Cost & Management Accountant

Cost & Management Accountant | Durban

If Excel is your happy place and messy numbers feel more like a challenge than a crisis… we should talk. Our client is looking for a seasoned, hands-on Cost & Management Accountant who loves costing, systems, BI and figuring out where the money is actually going. You’ll play a key role in turning operational data into meaningful insights, helping the business make smarter decisions and ensuring that profitability doesn’t quietly disappear into the variances!

Key Responsibilities:

• Build and improve costing tools, dashboards, reconciliation workflows and controls that turn data into actionable insights.

• Develop and maintain costing models covering materials, labour, overheads, yields and wastage.

• Maintain standard costs and analyse standard vs actual variances, working closely with production and procurement to validate assumptions.

• Analyse gross profit by SKU, customer, channel and production run.

• Investigate margin erosion, input cost changes, yield losses and stock allocation issues, and recommend practical corrective action.

• Ensure accurate valuation of raw materials, work in progress and finished goods.

• Support stock counts, reconcile ERP records with warehouse and production data, and investigate discrepancies down to root cause.

• Work with ERP, IT and operational teams to improve data quality and reporting automation.

• Partner with department managers to understand processes, challenge the numbers and translate findings into clear business actions.

• Support budgets, forecasts and scenario modelling.

• Provide financial insight to support pricing, promotions, supplier negotiations and production planning.

• Identify risks and opportunities early and help the business make informed, commercially sound decisions.

Key Requirements:

• Degree in Accounting, Finance or Management Accounting.

• CA(SA), CIMA or an equivalent professional qualification would be advantageous, alongside strong relevant experience.

• Proven experience in cost and management accounting within manufacturing, food processing, FMCG or another inventory-intensive environment.

• Strong practical understanding of:

  • Product costing

  • Standard vs actual variances

  • Production yields

  • Inventory valuation

  • Stock reconciliations

• Strong Advanced Excel skills and proficiency in Microsoft Office.

• Experience with Power BI, Power Query, SQL and reporting automation.

• Experience with Meat Matrix or a comparable ERP system would be advantageous.

• Ability to build reliable models, reconcile multiple data sources and present clear, useful management information.

• A track record of independently delivering reporting, control or systems improvements.

• Strong business acumen and the ability to contribute beyond the traditional finance function.

• A service-driven, customer-focused approach.

• A genuine passion for building and improving systems, with an eye for accuracy, simplicity and making tools easier for colleagues to use.

• A curious, explorative and solutions-driven mindset.

This is a great opportunity for someone who enjoys more than simply reporting the numbers. Our client needs a doer and problem-solver who wants to improve things — not just produce another spreadsheet.