Plant Controller

Judge Direct Placement; Hanover (York County); On-site; USD 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Judge Direct Placement in York County, Hanover is searching for a Plant Controller to oversee financial operations and lead a major ERP system implementation. This role involves managing accounting processes, inventory valuation, and partnering with operational leadership to enhance plant efficiency.

The ideal candidate should have 5-7 years of accounting/finance experience in manufacturing, strong skills in cost accounting, and proven ERP implementation experience. A bachelor’s degree in a relevant field is essential, with preferred certifications like CPA or CMA.

Qualifications

• 5–7+ years of progressive accounting and finance experience in a manufacturing environment.
• Strong mastery of manufacturing cost accounting and variance analysis.
• Proven track record of hands-on participation in ERP implementations.

Responsibilities

• Lead ERP implementation and accounting infrastructure rebuild.
• Evaluate accounting processes and design updated SOPs.
• Establish robust internal controls around inventory management.
• Maintain and optimize the plant’s standard costing system.
• Partner with Plant Manager for data-driven insights.
• Oversee monthly close process, financial reporting and budgeting.
• Educate plant personnel on new systems to ensure data integrity.

Skills

Manufacturing cost accounting

Inventory management

Variance analysis

Advanced Excel proficiency

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field

CPA, CMA or MBA certifications

Tools

ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle, NetSuite)

Power BI

Tableau

Job description

Manufacturing client in the Hanover, PA area is seeking a Plant Controller will serve as the chief financial leader for the manufacturing facility and play a critical role in the department’s accounting systems rebuild. This position is responsible for overseeing all plant-level financial operations, standard costing, and inventory valuation, while actively leading the plant’s transition during a major ERP system implementation. The ideal candidate will possess extensive experience within a manufacturing environment and a proven track record of upgrading legacy accounting processes, creating scalable workflows, and partnering with operational leadership to drive plant efficiency.

Key Responsibilities

• System & ERP Implementation: Lead the plant-level execution of the ERP system implementation and accounting infrastructure rebuild; manage data cleansing, migration, and mapping for standard costing, Bill of Materials (BOMs), and inventory.
• Process Optimization: Evaluate legacy accounting processes, identify inefficiencies, and design and document updated Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) aligned with modern best practices.
• Financial Controls: Establish and enforce robust internal controls around inventory management, cycle counting, scrap tracking, and shipping/receiving workflows.
• Cost Accounting & Variances: Maintain and optimize the plant’s standard costing system; perform deep-dive analysis on labor variances, material usage variances (MUV), and overhead absorption.
• Operational Partnership: Partner closely with the Plant Manager and operations team to provide data-driven insights regarding labor efficiency, scrap reduction, and capacity utilization.
• Financial Reporting & Planning: Oversee the monthly close process for the plant, deliver accurate financial reporting, and lead the annual plant budgeting and monthly forecasting cycles.
• Training & Change Management: Educate plant personnel and non-financial staff on new system protocols and inputs to ensure data integrity at the source.

Qualifications

• Experience: 5–7+ years of progressive accounting and finance experience, with a strict requirement for background in a manufacturing or production environment.
• Technical Expertise: Strong mastery of manufacturing cost accounting, including standard costing, inventory management, and variance analysis.
• Systems Experience: Proven track record of hands‑on participation in a major plant-level ERP implementation or system overhaul (e.g., SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics, Plex, Epicor).
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field. Professional certifications (CPA, CMA) or an MBA are highly desirable.
• Analytical Skills: Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel; experience utilizing business intelligence tools (e.g., Power BI, Tableau) for data extraction and analysis during system transitions is preferred.
• Communication: Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, with the demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively with both corporate executives and shop-floor personnel.