Senior Costing Manager

Key Responsibilities:

1. Product Costing & Margin Analysis

• Formulate and update Standard Costing and Actual Costing for all API products, intermediates, and R&D pilot batches.
• Calculate and track the Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) and compute gross margins on a monthly product-wise and plant-wise basis.
• Monitor process yields, consumption ratios, and solvent recovery norms against standard Bill of Materials (BOM).
• Define and systematically update Transfer Pricing for inter-plant and subsidiary transactions.

2. Inventory Valuation & Control

• Manage monthly and quarterly categorization and valuation of inventory across Raw Materials (RM), Work-in-Progress (WIP), Recovered Solvents, and Finished Goods (FG).
• Review provisions for slow-moving, non-moving, near-expiry, or damaged materials as per the company's accounting policies.
• Conduct regular physical verification reconciliations and analyze variances between physical stock and ERP book values.

3. Budgeting, Forecasting & Variance Analysis

• Lead the preparation of annual plant operating budgets, conversion cost sheets, and overhead allocations.
• Perform comprehensive Variance Analysis (Material Price, Material Usage/Yield, Labor, and Overhead variances) and present actionable insights to the plant operations team.
• Project raw material requirements in coordination with Procurement and Supply Chain based on sales forecasts.

4. Compliance, Cost Audit & Statutory Regulations

• Lead the end-to-end preparation, reconciliation, and finalization of Cost Audit Annexures and records for statutory submission.
• Handle data compilation, reconciliation, and query resolution for regulatory frameworks like the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) or export schemes (e.g., RoDTEP/PLI tracking for API consumption).
• Coordinate directly with internal, statutory, and external cost auditors.

5. Cross-Functional Partnership & Digitalization

• Collaborate with Production, R&D, Quality Assurance (QA), and Procurement to optimize manufacturing costs and minimize waste generation.
• Provide financial inputs and Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) for capital expenditure (CapEx) proposals and process improvement projects.
• Drive or support automation and enhancement of costing modules in ERP systems like SAP (CO/CO-PA modules), Power BI, or Anaplan.

Job Requirements & Qualifications

Educational Background:

• Mandatory: ICWA / CMA (Institute of Cost Accountants of India) or Chartered Accountant (CA).
• An additional MBA in Finance or a background in Chemical Engineering is a plus.

Experience:

• 8 to 15+ years of core costing experience, with a mandatory minimum of 35 years in an API manufacturing environment.
• Deep understanding of multi-stage chemical synthesis processes, batch costing, and solvent recovery mechanisms.

Technical Competencies:

• Advanced expertise in SAP CO (Controlling) and Product Costing (PC) modules.
• Strong hands-on experience with MS Excel, Power BI, or similar data analytics/dashboard tools.
• In-depth knowledge of Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) and compliance protocols.

Soft Skills:

• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and financial control mindset.
• Excellent cross-functional stakeholder management and communication skills to effectively translate financial metrics into operational actions.