Senior Cost Accountant

Aston Carter • Chattanooga, TN

8d • $80,000 - $95,000 • Onsite

About The Position

The Sr Cost Accountant owns the end-to-end cost accounting function in a make-to-order and make-to-stock manufacturing environment. This role leads standard costing, inventory valuation, and manufacturing variance analysis, providing operations and leadership with the cost insight needed to price competitively, improve margins, and support strategic decision-making. The position also models cost scenarios for engineering changes and sourcing shifts, and supports forecasting of cost of goods sold, inventory, and gross margin during a period of significant business growth. This is a hands-on role that requires spending time on the shop floor to understand how products are built and working in the ERP system to ensure financial data accurately reflects operational reality.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
• 5+ years of accounting experience, including cost accounting experience in a manufacturing environment.
• Strong working knowledge of standard costing, inventory valuation, and manufacturing variance analysis.
• Strong understanding of U.S. GAAP as it applies to inventory and cost of goods sold.
• Proficiency with ERP/MRP systems such as SAP or similar platforms.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills for analysis, modeling, and reporting.
• Experience with general ledger accounting, journal entries, reconciliations, and month-end close processes.
• Demonstrated experience with cost of goods sold analysis, cost control, and cost analysis.
• Experience with financial analysis and financial reporting related to manufacturing operations.
• Proven ability to work independently and own the cost accounting function end to end with minimal oversight.
• Strong analytical skills with high attention to detail and accuracy.
• Ability to communicate financial information clearly to non-financial partners in engineering, production, and operations.
• Experience with manufacturing variance analysis, including purchase price, usage, labor, and overhead variances.
• Experience supporting budgeting and forecasting processes for inventory, cost of goods sold, and gross margin.
• Comfort working in a manufacturing environment and collaborating with operations and shop-floor teams.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in engineer-to-order or make-to-order manufacturing environments.
• Familiarity with BOM and routing structures and shop-floor data collection processes.
• Experience accounting for duty, tariffs, and import costs on purchased components and materials.
• ERP implementation or system migration experience, such as SAP S/4HANA.
• CPA, CMA, or progress toward a professional accounting certification.
• Experience developing dashboards and reports that highlight cost and margin performance.
• Experience supporting internal and external audits with cost and inventory data.
• Interest in ongoing professional development and continuing education, including CPA or CMA programs.
• Ability to partner with cross-functional teams to identify and quantify cost-reduction and process improvement opportunities.

Responsibilities

• Own and maintain standard costs, including material, labor, and overhead rates, and lead the annual standard cost roll and periodic cost updates.
• Maintain the integrity of bills of material (BOMs) and routings in partnership with Engineering and Operations, and investigate and resolve cost discrepancies.
• Own month-end close activities for inventory and cost of goods sold, including preparing journal entries, performing reconciliations, and conducting account analysis.
• Analyze and report on manufacturing variances, including purchase price, material usage, labor efficiency, and overhead absorption, and identify root causes and recommend corrective actions.
• Value and reconcile raw material, work-in-process, and finished goods inventory, ensuring proper accounting treatment and performing reserve analysis for excess and obsolete inventory.
• Support and audit physical inventories and cycle count programs, investigate variances, and help strengthen inventory controls.
• Prepare product-line and job-level margin analysis, including gross margin bridges and trend analysis, to support pricing, quoting, and profitability decisions.
• Model cost scenarios for engineering changes and sourcing or supplier shifts, and quantify the financial and margin impact to support commercial and procurement decisions.
• Partner with Operations to identify cost-reduction opportunities and quantify the financial impact of process improvements and engineering changes.
• Support budgeting and forecasting for cost of goods sold, inventory, and gross margin, and prepare capital expenditure analysis for the manufacturing operation.
• Serve as the primary finance point of contact for Operations, Supply Chain, and Sourcing on cost-related matters.
• Provide cost data and support for internal and external audits.
• Develop and maintain reporting and dashboards that give leadership timely visibility into cost and margin performance.
• Ensure all cost accounting activities align with U.S. GAAP and internal financial policies.
• Work independently to own the cost accounting function end to end with minimal oversight, while collaborating effectively with cross-functional partners.

Benefits

• Competitive base salary with annual performance-based bonus eligibility.
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• 401(k) retirement savings plan with company match.
• Generous paid time off, paid holidays, and company-paid life and disability insurance.
• Support for professional development and CPA/CMA continuing education.
• Relocation assistance may be available for qualified candidates.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior