Cost Accountant

Network Finance; Centurion; On-site; ZAR 550,000 - 700,000; Full time

Job summary

Network Finance seeks a hands-on finance professional to partner with manufacturing, procurement and commercial teams in a leading JSE-listed FMCG organisation. You will provide meaningful financial insights that influence business performance.

You will manage BOMs in the ERP, analyse costs, profitability, and budgets while supporting cost modelling and continuous improvement across the plant. A strong Excel and ERP skillset is essential in this role.

Qualifications

• BCom Accounting / Finance or relevant tertiary qualification.
• CIMA or a Costing qualification will be advantageous.
• Minimum 3 years' commercial accounting / cost accounting experience.
• Report writing would be beneficial.
• Experience within FMCG, manufacturing or a production environment is highly advantageous.
• Strong understanding of BOMs, raw materials, production costing and standard vs actual costing.
• Strong Excel and ERP skills.
• Experience with budgeting, forecasting, profitability modelling and variance analysis.
• BI/reporting experience will be advantageous.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Commercially minded with the ability to work across Finance, Procurement, Production and Commercial teams.

Responsibilities

• Manage and maintain BOM integrity within the ERP system.
• Analyse standard vs actual costs, investigate variances and identify root causes.
• Provide revenue, cost of sales and profitability insights at product level.
• Perform product and customer profitability analysis including materials and costs.
• Manage cost and selling price budgets, forecasts and financial models.
• Analyse margins and identify opportunities to improve profitability and efficiency.
• Collaborate with Procurement on pricing, risks and price sensitivity.
• Support costing and processing of assemblies and manufacturing activities.
• Prepare and distribute daily sales reports and cost analyses weekly/monthly.
• Track manufacturing KPIs: OEE, scrap, waste, uptime, cost per unit, margin trends.
• Identify cost reduction, automation and continuous improvement opportunities.
• Provide commercial analysis on trading terms, discounts and promotions.
• Drive improvements in costing accuracy, ERP utilisation, reporting and processes.
• Deliver financial modelling and analysis for ad-hoc projects.
• Partner with operational and commercial teams to translate data into insights.

Skills

Excel expertise

ERP proficiency

Costing analysis

Variance analysis

Analytical thinking

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

BCom Accounting / Finance

CIMA or Costing qualification

Tools

ERP system

BI reporting tools

Budgeting software

Job description

A leading JSE-listed FMCG organisation is looking for a hands-on finance professional to join their team. This is an exciting opportunity for someone who enjoys working closely with manufacturing, procurement and commercial teams while providing meaningful financial insights that influence business performance.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage and maintain the integrity and accuracy of Bills of Materials (BOMs) within the ERP system.
• Analyse standard vs actual costs, investigate variances and identify root causes.
• Provide accurate revenue, cost of sales and profitability insights at product level.
• Perform detailed product and customer profitability analysis, considering raw materials, process costs, shrinkage and efficiency.
• Manage cost and selling price budgets, forecasts and financial models.
• Analyse margins and identify opportunities to improve profitability and cost efficiency.
• Work closely with Procurement on supplier pricing, cost risks and price sensitivity.
• Support the costing and processing of assemblies and manufacturing activities.
• Prepare and distribute daily sales reports and weekly/monthly cost analysis.
• Track and analyse key manufacturing KPIs, including OEE, scrap, waste, production uptime, cost per unit and margin trends.
• Identify cost reduction, automation and continuous improvement opportunities across the plant.
• Provide commercial analysis on trading terms, discounts, rebates and promotional agreements.
• Drive improvements in costing accuracy, ERP utilisation, reporting and financial processes.
• Provide financial modelling and analysis for ad-hoc projects and business initiatives.
• Partner with operational and commercial teams to translate financial and operational data into actionable insights.

What We're Looking For

• BCom Accounting / Finance or relevant tertiary qualification.
• CIMA or a Costing qualification will be advantageous.
• Minimum 3 years' commercial accounting / cost accounting experience.
• Report writing would be beneficial
• Experience within FMCG, manufacturing or a production environment is highly advantageous.
• Strong understanding of BOMs, raw materials, production costing and standard vs actual costing.
• Strong Excel and ERP skills.
• Experience with budgeting, forecasting, profitability modelling and variance analysis.
• BI/reporting experience will be advantageous.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Commercially minded with the ability to work across Finance, Procurement, Production and Commercial teams.