Manufacturing Cost Analyst & Variance Specialist

Federal Signal Corporation; Florida; On-site; USD 60,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

Federal Signal Corporation, located in the Town of Florida, NY, seeks a skilled Cost Accountant. The successful candidate will manage standard cost systems, maintain cost databases, and perform extensive inventory analysis. Key qualifications include a Bachelor's degree in accounting and 3-5 years of experience in cost accounting within a manufacturing environment. Candidates with an MBA, CMA, or CPA certification are preferred. Excel proficiency and strong communication skills are essential for success in this role. The position emphasizes timely decision-making and effective problem-solving.

Qualifications

• 3-5 years of cost accounting experience in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience in financial and SOX audits, budgeting, and year-end closings.
• Ability to maintain cost database and analyze variances.

Responsibilities

• Analyze standard costs and maintain cost database.
• Perform inventory analysis and support operational reports.
• Assist in monthly closing and annual operating plan development.

Skills

Cost accounting experience

MS Office skills

Strong communication skills

Problem-solving skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree in accounting

MBA, CMA or CPA recognition

Tools

Excel

MRP system

Job description

• Standard cost system analysis and management including the following activities:
• Develop standard costs to be used for our products.
• Maintain cost database that includes performing monthly cost updates and reviewing bills of material.
• Cost all machine shipments and forecasted cost of goods sold to be used for monthly forecasts.
• Analyze and record monthly Purchase Price Variance, Scrap expense and other inventory entries.
• Review monthly manufacturing variances for reasonableness and resolve any reporting errors discovered.
• Analyze product warranty expenses and calculate monthly provision.
• Work with Operations to evaluate, develop and implement reports to be used by management for product line analysis.
• Provide support and assistance in the development of lean manufacturing processes.
• Provide support and assistance on special cost projects and teams.
• Inventory analysis and reporting including the following activities:
• Review monthly book inventory to the perpetual records and explain any differences.
• Review obsolescence accrual.
• Develop year-end LIFO information.
• Assist in the monthly closing/forecasting activities and in the development of the Annual Operating Plan and labor rate calculations.
• Be available to assist other divisions on temporary assignment as required.
• Perform other duties, assignments, and special projects that may be required from time to time.

This description should not be construed to contain every function/responsibility that may be required to be performed by an incumbent in this job. Incumbents are required to perform other related functions as assigned.

Customer Focus -

Is dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers; gets first-hand customer information and uses it for improvements in products and services; acts with customers in mind; establishes and maintains effective relationships with customers and gains their trust and respect.

Ethics and Values -

Adheres to an appropriate (for the setting) and effective set of core values and beliefs during both good and bad times; acts in line with those values; rewards the right values and disapproves of others; practices what he/she preaches.

Interpersonal Savvy -

Relates well to all kinds of people-up, down, and sideways, inside and outside the organization; builds appropriate rapport; builds constructive and effective relationships; uses diplomacy and tact; can diffuse even high-tension situations comfortably.

Personal Learning -

Picks up on the need to change personal, interpersonal, and managerial behavior quickly; watches others for their reactions to his/her attempts to influence and perform and adjusts; seeks feedback; is sensitive to changing personal demands and requirements and changes accordingly.

Action Oriented -

Enjoys working hard; is action oriented and full of energy for the things he/she sees as challenging; not fearful of acting with a minimum of planning; seizes more opportunities than others.

Creativity -

Comes up with a lot of new and unique ideas; easily makes connections among previously unrelated notions; tends to be seen as original and value-added in brainstorming settings.

Functional/Technical Skills -

Has the functional and technical knowledge and skills to do the job at a high level of accomplishments.

Informing -

Provides the information people need to know to do their jobs and to feel about being a member of the team, unit, and/or the organization; provides individuals information so that they can make accurate decisions; is timely with information.

Learning on the fly -

Learns quickly when facing new problems; a relentless and versatile learner; open to change; analyses both successes and failures for clues to improvement; experiments and will try anything to find solutions; enjoys the challenge of unfamiliar tasks; quickly grasps the essence and the underlying structure of anything.

Planning -

Accurately scopes out length and difficulty of tasks and projects; sets objectives and goals; breaks down work into the process steps; develops schedules and task/people assignments; anticipates and adjusts for problems and roadblocks; measures performance against goals; evaluates results.

Problem Solving -

Uses rigorous logic and methods to solve difficult problems with effective solutions; probes all fruitful sources for answers; can see hidden problems; is excellent at honest analysis; looks beyond the obvious and doesn’t stop at the first answers.

Timely Decision Making -

Makes decisions in a timely manner, sometimes with incomplete information and under tight deadlines and pressure; able to make a quick decision.

Conflict Management -

Steps up to conflicts, seeing them as opportunities; reads situations quickly; good at focused listening; can hammer out tough agreements and settle disputes equitably; can find common ground and get cooperation with minimum noise.

Priority Setting -

Spends his/her time and the time of others on what’s important; quickly zeroes in on the critical few and puts the trivial many aside; can quickly sense what will help or hinder accomplishing a goal; eliminates roadblocks; creates focus.

Minimum Qualifications (Education and/or Background)

Bachelor’s degree in accounting

Three to five years of cost accounting experience in a manufacturing environment

MBA, CMA or CPA recognition is a plus

Experience in financial and SOX audits, budgeting and year end closings

MS Office skills, particularly Excel

MRP system experience

Strong written and verbal communications skills

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws.For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.