- Position: Finance Manager, Logistics & Procurement
- Reports To: Director, Operations Finance
- Location: Philadelphia, PA
Position Summary:The
Finance Manager, Procurement & Logistics is a commercially savvy, operationally fluent finance partner embedded within the supply chain function. In the produce industry, this dual-coverage role provides financial oversight, analysis, and strategic support across procurement and logistic functions who have P&L responsibility.
Given the inherent complexity of fresh produce - seasonal volume swings, spot market pricing, and tight retailer/QSR service-level windows - this role demands a finance leader who is equally comfortable in a packhouse as they are in a board presentation. You will partner directly with the Heads of Procurement and Logistics, and commercial account managers to drive cost efficiency, protect margin, and deliver financial transparency across the supply chain.
Why this role is unique in fresh produce finance- Procurement costs are live and volatile - you will manage commodity price exposure.
- Logistics costs are structurally complex - refrigerated freight, QSR drop-size economics, and retailer on-time/in-full (OTIF) penalty exposure all sits within your remit
- Retailer and QSR contracts carry distinct financial profiles - promotional volumes, ranging fees, packaging specs, and service credits require dedicated financial modelling and tracking
- Waste and shrink are P&L material - you will own the financial framework for packaging waste, and markdown across the supply chain
Key Responsibilities:Procurement Finance
- Serve as the dedicated finance business partner to the Procurement team, providing financial analysis and challenge across packaging procurement
- Own the procurement cost budget, monthly forecast, and actuals - tracking spends by commodity, grower, region, and species with clear variance commentary
- Analyze commodity price movements and model financial impact of spot vs. contracted volumes; support the business in hedging or forward-contracting decisions where applicable
- Partner with the Procurement team on annual contract negotiations - providing financial modelling on price, volume, quality tolerance, and rejection rate scenarios
- Develop profitability reporting and flag margin-dilutive sourcing patterns or quality cost exposures
- Track and report on procurement savings initiatives, cost-out programs, and supplier efficiency projects with financial validation
- Manage the financial treatment of quality claims, and crop write-offs in line with accounting policy
Logistics Finance- Act as finance business partner to the Logistics and Supply Chain teams, covering outbound transportation, RFP process and last-mile Food Service/retail delivery
- Own the logistics cost budget and rolling forecast - segmented by channel (retail vs. Food Service QSR), customer, and freight lane
- Build cost-to-serve models for retail and Food Service customers, capturing refrigerated freight, handling, palletization, and drop-size economics to enable profitable route-to-market decisions
- Monitor and report on OTIF performance and the financial exposure from retailer/Food Service service-level penalties and chargebacks; partner with logistics operations to drive root-cause resolution
- Evaluate third-party logistics (3PL) provider performance against contracted rates and service KPIs; support tender processes with financial analysis and scenario modelling
- Assess the financial impact of fuel cost movements, carrier rate changes, and freight market dynamics on the logistics cost base, and support the pricing process
- Track cold chain waste and shrink attributable to logistics failures - temperature excursions, transit damage, shelf-life breach - and quantify the P&L impact
- Support network optimization projects (depot rationalization, route redesign, direct ship vs. cross-dock) with financial modelling and business case development
Financial Planning, Reporting & Close- Prepare weekly/flash cost tracking reports to provide early warning of spend overruns or margin risks ahead of formal close
- Lead the monthly management reporting for Procurement and Logistics cost lines - delivering P&L bridges, KPI dashboards, and variance narratives for CFO and operational leadership
- Manage month-end close activities for supply chain cost lines: accruals, prepayments, grower settlement reconciliations, and freight invoice validation
- Own the AOP and quarterly reforecast process for all procurement and logistics cost centers, coordinating inputs with operational teams and consolidating into the company P&L
Qualifications:Required- Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field; part-qualified or fully qualified accountant (CPA, CIMA, ACCA, or equivalent) preferred
- 7-10+ years of finance experience, with meaningful exposure to supply chain finance, procurement finance, or cost accounting in a manufacturing or perishables environment
- Experience in food manufacturing, fresh produce, agriculture, FMCG, or a comparable perishable goods industry strongly preferred
- Strong cost modelling skills - comfortable building cost-per-unit, cost-to-serve, and margin waterfall models from scratch including root cause analysis
- Advanced proficiency in Excel; experience with ERP systems (SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, or similar)
- Demonstrated ability to partner with non-finance operational stakeholders and translate complex financial analysis into clear operational insight
- Familiarity with supply chain cost structures: inbound freight, cold storage, 3PL, palletization, and outbound distribution
Preferred- Direct experience financing retail and/or Food Service supply relationships - familiarity with OTIF penalty regimes, promotional mechanics, and retailer cost recovery processes
- Exposure to commodity price risk, grower contracting, or agricultural procurement economics
- Experience with waste/yield financial tracking in a perishable or temperature-controlled environment
- Familiarity with BI and reporting tools (Power BI, Tableau, Qlik) and/or financial planning systems (Anaplan, Adaptive, TM1)
- Understanding of food safety, cold chain compliance, and the operational constraints unique to fresh produce logistics
