Accounting Manager Process Improvement

About the role

The Accounting Manager, Process Improvement serves as the vital strategic bridge between Corporate Accounting/SOX Compliance teams and the Building Materials Operational Finance organization. Operating in a complex matrix environment, this position translates corporate accounting directives into practical operational workflows, ensuring uncompromising compliance with US GAAP standards and SOX regulations while protecting business velocity, operational efficiency, and margin accuracy. This role requires a pragmatic, commercially-minded CPA with Big 4 assurance experience who can evaluate accounting policies through an operational lens.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end SOX process management and coordination across operational sites, ensuring local control owners understand, execute, and document key controls effectively.
• Liaise closely with the Internal Control team on identified control gaps, ensuring appropriate local operational contacts are engaged, accountable, and actively driving timely remediation with control owners.
• Liaise with Corporate Accounting on the rollout and practical implementation of new accounting policies, translating technical requirements into actionable operational guidelines.
• Partner with local operational finance and plant leadership to standardize core accounting and reporting workflows across manufacturing and distribution locations.
• Identify accounting policy friction or conservative accounting treatments (e.g., rebate accruals, scrap/inventory reserves, lease accounting) that unfairly drag down operational EBITDA or slow down commercial decision-making.
• Drive continuous improvement in balance sheet reconciliation workflows and manual journal entry (MJE) processes, resolving aging bottlenecks and establishing clean documentation standards.
• Provide practical US GAAP guidance across revenue recognition (customer rebates and discounts), lease and capital expenditure governance (CapEx vs. OpEx), and inventory cost accounting to ensure compliant, standardized, and efficient plant and commercial operations.
• Demonstrate a commitment to communicating, improving and adhering to health, safety and environmental policies in all work environments and areas. Promote a culture of safety and exhibit these behaviors.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor's degree, Field of Study Preferred: Accounting, Finance, or a related business field
• Work Experience: 5–8+ years of progressive accounting, internal control, and assurance experience. Public Accounting/Governance Background: Big 4 or top national public accounting firm (Assurance/Audit) experience auditing publicly traded manufacturing, industrial products, building materials, or complex distribution clients. SOX & Controls Track Record: Proven experience managing SOX compliance cycles, remediating control deficiencies with local control owners, and implementing standardized operational processes.

Qualifications

• Training/Certifications: Active US CPA designation is mandatory.
• Technical Skills: Expert knowledge of US GAAP standards—specifically ASC 606 (Revenue from Contracts with Customers), ASC 842 (Leases), ASC 330 (Inventory), and ASC 360 (Property, Plant, and Equipment)—alongside robust SOX 404 compliance frameworks. Strong working knowledge of enterprise ERP systems (specifically SAP ECC/SAC/Tagetik) and advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel/Google Sheets for financial data analysis.