Finance Director, Inventory Management - Chicago or Decatur, IL

Job Description

Finance Director, Global Nutrition Inventory Management  - Chicago or Decatur, IL.

Position Summary:
The Finance Director for Global Nutrition Inventory Management is a key role focused on driving financial excellence in inventory management across the Nutrition business. This role is responsible for enhancing visibility, optimizing reserves, identifying and mitigating risks, and ensuring alignment with supply chain, finance, and business unit goals across a global network of 180+ plants, 100+ co-manufacturing locations, 500+ warehouses. Leveraging advanced tools and data analytics, the Finance Director will implement proactive inventory strategies to support growth, efficiency, and long-term sustainability.

Job Responsibilities
Key Responsibilities include:

• Inventory Financial Management
• Lead the financial assessment of inventory, including tracking, forecasting, reserve setting, and risk identification.
• Develop and implement consistent criteria for managing slow-moving, obsolete, and excess inventory across all nutrition business units.
• Coordinate with Controlling the inventory reserve calculations and ensure alignment with controlling and accounting policies.
• Financial Leadership in Inventory Practices:
• Working with the Nutrition Supply Chain teams, transition inventory management from reactive to proactive by integrating monitoring, visibility, and risk anticipation practices.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to formalize and document inventory management guidelines and methodologies.
• Actively engage in reducing inventory losses by addressing root causes and implementing data-driven action plans.
• Data Visibility and Analytics:
• Enhance inventory visibility by expanding data collection to SKU and location levels, ensuring timely and granular insights.
• Partner with IT to implement advanced data tools (e.g., dashboards, AI/ML solutions) for real-time tracking and forecasting.
• Drive the adoption of inventory “control tower” concepts to consolidate, visualize, and standardize inventory health data.
• S&OP and Operational Alignment:
• Align inventory strategies with Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) cycles, ensuring financial insights guide demand-supply balancing.
• Support supply chain teams with scenario planning, phase-in/out strategies, and SKU rationalization to optimize inventory levels.
• Lead cross-functional collaborations to harmonize goals, reduce complexity, and enhance synchronized execution.
• Proactive Risk and Reserve Management:
• Monitor inventory health using tailored KPIs, such as Days of Inventory Outstanding (DIO) and reserve adequacy metrics.
• Facilitate early identification of inventory risks, including expirations and unhealthiness, to enable timely corrective actions.
• Drive initiatives to repurpose or dispose of excess inventory through blending, rework, or alternative strategies.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration and Leadership:
• Act as a key liaison between finance, supply chain, controlling, and business units to foster alignment and shared accountability.
• Facilitate recurring reviews with senior leadership to provide insights on inventory health, risks, and reserves.
• Mentor and upskill team members to enhance inventory management expertise across the organization.

Key Deliverables:

• Implementation of standardized inventory health criteria, aligning practices across all business units.
• Development of inventory management dashboards and tools for real-time visibility and decision-making.
• Reduction of inventory losses and reserves through proactive monitoring and targeted actions.
• Integration of financial insights into S&OP planning cycles to enhance demand-supply balance and reduce inefficiencies.

Educational and Experience Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Economics or Business Administration; MBA preferred
• 10+ years of experience in financial leadership roles, with a strong focus on inventory management, supply chain, or operational finance.
• Demonstrated expertise in inventory reserve management, slow-moving/obsolete inventory practices, and forecasting.
• Proven ability to lead data integration and analytics projects in a global, matrixed organization.
• Experience with tools such as SAP/S4, Power BI, and advanced planning systems (APS).
• Experience working in an organization with centralized services functions providing global business services or shared services activities
• Ability to work in a challenging environment with multiple, changing and competing priorities
• Results and continuous improvement oriented; ab