Director, Inventory Accounting

Position Purpose:

The Director, Inventory Accounting serves as the strategic leader for the Merchandise Inventory Accounting vertical within a world-class Controllership organization. This leader has overall accountability for the financial integrity of the company's Inventory and Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) ledgers for both US and Canada operations. This role oversees three critical pillars: Technical Accounting and Reporting, Physical Inventory Reconciliation (Shrink/Swell), Defect Prevention and System Design. The Director acts as a primary strategic partner to Merchandising, Supply Chain, and IT executive leadership, driving financial statement accuracy while leading transformational initiatives to shift the organization from reactive processing to predictive risk mitigation and value creation.

Key Responsibilities:

30%

Strategic Controllership & Financial Integrity:

Accountable for the end-to-end accuracy of the Inventory and COGS financial statements. Oversees the execution of month-end, quarter-end, and year-end close processes; ensures strict adherence to GAAP and SOX compliance. Serves as the primary point of contact for external and internal auditors regarding inventory valuation and results. 30%

People Management & Organizational Leadership:

Leads a large, multi-tiered organization of Senior Managers, Managers, and Analysts. Develops a robust talent pipeline by mentoring leaders and fostering a culture of high performance and continuous learning. responsible for organizational design and resource allocation to meet evolving business needs. 20%

Business Partnership & Collaboration:

Serves as the key financial liaison to Vice Presidents and SVPs in Merchandising, Operations, and Supply Chain. Translates complex financial results (such as shrink trends or margin impacts) into actionable business insights. Partners with IT leadership to advocate for financial requirements in enterprise-wide system implementations. 20%

Transformation & Future of Finance:

Champions the roadmap for financial systems transformation. Drives the strategy to shift the team's focus from "detective" manual work to "preventative" engineering and automated monitoring. leads the adoption of emerging technologies (AI, Machine Learning, Robotics) to enhance efficiency and analytical capabilities

Direct Manager/Direct Reports:

This position typically reports to the Sr. Director of Merchandise Accounting Transformation and Change Management (MATCH) This position typically has 3 direct reports and oversees a broader team of 30-35 associates

Travel Requirements:

Typically requires overnight travel less than 10% of the time.

Physical Requirements:

Most of the time is spent sitting in a comfortable position and there is frequent opportunity to move about. On rare occasions, there may be a need to move or lift light articles.

Working Conditions:

Located in a comfortable indoor area. Any unpleasant conditions would be infrequent and not objectionable.

Minimum Qualifications:

Must be at least 18 years old Must be legally permitted to work in the

United States Preferred Qualifications:

CPA strongly preferred; must have extensive understanding of GAAP and accounting logic. 10+ years of progressive experience in Finance or Accounting, preferably in the retail industry, with specific expertise in both the Retail Inventory Method and Cost Accounting. Demonstrated experience leading large teams through significant organizational or systems transformation. Executive presence with the ability to influence senior leadership and navigate complex cross-functional conflict. Deep understanding of SAP S/4HANA and modern data analytics infrastructure (GBQ/SQL).

Minimum Education:

The knowledge, skills and abilities typically acquired through the completion of a bachelor's degree program or equivalent degree in a field of study related to the job

Preferred Education:

Master's degree in Business Administration (MBA),

Accounting, or Finance Minimum Years of Work Experience:

10 years

Preferred Years of Work Experience:

10+ years

Minimum Leadership Experience:

Prior experience leading teams of people leaders (managing managers).

Preferred Leadership Experience:

Experience leading multi-layered organizations in a shared services or corporate environment.

Certifications:

CPA required or highly preferred

Competencies:

Strategic Mindset Organizational Savvy Customer Focus Drives Vision and Purpose Attracts Top Talent Builds Effective Teams Develops Talent Ensures Accountability Decision Quality Financial Acumen Manages Complexity Communicates Effectively Persuades