Senior Cost Accountant

Blake-Ryan & Associates; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Blake-Ryan & Associates, a leading technology manufacturer in Long Beach, seeks a Senior Cost Accountant / Financial Analyst to lead advanced cost accounting, forecasting and decision support across the business.

You will partner with Finance and Operations leadership to translate financial data into actionable insights, drive improvements in costing, inventory and working capital, and support internal controls and audits in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance or related discipline.
• 5-7 years of progressive accounting/finance experience, preferably manufacturing.
• Strong manufacturing cost-accounting knowledge, including standard costing and variances.
• Advanced Excel and financial-modeling capabilities.
• Experience with ERP systems and large financial/operational data sets.

Responsibilities

• Own and analyze manufacturing cost performance, including material, labor, overhead, inventory, scrap, productivity and variances.
• Develop analysis of actual results versus budget, forecast and prior year, identifying drivers and recommending actions.
• Support monthly, quarterly and annual forecasting and budgeting activities, including development of financial models and scenario planning.
• Perform working-capital and cash-flow analysis and assist in improving cash conversion.
• Support month-end/quarter-end close activities, including journal entries and reconciliations.
• Partner with Operations to develop KPIs and analyze productivity, throughput, scrap, labor efficiency and inventory performance.
• Support standard costing, inventory valuation and cycle-count activities; investigate significant variances.
• Develop financial models, dashboards and automated tools to improve reporting efficiency.
• Provide analytical support for customer, product, margin profitability and pricing analysis.
• Support preparation of monthly/quarterly management reporting and explain variances.
• Support SOX/internal controls and audits with documentation and analysis.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen processes, controls, reporting and data integrity; implement improvements.
• Serve as a financial partner to Operations, Purchasing, Sales and other leaders with timely analysis and challenging assumptions.
• Perform special projects and ad hoc analyses as requested.

Skills

Manufacturing cost accounting

Advanced Excel & financial modeling

Forecasting & budgeting

Data analysis

SOX/compliance

Education

Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance or related discipline

Tools

ERP systems

Job description

Leading technology manufacturer based in Long Beach

Primary Purpose of Role

The Senior Cost Accountant / Financial Analyst is a key member of the Finance team responsible for advanced cost accounting, financial analysis, forecasting, operational performance analysis and decision support across the business. The role combines strong manufacturing cost-accounting expertise with forward-looking financial analysis and business partnership.

This position works closely with the Finance Director, Accounting Manager, General Manager and Operations leadership to translate financial and operational data into actionable business insights, strengthen financial controls and support profitable growth.

The position requires an individual capable of independently analyzing complex financial and operational issues, identifying trends and risks, developing recommendations and communicating conclusions effectively to Finance and operational leadership.

Key Responsibilities

• Own and analyze manufacturing cost performance, including material, labor, overhead, inventory, scrap, productivity and manufacturing variances.
• Develop meaningful analysis of actual results versus budget, forecast and prior year, identifying the operational and financial drivers behind performance and recommending corrective actions where appropriate.
• Support monthly, quarterly and annual forecasting and budgeting activities, including development of financial models, assumptions, trend analysis and scenario planning.
• Perform working-capital and cash-flow analysis, including accounts receivable, inventory and accounts payable trends, and assist Finance leadership in identifying opportunities to improve cash conversion.
• Support month-end and quarter-end close activities, including journal entries, account analysis, balance-sheet reconciliations, inventory accounting and review of unusual or significant transactions.
• Partner with Operations to develop and analyze key performance indicators including productivity, throughput, scrap, labor efficiency, inventory performance and other operational metrics.
• Support standard costing, inventory valuation, physical inventory and cycle-count activities, including investigation and resolution of significant variances.
• Develop financial models, dashboards and automated analytical tools that improve the quality and efficiency of management reporting and reduce reliance on manual processes.
• Provide analytical support for customer, product, alloy and margin profitability, including price, volume, mix, material cost and operational performance analysis.
• Support preparation of monthly and quarterly management reporting and provide clear explanations of significant financial and operational variances.
• Support SOX/internal control activities and internal and external audits by maintaining appropriate financial documentation, performing assigned controls and providing requested analysis and supporting evidence.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen processes, financial controls, reporting and data integrity and work cross-functionally to implement sustainable improvements.
• Serve as a financial business partner to Operations, Purchasing, Sales and other functional leaders by providing timely financial analysis and constructively challenging assumptions when appropriate.
• Perform special projects, financial modeling and ad hoc analysis requested by the Finance Director, General Manager or Group Finance.

Key Performance Measures

• Accuracy, timeliness and quality of financial analysis and reporting.
• Quality of forecasting and identification of financial and operational risks and opportunities.
• Improvement in manufacturing cost visibility, productivity and working-capital performance.
• Timely completion and quality of assigned month-end, SOX and audit responsibilities.
• Ability to independently identify issues, develop recommendations and drive actions to completion.

Qualifications - Required

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance or related discipline.
• Minimum 5-7 years of progressive accounting/finance experience, preferably within manufacturing.
• Strong manufacturing cost-accounting knowledge, including standard costing, inventory accounting and material/labor/overhead variance analysis.
• Advanced Excel and financial-modeling capabilities.
• Experience working with ERP systems and large financial/operational data sets.

Qualifications - Preferred

• MBA, Master's degree in Finance/Accounting, CPA or CMA.
• Experience supporting a public-company, SOX or similarly controlled financial environment.
• Experience developing automated reporting, dashboards and advanced analytical models.

Experience and Capabilities

• Strong analytical capability with the ability to move beyond reporting results to explaining why performance changed and what actions should be taken.
• Ability to independently manage complex assignments and competing reporting deadlines.
• Strong understanding of the relationship between the income statement, balance sheet, working capital and cash flow.
• Ability to translate operational activity into financial impact.
• Strong business judgment and ability to constructively challenge assumptions.
• Strong attention to detail while maintaining an understanding of broader business and strategic objectives.
• Demonstrated ability to improve processes, automate reporting and reduce manual work.
• Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced manufacturing and public-company environment.