactured and assembled power units as material inputs, labour rates or specifications change
• Design, maintain and communicate overhead allocation and absorption costing rates across the business
• Perform periodic cost reviews to ensure standard costs reflect current operational and market reality
• Support make vs. buy and outsourcing decisions with structured financial analysis and clear recommendations

Cost Centre Reporting & Analysis

• Produce monthly cost centre P&L reports and distribute to budget holders with clear, actionable commentary
• Partner with departmental managers to help them understand, manage and challenge their cost base
• Perform purchase price variance (PPV), material usage and labour efficiency analysis
• Investigate cost and margin variances, identifying root causes and recommending corrective actions to Operations and Commercial leadership
• Identify and quantify cost reduction and efficiency opportunities across the company's manufacturing and project operations

Profitability & Margin Analysis

• Produce profitability analysis by product, service line, channel and region monthly
• Prepare gross margin bridges explaining movements vs. prior period, budget and forecast
• Collaborate on sales and margin analysis to support commercial pricing and contract decisions
• Ensure alignment between cost reporting and revenue recognition policies, particularly for long-term data centre project contracts

Inventory Accounting & COGS

• Own inventory valuation in line with company accounting policy, covering raw materials, WIP, finished goods, spare parts and power equipment stock
• Perform monthly COGS reconciliation, working with the Finance Ops Team and Financial Reporting Accountant on supporting data
• Reconcile inventory and WIP balances between SAP and operational project trackers
• Coordinate periodic stock counts and resolve reconciling differences in a timely manner

Budgeting & Forecasting Support

• Support on operational cost line inputs for the annual budget and rolling forecast cycle
• Model the cost impact of volume changes, new contracts, material price movements and operational decisions
• Participate in project review meetings, providing financial insight and constructive challenges
• Track and report cost KPIs including budget adherence, cost-to-complete accuracy and forecast variance

Process Improvement & ERP

• Develop standardised cost models, financial templates and reporting tools to improve speed and consistency of analysis
• Enhance automation and digitisation of cost tracking across the project and product lifecycle
• Improve data accuracy, SAP discipline and financial governance across manufacturing and project operations
• Train operational and project teams in financial control processes, cost tools and best practice

Qualifications & Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting or a related field
• ACA, ACCA or CIMA qualified
• 3-5 years of experience in cost or management accounting
• Strong knowledge of standard costing, overhead allocation and absorption costing
• Experience of product or job costing methodologies
• High proficiency in Excel and financial modelling
• Experience with ERP systems, particularly SAP
• Experience in manufacturing, engineering, construction, energy or data centre environments
• Exposure to bill of materials (BOM) costing and WIP accounting
• Power BI or equivalent BI / reporting tool experience
• Familiarity with IFRS 15 revenue recognition for long-term contracts
• Experience partnering with project or programme managers in a project-based business
• Background in process improvement or ERP implementation

Key Competencies:

AnalyticalRigour

Strong analytical mindsetwith exceptional attention to detail — comfortable in the numbers and able toexplain them clearly

CommercialAcumen

Commercially astute; able tointerpret cost trends, margin movements and their business implications, andinfluence decisions accordingly

Communication& Influence

Able to challengeconstructively and present complex financial information clearly tonon-finance stakeholders, including Project Managers and Operations leads

ProblemSolving

Proactive approach toidentifying issues, diagnosing root causes and developing practical solutions

Prioritisation& Organisation

Excellent time management;able to manage multiple concurrent workstreams and meet competing month-endand forecasting deadlines

ContinuousImprovement Mindset

Resilient and committed to improving systems, processes and data quality — comfortable driving change ina fast-growing business

Collaboration

A team player who buildseffective relationships across Finance, Operations, Supply Chain andCommercial functions