Director, Plant Controller - Barrie - Cronos Group

Description

Cronos is an innovative global cannabinoid company committed to building disruptive intellectual property by advancing cannabis research, technology, and product development. With a passion to responsibly elevate the consumer experience, Cronos is building an iconic brand portfolio. Cronos' diverse international brand portfolio includes Spinach, PEACE NATURALS and Lord Jones. For more information about Cronos and its brands, please visit:

At Cronos Group, we hire talented people who thrive on solving difficult problems and give them the opportunity to hone new skills and approaches. If you want to play a part in shaping an innovative industry and help build a historically significant company, we want to meet you.

Cronos Group is seeking a Director, Plant Controller and Cost Accounting who will work within the Finance department and report to the VP, Corporate Controller. As the Plant Controller, you will manage plant accounting processes in accordance with U.S. GAAP and support the manufacturing facility in Canada. This role will provide overall strategic direction for cost accounting and manage product costing, inventory reconciliation, analysis of material, labor and overhead variances, and oversight of internal controls.

This role also supports business initiatives such as product launches, manufacturing process changes, annual budgeting & forecasting, and plant capital project oversight.

This position is HYBRID and based out of Stayner, Ontario.

What you'll be doing:

• Provide financial partnership to VP of Operations at the manufacturing facility, compile and analyze financial data to identify trends and provide insights for decision‑making
• Lead the monthly, quarterly, and annual financial closing process for cost of goods sold, the costing and inventory modules and ensure accuracy of various systems as well as manually generated transactions/entries in accordance with U.S. GAAP
• Review various inventory and cost accounting entries and account reconciliations
• Provide fluctuation analysis explanations for various components of gross margins
• Review manufacturing variances and work with Operations teams to reduce these variances
• Provide accurate and timely inventory and costing reports to Operations teams to support the company's continuous improvement approach
• Partner with Operations teams to analyze inventory for potential excess and obsolete reserves and make related entries in accordance with the company's policies
• Undertake special projects related to operations and efficiency, costing and inventory, forecasting and scheduling, and accounting and finance matters
• Oversee annual global physical inventory process in accordance with Company's inventory policies and instructions working cross functionally with supply chain and operations teams
• Leverage technology to build scalable, efficient and sustainable processes, streamline accounting operations in an increasingly complex environment, improve team experience, and support the company's growth
• Interact with internal/external auditors and provide various analysis and audit schedules and work to ensure compliance with all internal control procedures and U.S. GAAP
• Collaborate with the Financial Planning and Analysis team on budgeting/forecasting
• Provide P&L explanation for key variances in Price, Mix, Volume and Cost Drivers
• Identify trends in production unit performance and provide recommendations for improvement
• Lead effort to develop plant metrics that give an overall assessment of plant performance
• Responsible for providing the organization and management with appropriate financial and operating information. Collaborate with other department groups to obtain and compile relevant financial data
• Partner with Materials manager and Procurement to manage inventory balances to an acceptable plant level
• Lead the effort to identify and track cost savings improvements for the plant
• Participate in continuous improvement projects to help drive improvement and positive changes that reduce obsolescence and waste
• Supervise plant counts and review inventories of fixed assets, finished products, work in process, raw materials, packaging and spare parts in the maintenance rooms
• Ensure all plant personnel and supervisors are adequately trained in all required accounting procedures, audit and review as needed
• Review and approve plant requisitions as needed. Responsible for making sure that the proper general ledger account and cost centers are correctly applied and plant adherence to the capitalization policy
• Review CAPEX projects and assist with determination of ROI calculations
• Coordinate with quality to ensure inventory on Quality Hold is tracked and released or dispositioned timely
• Maintain strong internal controls over plant assets and transactions, adhere to corporate policies and external regulations
• Identify financial and operational risks and develop appropriate management action plans to mitigate risks and plant loss
• Supervise and motivate plant/cost accountants and ensure successful completion of duties and reports
• Provide ad‑hoc reporting, analysis or business support as required by management
• Oversee and own product‑level P&L margin view to support management decisions related to product development, sales demand planning, and SKU rationalization
• Analyze standard costs and review the standard cost roll‑ups for new products and new production operations as well as investigate/resolve large variances. Continuously reassess methodology to improve costing and product profitability as well as ensure its compliance with U.S. GAAP
• Lead the development, maintenance, review, and update of accurate standard costs of finished goods and WIP in SAP ERP system
• Analyze manufacturing variances of labor and overhead and create management action plans
• Lead, mentor, train, and develop the cost accounting team and provide timely informal feedback and coaching

You'll need to have:

• Bachelor's degree in business or Finance, with CPA designation as a CA, CMA or CGA designation (preferred)
• 10+ years of relevant work experience in financial management, cost accounting and/or value stream mapping in manufacturing settings, including 5+ years in a management and/or controller capacity
• Comprehensive understanding of inventory valuation, manufacturing variances, overhead absorption, and standard costs
• Experience with operational partnership (supply chain, production, inventory management, etc.)
• Experience in capital planning, operating expense planning and operational performance support
• Deep experience with inventory and COGS account reconciliations
• Working knowledge of U.S. GAAP requirements
• Experience implementing new policies and procedures
• Capable of identifying and implementing improvements that drive efficiencies and drive business performance
• Hands‑on team player, able to interact professionally with all levels
• Leadership and collaborative capabilities to work with a broader finance team as well as all levels in a manufacturing environment; Prior experience in manufacturing or cultivation environment is preferred
• Proven analytical, problem solving and organizational skills
• An effective communicator with excellent verbal and written skills
• Self‑motivated, goal‑oriented with ability to work under tight deadlines and possesses attention to details
• Works well under pressure, change and ambiguity, and leads by example
• Advanced Excel and a Solid knowledge of SAP ERP system is preferred, but not required

We are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment, and we welcome and encourage applications from people with disabilities and people with diverse backgrounds, identities, and cultures. For candidates with disabilities, accommodations are available upon request in all phases of the selection process.