Director, College Go-to Market Finance

Talent Acquisition Team•Indianapolis, IN

23h

About The Position

The Director, College Go-to Market Finance serves as the primary financial and strategic partner to the College General Manager and as a key member of the College leadership team. Working across sales, operations, finance, and strategy, this leader helps shape the College segment’s direction by driving profitable growth, improving cash generation, strengthening business performance, and translating data into actionable decisions. The role partners with executive and commercial leaders on long-term growth strategy, customer economics, pricing, and business decisions. It leads a team responsible for licensing, customer rebate administration, segment accounting, and related financial processes. The position also oversees the College segment’s financial outlook, improves profitability and working capital, and develops a multi-year financial roadmap for sustainable growth. Herff Jones is an Indianapolis-based provider of graduation and educational products and services, including class rings and jewelry, caps and gowns, diplomas and announcements, and motivation and recognition programs. The company works through a nationwide network of more than 1,400 employees and sales partners.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance.
10–15 years of relevant Finance and/or Accounting experience in a manufacturing environment.
Strong financial modeling, forecasting, executive communication, Excel, and presentation capabilities.
Demonstrated experience partnering directly with a General Manager, Sales leader, or business-unit president.
Experience improving profitability through pricing, customer economics, sales effectiveness, product mix, or cost-to-serve initiatives.
Experience leading and developing a team.
Commercially minded, with an understanding of how pricing, customer economics, sales incentives, product mix, and cost-to-serve affect profitable growth.
Ability to shape multi-year strategy while staying close to operational details, identifying risks, and driving execution.
Ability to influence and build credibility with general management, Sales, operations, finance, and executive leaders, including constructively challenging assumptions.
Decision-oriented approach, recommending actions rather than only reporting results.
Analytical rigor, high standards for accuracy, and ability to develop insights from complex or imperfect information.
Ability to set clear expectations, develop talent, delegate appropriately, and create accountability.
Clear executive communication skills, including translating complex financial issues into concise recommendations.
Demonstrates Herff Jones core values: achieve greatness, do the right thing, be accountable, show respect, and be passionate.
Physical activity may include lifting, carrying, sitting, grasping, reaching, standing, kneeling, walking, bending, and twisting.
Ability to read and perform communication and math tasks, and work at a computer for extended periods.
Ability to regularly lift or move up to 50 pounds.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree or certification, such as an MBA or CPA.
Commercial Finance or FP&A experience.
Power BI or comparable analytics experience.
Experience in manufacturing, consumer products, education, seasonal, or multi-channel businesses.
Experience with licensing, customer rebates, commissions, or complex commercial agreements.

Responsibilities

Serve as the principal finance partner and thought partner to the College General Manager and College leadership team.
Jointly develop the segment strategic plan, annual operating plan, growth priorities, and investment agenda.
Provide an independent financial perspective, challenge assumptions constructively, and support fact-based trade-offs.
Lead scenario analysis and business cases for strategic initiatives, investments, territory changes, and new commercial programs.
Develop profitability insights by customer, product, geography, channel, and sales territory.
Partner with Sales, Revenue Operations, and plant leadership to improve pricing, product mix, customer economics, and contribution margin.
Establish financial guardrails for proposals, discounts, promotions, gifts with purchase, commissions, and special agreements.
Evaluate territory acquisitions and buyouts, including returns, cash requirements, risks, and post-transaction performance.
Own the College segment financial outlook, including forecasting, budgeting, management reporting, and variance analysis.
Develop leading and lagging performance indicators for the College leadership team.
Translate complex financial and operating data into clear recommendations and decisions.
Improve the accuracy, transparency, and actionability of unit, net revenue, margin, SG&A, and cash forecasts.
Partner with operations and plant finance to connect commercial decisions with capacity, service, cost, and execution implications.
Improve working capital and cash conversion across the College segment.
Partner with Sales and Accounts Receivable to reduce aged customer and partner balances and resolve underlying commercial issues.
Strengthen oversight of deferrals, OD payback, commissions, ISP economics, partner balances, rebates, and other contractual obligations.
Identify financial and commercial risks early, establish corrective actions, and ensure appropriate accountability.
Lead and develop the teams responsible for business-wide licensing, College customer rebates, College accounting, and other College financial support.
Ensure licensing and rebate obligations are forecasted, accurately recorded, supported, and administered in accordance with contractual requirements.
Improve visibility into the financial impact and commercial effectiveness of licensing and rebate programs.
Standardize processes, strengthen controls, clarify ownership, and reduce manual or reactive work.
Recommend and help establish College pricing and discount guardrails.
Review or approve commercial proposals within defined authority levels.
Influence resource allocation and investment priorities.
Escalate customer, territory, and contractual arrangements that do not meet financial return expectations.
Establish financial performance routines for the College leadership team and define expectations for licensing and rebate administration.