Role Summary

The Global CO-PA Controller leads profitability analysis, product costing governance, cost roll-up processes, and manufacturing controlling across all business units globally - spanning multiple manufacturing entities as well as the company's software and installation services lines. The role owns margin transparency across both product and services revenue streams, ensuring consistent profitability reporting and cost governance regardless of business model.

This is a regional/global process-owner role, not a single-site controlling position. The successful candidate will have demonstrated experience governing controlling and costing standards across multiple sites or regions, partnering with Regional Finance, Operations, Supply Chain, Commercial, Professional Services, and IT teams.

Key Responsibilities

Profitability Analysis (CO-PA)

• Own the global SAP ECC and S/4HANA CO-PA / Margin Analysis framework.
• Analyze profitability by product, customer, segment or region.
• Monitor gross margin and contribution margin performance across both product and software services lines.
• Drive consistency of profitability reporting across entities and business models.
• Support monthly management reporting and executive reviews.
• Partner with Commercial and Business Leaders to identify profitability improvement opportunities.

Product Costing & Cost Roll-Up

• Lead annual and periodic standard cost roll-up processes across all manufacturing sites globally.
• Validate BOM structures, routings, labor rates, overhead rates, and production assumptions.
• Ensure accurate standard cost calculations across manufacturing sites; review and approve cost estimates prior to release.
• Coordinate cost updates across Finance, Operations, Engineering, and Supply Chain.
• Support transfer pricing and intercompany costing processes.

Manufacturing Cost Controlling

• Monitor manufacturing performance and cost efficiency across all sites.
• Analyze material, labor, overhead, yield, production volume, and purchase price variances (PPV).
• Challenge plant finance teams on root causes and corrective actions; set and enforce cost-governance standards across the network rather than executing at a single site.
• Support cost reduction and operational excellence initiatives; drive manufacturing KPIs and cost performance monitoring globally.

Services & Project Costing

• Own costing and margin governance for the software and installation services lines, alongside manufacturing.
• Oversee project/WBS-based costing for installation projects.
• Analyze margin on license and subscription-based software revenue.
• Deliver consolidated, blended profitability reporting across product and services businesses.

SAP ECC and S/4HANA Governance & Transformation

• Act as global business owner for CO-PA and Product Costing processes.
• Support ongoing SAP S/4HANA transformation initiatives, including migration and rollout waves across regions.
• Work with IT and external partners to improve reporting, master data quality, and automation.
• Ensure alignment between FI, CO, CO-PA, Product Costing, Material Ledger, and manufacturing processes.
• Support testing, deployment, and continuous improvement across transformation waves.

Month-End Closing

• Lead month-end profitability and costing review activities across entities.
• Review settlement and variance allocations.
• Ensure accurate COGS and inventory valuation.
• Validate manufacturing variances and margin reporting; prepare management commentary and executive summaries.

Business Partnering

• Partner with Global Operations, Supply Chain, Procurement, Commercial Finance, FP&A, Professional Services, and Regional Controllers.
• Provide financial guidance for product and services portfolio and pricing decisions.
• Support strategic initiatives, new product/service introductions, and footprint optimization.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's Degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or Business Administration.
• CPA, CMA, CIMA, or equivalent qualification preferred.

Experience

• 8+ years in Controlling, Cost Accounting, or Manufacturing Finance.
• Minimum 5 years of SAP CO / Product Costing experience.
• Demonstrated experience overseeing controlling or costing across multiple manufacturing sites or regions - single-site experience alone does not meet this requirement.
• Experience working in a multinational environment.
• Experience with a services or project-based business (software, installation, or professional services) strongly preferred, in addition to manufacturing.
• Experience supporting global finance transformation or SAP S/4HANA migration initiatives preferred.

Technical Skills - Mandatory

• SAP ECC or S/4HANA CO-PA (Margin Analysis) required
• SAP Product Costing (CO-PC) proven experience
• Standard Costing and Cost Roll-Up Processes
• Manufacturing Finance and Variance Analysis (PPV, labor, overhead, yield)
• Cost Center Accounting
• Material Ledger / Actual Costing
• Inventory Valuation and COGS Analysis
• Project/WBS costing (SAP PS)
• BOM and Routing validation
• Advanced Excel

Technical Skills - Preferred

• Integrated Business Planning (IBP)
• Lean manufacturing or operational excellence exposure
• Power BI or similar reporting tools

Key Competencies

• Strong analytical thinking
• Global stakeholder management and business partnering
• Process governance across multiple sites/regions
• Project management and problem-solving
• Executive communication
• Continuous improvement mindset

Success Measures

• Accuracy of standard cost roll-ups
• Margin reporting quality and timeliness, across product and services lines
• Reduction of manufacturing variances
• Improvement in product and services profitability visibility
• SAP process standardization across regions
• Inventory valuation accuracy
• Timely month-end close and reporting