Plant Controller

Albemarle•Magnolia, AR

9d•Onsite

About The Position

Albemarle is hiring an on-site Plant Controller for its Magnolia, Arkansas site. The Plant Controller is the senior finance leader and trusted business partner for the site, serving as a core member of plant leadership. The role owns plant financial performance and supports disciplined, fact-based decisions by translating operational and financial data into insights that improve cost, cash, productivity, and profitability. The position partners with the Plant Manager and operations leaders as a finance co-pilot, and works across functions to strengthen financial accountability and business performance. It owns plant financial planning and performance, including budgeting, forecasting, manufacturing accounting, standard costing, inventory valuation, cost and margin analysis, financial reporting, and period-end close. The role also leads cost-management processes, variance analysis, the Annual Operating Plan, rolling forecasts, scenario analysis, capital project evaluation, and reporting and modeling using SAP, Excel, and business-intelligence tools. The Plant Controller supports compliance with US GAAP, SOX, company policies, and internal controls, coordinates audits, and strengthens data quality and governance. The position communicates complex financial and operational issues clearly and influences cross-functional decisions. Magnolia site employees are expected to understand and support the site's Quality Policy, Quality Objectives, and quality management system requirements.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Finance, Business, Engineering, or a related quantitative discipline.
At least 8 years of progressive finance or accounting experience, including at least 5 years in FP&A, plant controlling, manufacturing finance, or site finance business partnering.
Advanced SAP expertise, particularly FI/COPA, MM, Purchasing, and production data, with the ability to independently extract, analyze, and interpret operational and financial data.
Expert-level Excel and financial-modeling skills, including practical experience building automated, auditable analyses and dashboards in business-intelligence tools.
Strong command of manufacturing variance analysis, forecasting, driver-based planning, capital evaluation, and financial controls.
Fluent written and spoken English, and ability to operate effectively in a matrix organization.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree preferred.
Power BI, Analysis for Office, SQL, or equivalent data-query capability.
CPA, CMA, CFA, or MBA preferred.
Lean Six Sigma or other continuous-improvement training is an advantage.
Demonstrated track record of driving measurable cost reduction, stronger cost ownership, and improved plant profitability in a complex manufacturing environment.
Outstanding analytical ability, including structuring ambiguous problems, interrogating large data sets, detecting patterns and anomalies, testing assumptions, and turning findings into action.
Highly technical and hands-on approach, with the curiosity and persistence to trace results through operational data, systems, and plant-floor drivers.
Deep expertise in manufacturing finance, financial planning and analysis, cost and margin analysis, and business performance management.
Strong business judgment and constructive challenge; ability to take a clear position, escalate issues, and hold peers accountable while building trusted relationships.
Exceptional accuracy, structured thinking, attention to detail, and ability to deliver under tight deadlines while maintaining focus on business priorities.
Clear, concise communication skills for translating complex finance and data topics for operators, engineers, executives, and auditors.
Continuous-improvement mindset, high learning agility, and capacity to grow into broader finance leadership roles.

Responsibilities

Partner with the Plant Manager and operations leaders to drive financial accountability, cost discipline, and informed decision-making.
Own plant financial planning and performance, including budgeting, forecasting, manufacturing accounting, standard costing, inventory valuation, cost and margin analysis, and financial reporting.
Lead accurate and timely month-end, quarter-end, and year-end close, including reconciliations, accruals, inventory accounting, and variance reporting.
Establish a cost-management cadence connecting operational drivers—including volume, yield, material usage, labor, maintenance, energy, downtime, and overhead—to financial results.
Analyze performance against budget, forecast, and prior year; identify root causes, risks, opportunities, and corrective actions for unfavorable variances and cost leakage.
Lead the Annual Operating Plan, rolling forecasts, scenario analysis, and predictive insights to improve forecast accuracy and identify cost, margin, and cash risks.
Partner with operations, supply chain, maintenance, engineering, procurement, and commercial teams to improve productivity, working capital, inventory, and cash performance.
Evaluate capital projects and productivity initiatives, including assumptions, cash flow, returns, risks, alternatives, and post-investment benefits.
Develop driver-based models, dashboards, and automated reporting using SAP, Excel, and applicable business-intelligence tools.
Strengthen data quality and governance, particularly SAP production, purchasing, costing, and master data, and identify opportunities to simplify processes and reduce manual work.
Ensure compliance with US GAAP, SOX, company policies, and internal controls; coordinate audits and resolve findings in a timely manner.
Communicate financial and operational topics clearly and influence cross-functional decisions without relying on formal authority.
Follow and support the requirements of the Magnolia site's quality management system and understand how the role contributes to the site's Quality Policy and Quality Objectives.