Costings Team Leader in Colchester

We're looking for a proactive and commercially minded Costings Team Leader to join our UK Group Finance Department, supporting the financial operations of the Penguin Random House Group. As part of our Record to Report (R2R) function, you'll play a key role in ensuring the accuracy and integrity of our costing processes, providing the financial insight that underpins informed business decisions across our publishing divisions. This is an excellent opportunity to join a collaborative finance team where your expertise will directly contribute to the success of the business.

The internal job title for this position is Senior Cost Accountant.

Role Summary

Reporting to the Deputy Costing Manager, and managing 3 direct reports, you'll take ownership of the end-to-end costing process for a number of commercial publishing divisions, ensuring accurate product costing and identifying any exceptions or unusual costing activity. Working closely with colleagues across Finance and a range of internal and external stakeholders, you'll help maintain the integrity of our costing approach while supporting month-end activities and continuous process improvement. This role is ideally suited to a confident finance professional who enjoys working collaboratively, building strong stakeholder relationships, and delivering high-quality financial information in a fast-paced environment.

Key responsibilities

• Plan and monitor workflow in department ensuring that targets are met.
• Ensure completeness of interface relationships between core finance system (SAP) and other company applications; Biblio, Blue Yonder, Data Warehouse.
• Manage the timely and efficient production of specified Balance Sheet reconciliations in accordance with Group accounting policies.
• Work with key stakeholders within the Penguin Random House Group of companies management/financial accounts process to ensure strong controls, compliance and governance.
• Ensure continuous improvement (CI) of the Penguin Random House Group of companies Costings processes through identifying common trends in issues and queries, reviewing target performance levels and looking at best practice.
• Assist with the testing and full implementation of the SAP S4 Hana Integration project.
• Liaise with Technology Business Systems and SAP consultants, logging and helping solve SAP Costing problems.
• Review work in progress ledger for specific imprints, prepare variance schedules, attend meetings at the London office if necessary, to agree and finalise write-offs with the production department and the Finance Director.
• Run WIP Settlement Process each month and ensure all postings are correct in accounts.
• Effective review, control and management of Penguin Random House Group of companies WIP accounts, and associated KPI reporting.
• Assist and develop the Penguin Random House Group Costing Team.
• Using your knowledge of the Costing functions, support in the wider PRH systems development initiatives.
• Manage the year end, half year and interim audit process related to Costing queries.

What you’ll bring

• AAT Qualified or Equivalent.
• Experience of staff management.
• Experience of balance sheet reconciliations.
• Advanced IT and systems skills e.g. Excel.
• High attention to detail.
• Good time management.

Preferred criteria

• Experience of SAP.
• Use of AI tools.

Here at Penguin, we believe in the power of authenticity and human creativity. When you apply for a position, we want to encourage you to showcase your unique voice. Throughout our recruitment process, please share your own thoughts, experiences, and skills. This helps us get a true sense of who you are and what you might bring to our team.

We celebrate creativity and diverse perspectives, so please be yourself! While we recognise AI tools can be helpful, we recommend using them thoughtfully to ensure your responses reflect you.

Disability Confident

As a Disability Confident Committed organisation, we offer interviews to candidates with a disability who meet the essential criteria for the role, and opt-in on their application form. The essential criteria for this role are listed as part of the ‘What you’ll bring’ section. There may be times when the volume of applications means we cannot take all eligible candidates to interview. We encourage you to tell us about any reasonable adjustments you may need by emailing [email protected]. Remember, you only need to share what you are comfortable with, for us to support your request.

While our offices across the UK are places to connect, collaborate and celebrate with colleagues, we recognise that flexibility around where you work is just as important. For this role we expect that you will work from our office in Frating, Essex, no more than 2 days per week.