ABOUT SLATE
At Slate, we’re building safe, reliable vehicles that people can afford, personalize and love—and doing it here in the USA as part of our commitment to reindustrialization. The spirit of DIY and customization runs throughout every element of a Slate, because people should have control over how their trucks look, feel, and represent them.
WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR
We are seeking a senior SAP S/4HANA solution architect to own the finance design backbone of Slate’s migration from NetSuite to SAP, with product costing as the center of gravity. Reporting to Slate’s Head of Finance Systems, this role is the client-side counterpart to our implementation partner’s solution architect. It owns the controlling and product costing design outright, owns the SAP design of the general ledger that sits beneath the corporate accounting lead’s record-to-report and procure-to-pay work, and is the most heavily weighted seat on a four-person product team. Product costing is the area where Slate has no internal bench, and it is the reason this role is weighted the way it is. This is a permanent role on a team that will launch a deliberate minimum viable product and then own years of follow-on build, not a project assignment that ends at go-live.
| WHAT YOU GET TO DO
Product Costing & Inventory (Primary)
- Own product cost planning, including standard cost estimates and BOM and routing cost rollups, which tie into Windchill PLM and the MES.
- Own the material ledger decision, inventory valuation, COGS, manufacturing variance design, and WIP, standing this up correctly ahead of start of production.
- Own the finance integration points into Materials Management (procurement valuation, GR/IR) and Production Planning (production orders, confirmations).
Controlling
- Design the controlling backbone: cost center and profit center structure, internal orders, overhead allocations, and account-based profitability analysis (CO-PA).
- Partner with FP&A on the management reporting and planning views that draw on the controlling structure.
General Ledger & Record-to-Report (SAP design)
- Own the SAP design of the general ledger beneath the corporate accounting lead, who owns the business design: chart of accounts, ledger strategy, document splitting, intercompany processing, consolidation, and fixed assets.
- Coordinate the FloQast close, the treasury touchpoints into the TMS, and the tax engine integration (Avalara).
Procure-to-Pay Finance (Support)
- Provide the SAP design for AP, GR/IR, and vendor master in support of the corporate accounting lead’s procure-to-pay ownership, including the finance requirements for the Zip integration.
Design Authority, Clean Core, & Validation
- Serve as the finance configuration decision-maker within agreed design principles, defending a fit-to-standard, clean-core posture and escalating customization exceptions rather than rebuilding NetSuite inside SAP.
- Validate inventory valuation and standard costs across every mock conversion cycle, and embed SOX-ready controls and segregation of duties into the configuration and into user acceptance testing.
| WHAT YOU BRING TO THE TEAM
- 10+ years of SAP FI/CO experience with deep, hands-on CO-PC and material ledger expertise across multiple full-cycle S/4HANA implementations.
- Discrete manufacturing experience, ideally automotive, including standing up product costing at a company moving from pre-production to production.
- Strong FI breadth: new general ledger, document splitting, multi-entity intercompany processing, and consolidation (SAP Group Reporting or comparable).
- CPA or equivalent preferred, given the controls weight of the role and Slate's IPO trajectory.
- A clear, defensible point of view on clean-core and fit-to-standard design, with the credibility to serve as the implementation partner's counterpart and hold the line against unnecessary customization.
- Experience writing functional specifications, leading finance-side user acceptance testing, and partnering with implementation partners and IT through go-live and stabilization.
- Familiarity with SOX requirements for finance systems, ideally in a pre-IPO or recently public-company environment.
- Comfortable in a fast-paced, growth-stage environment building a system rather than maintaining one.
| LOCATION / TRAVEL
Remote eligible, with travel to Slate’s Troy, Michigan headquarters during key design, integration, testing, and cutover phases (heavier onsite presence expected during fit-to-standard workshops and the cutover window).
WHY JOIN TEAM SLATE?
At Slate, we’re fueled by grit, determination, and attention to detail. The start-up spirit of ingenuity and resourcefulness move our business forward. Team Slate fosters a culture of excellence, innovation, and mutual respect, and is motivated by shared principles.
Safety First
Delight Customers
One Team
Relentless Improvement
Fast, Frugal, and Scrappy
Respectful Collaboration
Positive Legacy
WE WANT TO WORK WITH PEOPLE THAT REFLECT THE COMMUNITIES IN WHICH WE OPERATE.
Slate is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, veteran status, marital status, parental status, cultural background, organizational level, work styles, tenure and life experiences. Or for any other reason.
is committed to providing reasonable accommodation for qualified individuals with disabilities in our job application procedures. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us at
[email protected].
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