Director Shared Services - Back Office & Manufacturing

Vida Group International; Illinois; On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Vida Group International seeks a Finance and Administration Shared Services director to centralize back-office functions such as accounts payable, billing, and procurement, enabling departments to focus on core activities.

You will oversee transaction processing, general ledger, planning, and compliance, and lead a team of professionals to drive continuous process improvements across sites in the United States.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or related field.
• 5+ years in financial operations.
• Experience leading shared services or centralized corporate teams.

Responsibilities

• Oversee AP/AR, travel expenses, and payroll processing.
• Manage month-end and year-end close, reconciliations, and reporting.
• Coordinate supplier onboarding, vendor management, procurement requests.
• Identify process improvements to increase accuracy and speed of service delivery.
• Ensure operations align with internal controls, statutory regulations, and organizational policies.

Skills

Communication

Vendor negotiation

Conflict resolution

Change management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance/Accounting/Business Administration

Tools

SAP

Oracle

Workday

Job description

Finance and Administration Shared Services director role centralizes back-office operations like accounts payable, billing, and procurement. It allows individual departments to focus on core activities by delivering efficient, standardized, and cost-effective services.

The core components of this job description outline responsibilities, expectations, and requirements:

Key Responsibilities

• Transaction Processing: Oversee day-to-day transaction workflows including accounts payable (AP), accounts receivable (AR), travel expenses, and payroll processing. [
• General Ledger & Reporting: Manage the month-end and year-end close processes, account reconciliations, and financial reporting.
• Administrative Operations: Coordinate administrative tasks such as supplier onboarding, vendor management, and internal procurement requests.
• Process Optimization: Identify inefficiencies and implement continuous process improvements to increase the overall accuracy and speed of service delivery.
• Compliance & Auditing: Ensure all operations align with internal controls, statutory regulations, and organizational financial policies.

2. Cross-Functional Resource & Planning

• Oversee shared production planning, scheduling, and capacity planning to optimize facility throughput and prevent production bottlenecks.
• Manage the end-to-end purchasing and inventory management processes across sites to ensure material availability and minimize shortages.
• Act as the gatekeeper for shared technical operations, ensuring all requests (such as machine shop or fabrication work) are manufacturable, economical, and safe.
• Lead and mentor a team of shared services professionals, including production planners, buyers, maintenance personnel, and administrative staff.
• Allocate resources effectively to meet changing production demands and business priorities.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Service Level Agreements (SLAs): Meeting or exceeding established turnaround times for invoice approvals and expense reimbursements.
• Transaction Accuracy: Maintaining low error rates in journal entries and general ledger postings.
• Customer Satisfaction: Providing responsive, high-quality support to internal stakeholders and departments.
• Cost Efficiency: Reducing administrative costs through centralization and automation.

Required Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or a related field.
• Experience: 5+ years in financial operations, with prior experience leading teams in a shared services or centralized corporate environment.
• Technical Skills: Advanced proficiency in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle, Workday) and data management software.
• Soft Skills: Exceptional communication, vendor negotiation, conflict resolution, and change management capabilities.