Operations Finance Controller
Location: Cork (Hybrid / On-site)
Reporting to: Local Management & Group HQ
Sector: Global Manufacturing
The Opportunity
Morgan McKinley is delighted to be partnering exclusively with a prestigious, multi-national manufacturing group to recruit a high-caliber Operations Finance Controller. This is a pivotal role within a complex, multi-product environment, offering the opportunity to act as a key financial lead during an imminent S/4HANA implementation.
The Role
The Operations Finance Controller will bridge the gap between local factory performance and international headquarters. You will be responsible for the absolute integrity of production costs, inventory management, and operational reporting, moving the finance function away from manual analysis toward a robust, SAP-centric measurement system.
Key Responsibilities
1. Financial Reporting & Analysis
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Operational Performance: Deliver weekly and monthly reporting on factory output, WIP levels, material yields, and labor efficiency.
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HQ Business Partnering: Act as the primary link to Group Controlling in Germany (Karlsruhe), ensuring alignment with global P&L and Plant Performance standards.
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Cost Center Management: Conduct deep-dive analysis into overhead trends and recovery, reconciling "CO" with "FI" on a continuous basis.
2. Product Costing & Inventory Integrity
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BOM & Tariff Maintenance: Collaborate with Engineering and Operations to maintain accurate Bills of Materials (BOM), tariffs, and standard costs.
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Variance Analysis: Identify and resolve discrepancies in material usage, labor efficiency, and overhead absorption.
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Stock Stewardship: Oversee inventory valuation, track safety stocks, and lead annual physical inventory audits and cycle counts.
3. Strategic Growth & Systems Innovation
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S/4HANA Implementation: Play a lead role in the upcoming ERP migration, contributing to FICO preparation workshops and actual costing integrations.
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Digital Transformation: Drive the development of advanced KPI dashboards, specifically focusing on eliminating Excel-based models in favor of SAP-driven insights.
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Business Planning: Lead the annual budgeting and quarterly forecasting processes using data-driven projections from SAP/MRP.
Ideal Candidate Profile
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Professional Qualification: Fully qualified Accountant (ACCA, CIMA, ACA) with 5-7 years of experience specifically within a manufacturing environment.
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Technical Mastery: Expert-level SAP (Controlling module) is essential. Proficiency in Standard Costing, Variance Analysis, and MRP is mandatory.
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Communication: Highly articulate, with the ability to explain complex financial data to non-finance stakeholders (Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain).
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Mindset: Proactive, detail-oriented, and systems-savvy; you thrive in multi-national matrix environments and enjoy "drilling down" into operational data.
Why Join This Organization?
This is a high-influence role where your work directly impacts factory efficiency and global strategy. You will join a small, high-performing team during a period of significant technological investment, providing a platform to truly own the operations finance function.
