Cost Accountant

Spectrum Staffing Services; Old Tappan (NJ); On-site; USD 70,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Temporary assignment

Potential direct-hire

Multi-site exposure

Cross-functional collaboration

Onsite rotation

Job summary

Spectrum Staffing Services is seeking a detail-oriented Cost Accountant for a temporary opportunity across three facilities in the greater New Jersey area. You will support cost accuracy, inventory valuation, and financial reporting with cross-functional teams.

The role requires SAP costing expertise, strong Excel skills, and the ability to analyze complex data. Onsite rotations and collaboration with finance, production, and supply chain will be key to success.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting required.
• At least 3 years of hands-on cost accounting in a process manufacturing environment.
• Strong working knowledge of SAP FI/CO, SAP Product Costing, and Material Ledger modules.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel proficiency; Access experience is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Own day-to-day SAP product costing activities, including review of material costs, routings, and finished goods valuations.
• Analyze manufacturing expenses such as utilities, packaging, supplies, and other production-related costs; communicate findings to stakeholders.
• Prepare inventory obsolescence reserves and lower-of-cost-or-market adjustments, including supporting journal entries and periodic reporting.
• Monitor inventory consumption, upcoming expirations, manufacturing performance indicators, and relevant general ledger balances.
• Coordinate consignment inventory controls, physical counts, reconciliation activities, and audit support.
• Ensure accurate costing for newly introduced materials and review cost changes across product lines.
• Evaluate cost performance for specialized production campaigns involving natural oil products and related co-products.
• Maintain required drawback documentation, submit quarterly filings, and assist with annual regulatory reporting.
• Partner with plant leadership, demand planning, financial planning, and SAP support teams to resolve costing and inventory issues.
• Provide information to internal and external auditors and contribute to additional finance projects as assigned.

Skills

Analytical thinking

Attention to detail

Collaborative mindset

Problem solving

Education

Bachelor's degree in Accounting

Tools

SAP FI/CO

SAP Product Costing

Material Ledger

Excel (Advanced)

Access (basic)

Job description

We are seeking a detail-oriented Cost Accountant for a temporary opportunity with potential to transition into a permanent position. This role supports cost accuracy, inventory valuation, and financial reporting across multiple process manufacturing operations. The position requires onsite rotation among three facilities in the broader regional area and close partnership with finance, production, supply chain, and systems teams.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Own day-to-day SAP product costing activities, including the review of material costs, production routings, and finished goods valuations.
• Analyze manufacturing expenses such as utilities, packaging, supplies, and other production-related costs; communicate findings to stakeholders.
• Prepare inventory obsolescence reserves and lower-of-cost-or-market adjustments, including supporting journal entries and periodic reporting.
• Monitor inventory consumption, upcoming expirations, manufacturing performance indicators, and relevant general ledger balances.
• Coordinate consignment inventory controls, physical counts, reconciliation activities, and audit support.
• Ensure accurate costing for newly introduced materials and review cost changes across product lines.
• Evaluate cost performance for specialized production campaigns involving natural oil products and related co-products.
• Maintain required drawback documentation, submit quarterly filings, and assist with annual regulatory reporting.
• Partner with plant leadership, demand planning, financial planning, and SAP support teams to resolve costing and inventory issues.
• Provide information to internal and external auditors and contribute to additional finance projects as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting required.
• At least 3 years of hands-on cost accounting experience in a process manufacturing environment, including cost analysis and reporting.
• Strong working knowledge of SAP FI/CO, SAP Product Costing, and Material Ledger modules required.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel proficiency essential; Microsoft Access experience is a plus.
• Ability to interpret complex financial and operational data, manage competing priorities, and collaborate across departments.
• Strong organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills with a patient, adaptable, team-focused approach.
• Curiosity, initiative, and a willingness to learn and improve processes.
• Ability to work onsite at three regional corporate and production locations on a rotating schedule.

BENEFITS

• Temporary assignment with potential consideration for a direct-hire opportunity.
• Opportunity to build expertise across multiple manufacturing facilities and product categories.
• Hands-on ownership of SAP product costing and exposure to complex inventory and production accounting.
• Collaborate with experienced finance, supply chain, and plant operations professionals.
• Gain visibility into cross-functional decisions and contribute to improvements in costing accuracy and reporting.