Cost Accountant - Premier Poultry

Premier Poultry aims to be the leading smallholder-focused poultry company in Ghana. Our purpose is to make rural households healthier and wealthier, and we achieve this by supplying them with high-quality, vaccinated, brooded, and affordable improved dual-purpose chickens. 
Reputed international investors back Premier Poultry with a proven track record of success in the poultry industry, including market-leading enterprises in Ethiopia (EthioChicken), Rwanda, and Uganda (Uzima). 

Job Description

• Report to: Finance Manager
• Locations: Kumasi, Ghana   

We are seeking to employ highly motivated, passionate, committed, result-oriented, and self-driven professionals to help us establish our presence in rural and urban communities across the country.

The Cost Officer is responsible for building, overseeing, and executing all processes related to cost accounting to gain clear visibility into the cost of production for Hatching eggs and day-old chicks. This includes recording, posting, adjusting, reconciling, and reporting all production-related financial information.

The cost officer will also oversee inventory management, making sure the company inventory is safeguarded, monitoring transactions, and entering accurate data into the Dear system. Managing these activities includes generating regular reports and ensuring compliance with reporting standards. 

Job Responsibilities

• Reconciliation of inventory accounts completed weekly (including checks around all inventory-related purchases
• Weekly management reporting delivered across all costing team items 
• Month-end costing reports delivered within the deadlines below and inclusive of trend analysis/interpretation, such as:
• Stock takes completed and reports submitted within 5 business days of the close of month
• Issues with COGS or costing proactively flagged (e.g., DOC costs exceeding sale price, strange production costs after assembly, concerns regarding DOCs, etc.)
• Team training provided to other members as needed

Key Responsibilities

Costing & Inventory Management

• Oversee the inventory and costing procedures related to accurately tracking COGS and managing company inventory
• Conduct inventory reserve analysis (summarizing spoilt or damaged goods) every quarter and generate reports for management.
• Conduct random inventory checks and ensure accuracy in inventory reports 
• Maintain up-to-date inventories of finished goods and raw materials
• Proper filling and matching of Requisition form, proforma Invoice, Purchase order, Invoice GRV
• Plan and record variable costs such as purchases of raw materials and operations costs.
• Take lead on Breeder farm, Hatchery, stores, and any stock kept at third-party premises weekly and monthly stock counts and reconciliations.
• Work with Production leadership to review production costs on a weekly and monthly basis
• Maintain and review the general ledger and reconcile balance sheet inventory items every month
• Analyze costs of raw materials and other supplies and create a cost-benefit analysis for changing vendors.
• Assisting in month-end and year-end closing by preparing production reports
• Work with the Group Systems and Costing Supervisor and the finance Manager to build cost-tracking systems in accounting software.
• Create Bill of Material (B.O.M) and assemblies in Dear system

Reporting

• Take the lead and produce monthly Breeder farm production report and Hatchery production reports
• Produce weekly and monthly inventory reconciliation reports
• Ensure that all inventory GL lines are reconciled in both Dear and Xero systems
• Ensure all inventory availability in both Dear and Xero are reconciled

External Stakeholder Management

• Maintain relationships with key business partners like suppliers on discrepancy reconciliations of statements
• Support in providing information to external auditors during annual audits

Other tasks

• Support the Finance Manager during month-end reporting 
• Be the custodian of inventory record books (Stock cards, dispatch notes, Goods received notes, Goods transfer notes, etc.) and ensure their availability at all stock locations
• Carry out any other activities as assigned from time to time

Required Skills or Experience

Educational Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in accounting from an accredited university
• Chartered Accountant (or path to it) required

Experience

• 5+ years of work experience in an accounting role