Specialist, Cost Accounting
About the role
The Cost Accountant Specialist position at Yazaki is designed for individuals who can contribute to the company's mission of maintaining strategic and stable growth. This role is available in Canton, MI, La Vergne, TN, or Monterrey, MX.
Responsibilities
Analyze and monitor manufacturing costs, including direct labor, overhead, material consumption, and operational efficiency drivers.
Evaluate cost performance across production processes and identify opportunities to improve profitability and cost control.
Assess capacity utilization, productivity, and operational performance to determine impacts on program financial results.
Support the development, maintenance, and continuous improvement of manufacturing costing methodologies, models, and tools.
Partner with Manufacturing and Operations teams to identify cost reduction opportunities and improve financial performance.
Develop cost models, profitability analyses, and business case evaluations for new business opportunities and customer quotations.
Establish target costs based on manufacturing capabilities, process assumptions, and operational constraints.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams to validate cost assumptions and financial targets.
Conduct financial risk assessments related to production ramp-up, labor efficiency, process performance, and cost variability.
Support continuous improvement of quoting processes through standardization, automation, and data-driven benchmarking.
Update financial projections and program profitability analyses based on engineering changes, process design modifications, and manufacturing strategy updates.
Maintain reporting tools and dashboards that provide visibility into program cost performance and financial trends.
Partner with project teams to ensure financial objectives remain aligned with program milestones and operational requirements.
Analyze actual versus planned financial and operational results, including labor efficiency, scrap, utilization, and manufacturing performance metrics.
Investigate cost variances, identify root causes, and recommend corrective actions to improve financial outcomes.
Validate the effectiveness of operational improvement initiatives and cost reduction activities.
Capture lessons learned and best practices to strengthen future cost models, assumptions, and manufacturing strategies.
Monitor key financial and operational metrics, including Gross Margin, Direct Profit, EBIT, labor productivity, and manufacturing efficiency.
Evaluate the financial impact of process improvements, automation initiatives, and productivity enhancements.
Track profitability improvement actions and ensure timely completion through structured problem-solving and continuous improvement methodologies.
Leverage data analytics, reporting tools, and business intelligence platforms to identify trends, risks, and cost-saving opportunities.
Provide recommendations to management to support profitability improvement and strategic decision-making.
Lead initiatives to enhance financial processes, improve reporting accuracy, and reduce manual activities through automation and standardization.
Develop and maintain dashboards, financial models, and performance reporting tools to support business decision-making.
Promote consistency in cost analysis, reporting methodologies, and financial practices across programs and manufacturing locations.
Support implementation of innovative technologies, system enhancements, and data integration initiatives to improve scalability and efficiency.
Drive continuous improvement efforts focused on strengthening financial visibility, operational insights, and decision support capabilities.
Qualifications
Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Engineering or closely related field.
Broad and solid understanding of business principles with strong exposure to manufacturing operations, cost drivers, and plant performance.
Preferred: Minimum of 2 years of experience in Automotive or Manufacturing industry, preferably in a global environment.
Exposure to plant operations, production planning, or industrial engineering concepts, with ability to connect financial results to manufacturing performance.
Proficiency in SAP, Microsoft Office Suite.
Spanish preferred.