Trade Finance Manager

The Trade Finance Manager is responsible for ensuring proper accounting, forecasting, reporting, analysis, and governance and control processes for all Trade investment activities. This includes responsibility for all Trade-related P&L and Balance Sheet activities, as well as owning and supporting internal control processes. This role is the key finance partner for Sales Finance and the Trade Promotion Management (TPM) team, and serves as the source of truth within Finance for all Gross to Net reporting. This role is also responsible for driving thought leadership with business partners, while driving automation and efficiency in current processes.

Principal Accountabilities:

Accounting

• Performs ad hoc period close journal entries for expense recognition, accruals, and account analysis/reconciliation at the end of each period. Responsible for period close Gross to Net reporting (GSV, Trade, and NSV)
• Provides analysis and insights of period results, periodic and annual Trade forecasts, routine Trade-related Non-Quality Cost (NQC) reporting, and supports annual operating plans while working closely with Sales Finance and Sales
• Partner with internal and external Shared Services teams, to ensure executional excellence for GSV and Trade-related accounting and reporting

Financial Forecasting and Reporting

• Performs all financial forecasting (LE) processes for GSV and Trade, providing key stakeholders with data, insights, scenarios, risks and opportunities. Responsible for clear and accurate reporting, to enable decision-making
• Own, maintain, and publish complex PowerBI dashboards. These dashboards leverage advanced Excel files, Alteryx and PowerBI to create critical Trade and GSV reporting for Sales and Finance
• Collaborate with Advertising & Consumer Promotions (A&CP) Finance counterpart, to ensure effective financial management between budget areas, with accuracy and visibility to business partners. Provide holistic view of full customer investment and full demand investment, to give enterprise visibility to Demand Business Partners
• Operationalize reporting and measuring against AEP (Annual Execution Plan) targets

Analytics and Partnership

• Lead multiple periodic reviews with Demand Finance, highlighting results, forecasts, and insights, with potential risks or opportunities, while ensuring completeness and accuracy of assumptions
• Serve as the first point of contact for internal stakeholders with questions regarding Trade and GSV activities, spanning Finance and Operational teams
• Partner with Trade Promotion Management (TPM) team to address and correct any system issues, to implement training to elevate accuracy of user inputs, and to drive overall process compliance. Collaborate on new TPM ecosystem requirements, to ensure future systems meet financial and governance requirements, while driving integration and efficiencies
• Build relationships with Trade stakeholders across segments and globally, and utilize learnings to develop best-in-class processes for NA

Governance

• Maintain adherence to Mars financial policies and procedures through the integrity of SAP data, Trade Management System data, and all published reporting
• Serve as key contact and owner for Trade across all Governance and Controls, including internal audit, external audit, and ad hoc business requests.  Partner with G&C team to ensure all controls are being achieved via sustainable processes

Process Improvement

• Drive efficiencies in reporting, to provide simplified, embedded, accurate, and visible reporting solutions to the business,
• Drive continuous improvement and value creation across all areas of Trade, with an ROI mindset to deliver financial objectives
• Support development and implementation of new Trade Promotion Management ecosystem
• Complete ad hoc projects and requests as required 

 Key Competencies

• Drive for Results: Steadfastly pushes self and others for results
• Functional/Technical Skills: Has the functional and technical knowledge and skills to perform the role with a high level of accomplishment
• Customer Focus: Acts with customers in mind. Dedicated to meeting expectations of customers. Establishes/maintains effective relationships with customers
• Problem Solving: Uses rigorous logic and methods to solve difficult problems with effective solutions. Probes all fruitful sources for answers. Can see hidden problems
• Influencing: Able to influence key stakeholders to deliver budgets and profitable financial results/decisions

Key Functional Skills

• Accounting - The knowledge and application of Mars, Inc. accounting policies and principles, U.S. GAAP (as described in the Finance Manual) in order to meet business reporting requirements for providing timely and accurate reporting of financial results 
• Financial Control - The knowledge and application of business processes, internal control concepts and practices, and auditing techniques to ensure cost-effective protection of business assets, and approval of and governance over business activities at the appropriate level in the organization
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to motivate and influence without direct reporting authority, in order to achieve objectives
• Strong analytical capabilities coupled with the ability use storytelling through transparent communication of results, identify issues, obtain mutual agreement relative to the resolution and drive change
• Ability to manage detailed information, understand complex processes and use relationships to achieve results. Ability to tailor communications to varying audiences, to inform communications or drive action
• Must have a high degree of self-direction with the ability to constantly seek innovative ways to perform tasks in an efficient and timely manner
• Must be proactive, high energy, detailed-oriented when appropriate, results-oriented, and willing to drive change

Preferred Qualifications 

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance or related financial field
• 5+ years of work experience in Accounting or Finance
• Experience with Alteryx, PowerBI, and/or Advanced Excel
• Financial modeling and scenario planning
• CPG experience preferred 
• CPA or MBA preferred

#LI-hybrid

Mars is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the application process because of a disability, it is available upon request. The company is pleased to provide such assistance, and no applicant will be penalized as a result of such a request.