Plant Controller

Plant Controller & Manufacturing Business Partner (ODM Cost)

About the Role

At Ardagh Metal Packaging Europe, we are looking for a commercially minded finance professional to join our Manufacturing Controlling team. This is a unique opportunity to combine hands-on plant controlling responsibilities with a broader European business partnering role focused on Other Direct Material (ODM) costs.

In this position, you will work closely with plant leadership, manufacturing, engineering, and procurement teams to drive financial performance, identify improvement opportunities, and support strategic decision-making. You will play a key role in budgeting, forecasting, performance analysis, cost optimization, and continuous improvement initiatives across our manufacturing operations.

If you enjoy turning data into insights, influencing business decisions, and working in a dynamic production environment, we would love to hear from you.

What You'll Be Doing

Business Partnering & Performance Management

• Act as a trusted finance business partner to plant management and manufacturing leaders.
• Support the development of long-term manufacturing performance plans and productivity improvement initiatives.
• Analyze key operational drivers including efficiency, material usage, staffing levels, changeover performance, and investment requirements.
• Identify performance gaps, risks, and opportunities and help drive corrective actions.
• Provide financial insights to support strategic and operational decision-making.
• Collaborate with manufacturing, engineering, procurement, and plant teams to improve business performance.

Planning, Budgeting & Forecasting

• Coordinate annual budgeting, forecasting, and long-range planning activities.
• Support the development of manufacturing cost assumptions and investment plans.
• Lead financial analysis of cost-saving initiatives and productivity projects.
• Provide regular performance reporting and financial forecasts to management.
• Ensure accurate and timely month-end and year-end manufacturing financial reporting.
• Analyze variances against budget, forecast, prior year, and targets.
• Maintain compliance with company policies, controls, and financial procedures.
• Support fixed asset, inventory, spare parts, and raw material accounting processes.
• Review and approve purchase requisitions and invoices in line with delegated authorities.

Manufacturing Controlling Excellence

• Develop and utilize benchmarking tools to monitor ODM costs and performance.
• Drive standardization, harmonization, and continuous improvement across manufacturing controlling processes.
• Deliver meaningful reporting and variance analysis to support operational performance reviews.
• Support manufacturing management with cross-plant comparisons and cost optimization initiatives.
• Participate in business reviews and improvement projects aimed at increasing efficiency and reducing costs.
• Act as a subject matter expert in manufacturing controlling and support continuous improvement of reporting and analytical tools.

What We're Looking For

Education

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Administration, or a related field.

Experience

• Minimum 3 years of experience in Controlling, Financial Analysis, or Accounting.
• Experience within a manufacturing or production environment is highly desirable.
• Proven ability to partner with operational stakeholders and translate financial information into actionable business insights.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively with both finance and non-finance stakeholders.
• Proactive, results-oriented mindset with a continuous improvement approach.
• Strong business partnering and relationship-building capabilities.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Team player with a collaborative and hands-on attitude.
• Professional working proficiency in English; additional European languages are an advantage.

Technical Skills

• Experience with SAP or a similar ERP system.
• Experience with planning, reporting, or business intelligence tools is an advantage.

Why Join Ardagh?

• Opportunity to work in a highly visible role with direct business impact.
• Exposure to both site-level and European manufacturing finance activities.
• Collaborative international environment with opportunities for professional growth.
• Be part of a company committed to operational excellence, innovation, and sustainability.

About Arda