Timberland: Senior Analyst, Global Logistics Freight & Audit Pay

Timberland

14d•Hybrid

About The Position

A day in the life of a Senior Analyst, Global Logistics and Audit Pay at Timberland looks a little like this. The Senior Analyst, Global Logistics and Audit Pay plays a critical role in the VF global freight audit and pay process and will be instrumental in driving operational excellence across the platform and enforcing best practices across the VF regions (AMER/EMEA/APAC). The position is part of a team that drives daily oversight and execution of freight and carrier service invoices, ensuring best in class freight audit and pay processes. The role will work closely with the VF global logistics team, supply chain and brand finance, logistics service providers, and VF’s 3rd party global freight audit and pay provider (CASS). The Senior Analyst, Global Logistics and Audit Pay will support the Senior Manager, Freight Audit and Pay (Global Logistics) with streamlining processes across the function and driving initiatives to improve the timely and accurate processing of invoices. The position will help with building a continuous improvement mindset and have a high impact role in shaping freight audit and pay expense strategies globally by managing complex invoice audit processes while driving financial and operational reporting. The ideal candidate is a data-driven logistics professional with a strategic mindset, capable of navigating complex service provider requirements and regional dynamics, while delivering actionable insights and fostering strong relationships with internal and external partners. Let’s break down that day-in-the-life a bit more. Actively contribute to the design and implementation of the global freight invoice submission and audit process across all transport modes (ocean, air, truckload, and parcel) and VF regions (AMER/EMEA/APAC). Build and develop collaborative partnerships with CASS and internal and external VF stakeholders to identify opportunities for improvements in invoice processing efficiency and reductions in client approval, exception management and invoice disputes. Target key areas such as match pay, rate out of tolerance, missing shipment reference data, etc. Identify opportunities to streamline the onboarding process between new logistics service providers and CASS and improve the overall end-to-end invoice processing and payment cycle time. This includes working closely with the carrier to ensure they fulfill the EDI requirements for invoice submission efficiency and timeliness. Financial & Operational Reporting Support freight savings initiatives by detecting inefficiencies and using data analysis to address improvements. Use business intelligence tools to analyze transportation expenses, identify cost savings opportunities, and make informed decisions. Collaborate with the global logistics team on building and reporting key freight spend metrics. Track key performance indicators like audit savings, on time invoicing, spend by mode/carrier, and overall service provider performance to identify areas of improvement. Support the monthly financial close and accruals process through reporting and analysis and provide direct support to the Sr Manager-Freight Audit and Pay in their absence. Work closely with internal VF business partners around key initiatives and ad hoc requests through data gathering, analytics, and being a critical team member by creating business cases for review by Senior Management. Partner closely with CASS on enhancements to the business analytics tool in CassPort. Identify areas to improve data quality and access to lower-level data to improve the level of freight spend analysis across VF. Host and drive regular meetings with global logistics service providers, finance, and global logistics teams, ensuring visibility to spend and invoice processing metrics that drive future strategies and actions. Data Management & Systems Demonstrate strong knowledge of end-to-end freight audit and pay systems. Troubleshoot data issues that create invoice process failures and understand ways to leverage the CASS platform and functionality to quickly resolve pending issues. Create and maintain Power BI dashboards on global freight spend and accessorial charges for both summary level and easily accessible deep dive analytics. Actively review CASS invoice processing tables to ensure VF location tables and other audit tools are updated with accurate data. Additionally, work directly with CASS to ensure the relevant rate cards are active across all carriers and regions. Serve as the escalation contact between service providers, CASS, and VF finance around monthly payment and GL posting issues.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Logistics, Business, or related field.
3+ years of experience in logistics or operations, preferably in a multi-brand or global environment.
Proficient with Microsoft Office.
Advanced analytical skills with high proficiency in Excel and Power BI.
Excellent communication and stakeholder management abilities.
Ability to attend and host conference calls with global partners across time zones during non-standard business hours.
Detail-oriented with a proactive approach to problem-solving and continuous improvement.

Nice To Haves

Subject expert in data science and analytics preferred.
Strong knowledge of general ledger and cost center accounting preferred.
Experience with logistics platforms (Infor Nexus preferred) and SAP preferred.

Responsibilities

Actively contribute to the design and implementation of the global freight invoice submission and audit process across all transport modes (ocean, air, truckload, and parcel) and VF regions (AMER/EMEA/APAC).
Build and develop collaborative partnerships with CASS and internal and external VF stakeholders to identify opportunities for improvements in invoice processing efficiency and reductions in client approval, exception management and invoice disputes. Target key areas such as match pay, rate out of tolerance, missing shipment reference data, etc.
Identify opportunities to streamline the onboarding process between new logistics service providers and CASS and improve the overall end-to-end invoice processing and payment cycle time. This includes working closely with the carrier to ensure they fulfill the EDI requirements for invoice submission efficiency and timeliness.
Support freight savings initiatives by detecting inefficiencies and using data analysis to address improvements.
Use business intelligence tools to analyze transportation expenses, identify cost savings opportunities, and make informed decisions.
Collaborate with the global logistics team on building and reporting key freight spend metrics.
Track key performance indicators like audit savings, on time invoicing, spend by mode/carrier, and overall service provider performance to identify areas of improvement.
Support the monthly financial close and accruals process through reporting and analysis and provide direct support to the Sr Manager-Freight Audit and Pay in their absence.
Work closely with internal VF business partners around key initiatives and ad hoc requests through data gathering, analytics, and being a critical team member by creating business cases for review by Senior Management.
Partner closely with CASS on enhancements to the business analytics tool in CassPort.
Identify areas to improve data quality and access to lower-level data to improve the level of freight spend analysis across VF.
Host and drive regular meetings with global logistics service providers, finance, and global logistics teams, ensuring visibility to spend and invoice processing metrics that drive future strategies and actions.
Demonstrate strong knowledge of end-to-end freight audit and pay systems.
Troubleshoot data issues that create invoice process failures and understand ways to leverage the CASS platform and functionality to quickly resolve pending issues.
Create and maintain Power BI dashboards on global freight spend and accessorial charges for both summary level and easily accessible deep dive analytics.
Actively review CASS invoice processing tables to ensure VF location tables and other audit tools are updated with accurate data. Additionally, work directly with CASS to ensure the relevant rate cards are active across all carriers and regions.
Serve as the escalation contact between service providers, CASS, and VF finance around monthly payment and GL posting issues.