This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, which manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Global Director – Accounts Payable based in Germany.
As Global Director – Accounts Payable, you will lead the global Procure-to-Pay (P2P) function, overseeing accounts payable, procurement operations, and financial process governance across multiple countries and entities. You will establish consistent policies, strengthen internal controls, and ensure purchasing and payment processes are efficient, accurate, and compliant. Working closely with Finance, Legal, Tax, Treasury, IT, and operational teams, you will drive process standardization, automation, and continuous improvement across the organization. You will also oversee shared services performance, optimize vendor management, and enhance transparency through reliable reporting and measurable service levels. In addition, you will play a key role in integrating acquired businesses, aligning legacy processes with global standards, and ensuring operational continuity. This is an opportunity to shape a scalable global finance function within a dynamic professional services environment that values integrity, operational excellence, innovation, and technology-driven transformation.
- Lead global Procure-to-Pay operations: Own the end-to-end P2P process, covering procurement requests, purchase requisitions, vendor sourcing support, purchase orders, supplier onboarding, invoice processing, approval workflows, payment execution, exception management, vendor inquiries, and month-end accounts payable activities.
- Establish global policies and governance: Develop and implement consistent procurement and AP policies, procedures, approval matrices, purchasing thresholds, preferred vendor requirements, service-level agreements, and performance metrics across countries and shared services teams.
- Strengthen financial controls and compliance: Maintain robust controls over vendor selection, supplier master data, segregation of duties, bank detail changes, duplicate payments, fraud prevention, purchase approvals, payment authorization, contract documentation, and records retention.
- Optimize procurement and payment processes: Lead process centralization, standardization, and automation initiatives to reduce manual work, improve accuracy, accelerate processing times, and enhance operational efficiency.
- Oversee systems and workflow automation: Drive improvements involving ERP-enabled controls, procurement intake tools, vendor portals, optical character recognition (OCR), purchase order matching, approval workflows, and travel and expense (T&E) integrations.
- Manage shared services performance: Monitor operational productivity, processing accuracy, invoice aging, turnaround times, purchase order compliance, outstanding work queues, and escalation resolution to ensure consistent service delivery.
- Oversee corporate card and expense management: Manage corporate card administration, spending limits, approval controls, transaction reconciliation, expense policy compliance, and timely employee reimbursement processing.
- Coordinate cross-functional activities: Partner with Legal, Tax, Treasury, Accounting, IT, Operations, and local Finance teams to ensure appropriate vendor compliance, tax documentation, payment accuracy, contract visibility, and system alignment.
- Support acquisition integration: Lead the integration of procurement and AP operations for acquired businesses by assessing legacy processes, migrating vendor records, aligning approval workflows, implementing global policies, and stabilizing purchasing and payment activities.
- Improve reporting and financial visibility: Ensure AP records are complete, accurate, and current, providing reliable information for financial planning and analysis (FP&A), cash management, operational monitoring, and strategic decision-making.
- Drive continuous improvement: Identify opportunities to improve governance, reduce risk, increase automation, strengthen accountability, and establish scalable processes that support organizational growth.
Requirements:
- Education: A bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, Supply Chain Management, Procurement, or a related discipline is preferred.
- Professional experience: At least eight years of experience in procurement, accounts payable, Procure-to-Pay operations, shared services, accounting operations, or finance process leadership.
- Global operational expertise: Demonstrated experience managing financial or procurement processes across multiple countries, legal entities, or complex organizational structures.
- Procurement and AP knowledge: Strong understanding of the full P2P lifecycle, including supplier onboarding, purchasing controls, purchase orders, invoice processing, payment workflows, expense management, and vendor relationship governance.
- Systems and technology: Experience with ERP systems, procurement platforms, workflow automation, vendor master data management, and technology-enabled financial controls.
- Internal controls and risk management: Proven ability to establish and maintain robust financial controls, enforce purchasing policies, prevent fraud, manage payment risks, and support compliance requirements.
- Process transformation: Experience leading process improvement, standardization, centralization, and automation initiatives across global or complex organizations.
- Shared services leadership: Ability to manage operational performance through measurable service levels, productivity indicators, quality metrics, turnaround times, and effective escalation procedures.
- M&A integration: Experience integrating procurement, accounts payable, vendor data, and financial workflows following acquisitions is advantageous.
- Analytical and strategic thinking: Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to translate operational data into actionable insights, identify inefficiencies, and implement sustainable improvements.
- Stakeholder management: Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to align global and local stakeholders across Finance, Legal, Tax, Treasury, IT, and Operations.
- Leadership and accountability: A structured, results-oriented approach, with the ability to establish clear governance, drive organizational change, manage competing priorities, and foster a culture of continuous improvement.
- Personal attributes: High integrity, attention to detail, sound judgment, adaptability, and a commitment to operational excellence in a dynamic, international environment.
Benefits:
- Remote work opportunity: The position is advertised as remote within the eligible geographic region, with the role listed under Ireland and Europe.
- International scope: Lead global procurement and accounts payable operations across multiple countries, entities, and shared services teams.
- Strategic leadership impact: Shape global financial processes, influence operational governance, and contribute directly to efficiency, compliance, and business scalability.
- Technology and innovation: Drive the adoption of automation, modern ERP capabilities, and digital procurement tools to transform financial operations.
- Professional growth: Develop expertise in global finance leadership, procurement transformation, shared services optimization, and post-acquisition integration.
- Cross-functional collaboration: Work with diverse international teams across Finance, Legal, Tax, Treasury, IT, and Operations.
- Continuous improvement culture: Contribute to an environment focused on operational excellence, innovation, integrity, and improving established processes.
