Accounts Receivable Manager

Job Title: Accounts Receivable Manager Location: Tyler, TX Department: Controllership Reports To: Director of Shared Services Direct Reports: AR Specialist Normal Work Schedule: The typical working hours are 7:30 am to 4:00 pm with a 30-minute lunch. Overview Of Company Soules Foods is a thriving family-owned food company that has made a positive difference for its customers and consumers for nearly 50 years. Our purpose and promise of Great Food, Made Simple® drives us. Based in Tyler, Texas, the company is a leading national producer of ready-to-eat and ready-to- cook chicken and beef products and is the number one producer of chicken and beef fajitas in the USA. We proudly serve a broad portfolio of great-tasting, high-quality products sold throughout the US via retail, food service distributors, and restaurants. Our wide array of national customers includes prominent organizations such as Walmart, Costco, Sam’s Club, Sysco, and HEB. The company was established in 1975 by John Soules Sr., and the business is now in the second generation of family leadership. The organization has expanded dramatically over the past decade, and with its continued growth, it now has annual sales of approximately $1 billion. The company employs over 2,000 individuals and has three manufacturing facilities in Gainesville, Georgia; Valley, Alabama; and its headquarters in Tyler, Texas. Job Summary The Accounts Receivable Manager leads the order-to-cash operation, turning customer invoices into cash quickly and accurately while managing credit risk. This role manages the AR team and owns billing support, cash application, credit, collections, and customer deductions. AR owns the approval and business decision on new customers, customer changes, credit limits, and terms; approved setups and changes are executed by the Data Compliance team. The role partners closely with Sales, Customer Service, Trade Marketing, Logistics, Treasury, Data Compliance, and the General Accounting team. Qualifications Required Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or Business, or equivalent experience. 5+ years of accounts receivable, credit, or collections experience, including 2+ years supervising or leading a team. Strong understanding of cash application, credit analysis, collections, and month-end AR reconciliations. Experience managing customer deductions and disputes. Hands-on experience with an ERP system. Intermediate to advanced Excel skills (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP). Preferred Experience in food manufacturing or CPG selling to national retailers, grocers, club stores, or foodservice distributors. Experience with trade promotion and deduction management tools and customer retail portals. Experience implementing auto-cash, AR automation, or AI-enabled AR software. Competencies Customer focus: protects customer relationships while collecting what is owed. Negotiation: resolves disputes and past-due balances firmly and professionally. Analytical skill: uses aging, deduction, and credit data to spot risk and root causes. Continuous improvement: looks for ways to automate and simplify order-to-cash work. Team leadership: develops staff and holds the team to clear standards. Integrity: handles customer financial data and company cash with care. Key Responsibilities NOTE: This description is not intended to be all-inclusive. An employee may perform other related duties to meet the organization's ongoing needs; these duties are considered marginal. Team leadership Hire, train, coach, and evaluate AR staff; set clear daily and weekly priorities. Assign customer portfolios and balance workloads across the team. Build and maintain written desk procedures for every AR process. Serve as the escalation point for complex customer, billing, and dispute issues. Billing and cash application Oversee accurate, timely invoicing, credit memos, and rebills, including EDI invoices to retail and foodservice customers. Ensure daily cash receipts (lockbox, ACH, wire, check) are applied accurately and on time. Resolve unapplied cash and on-account balances promptly. Customer approval and credit Own the approval and business decision on new customer requests and changes to existing customers, including billing terms and remittance details. Apply the company credit policy to new and existing customers; review credit applications and financials. Approve credit limits and terms within delegated authority and escalate requests above it. Route approved decisions to Data Compliance for system setup; AR does not enter or change customer master records. Manage order holds and releases with Customer Service and Sales, and monitor customer credit risk to flag deteriorating accounts early. Collections Lead the collections strategy and drive down DSO and past-due balances. Hold regular aging reviews with Sales and escalate problem accounts. Negotiate payment plans and coordinate with outside agencies or counsel on delinquent accounts. Recommend bad-debt write-offs for approval. Deductions and disputes Oversee research and resolution of customer deductions, including shortages, pricing, promotions, slotting, and compliance fines. Work with Trade Marketing to settle promotional deductions against approved trade spend. Recover invalid deductions from customers and track root causes to prevent repeats. Report deduction trends by customer and reason code. Close, compliance, and controls Prepare AR aging, AR sub-ledger to general ledger reconciliations, and the allowance for doubtful accounts analysis for month-end close. Review and support sales tax exemption certificate compliance. Maintain segregation of duties between customer and credit approval, customer master entry, and cash application; document key AR controls and support internal and external audits. Systems, automation, and process improvement Act as the AR power user for the ERP and any cash application, credit, or deduction tools. Implement automation such as auto-cash matching, customer portals, deduction workflow, and AI-assisted remittance reading, deduction research, and collections prioritization. Continuously raise the share of cash applied and deductions coded without manual touch. Track and report AR KPIs to the Director of Shared Services monthly. Work Environment This job is carried out in a professional office setting and involves using standard office equipment like laptops, desk phones, and smartphones. Regular visits to production facilities may also be required. During those visits, the employee is occasionally exposed to cold and/or humid conditions. The employee occasionally works near moving mechanical parts. The employee is occasionally exposed to fumes or airborne particles, cold temperatures, electrical shock and vibration risks. The noise level in the work environment is moderate. Physical Demands Employees must be able to stand, walk, or sit; use their hands for tasks; reach with their arms; and communicate verbally. Occasional lifting or moving objects is necessary, along with close, distance, color vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. The applicant who fills this position will be eligible for the following: Incentive Pay: This position is eligible for the Company’s bonus plan, with amounts varying based on program terms. Vacation / Sick days Medical, Dental, Vision Benefits Telemedicine Onsite Clinic – Tyler and Valley 401 (k) with company match STD and LTD Life insurance & other voluntary benefits Career Development: We support professional growth through continuous learning and development opportunities. Soules Foods is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status. Applicants with disabilities needing accommodation during the application process can contact Human Resources at the relevant location. Soules Foods will not discriminate against applicants who discuss their compensation. We also participate in the E-Verify program where required by law. Unsolicited Assistance: Soules Foods does not accept unsolicited support from external recruitment vendors for U.S. positions. Resumes or candidate profiles submitted without a valid written request and search agreement from HR will be considered the property of Soules Foods. No fees will be paid for candidates hired through unsolicited referrals.