Director, Manufacturing Finance & Cost Accounting

The Company

Saildrone is a maritime defense company and the global leader in autonomous unmanned surface vehicles (USVs). With more ocean miles and real‑world operational experience than any USV manufacturer or operator, Saildrone maintains active, combat‑deployed systems supporting national security and force projection around the world, 24/7/365. Saildrone’s manufacturing and R&D headquarters are located in Alameda, CA, with business development and sales operations in Washington, DC, and deployment hubs in Europe and the Middle East.

By combining proven autonomous operations, edge computing, advanced sensing, renewable power, and the most advanced and robust unmanned surface technology on the planet, Saildrone is shaping how the Navy of the future operates. Join a fast‑moving, mission‑driven team at the forefront of maritime security and autonomous innovation.

Saildrone is seeking a Director, Manufacturing Finance & Cost Accounting to guide Capital Planning and Analysis, Cost accounting, Inventory accounting, and Manufacturing finance functions supporting our rapidly scaling defense manufacturing operations. Reporting to the Corporate Controller, you will partner closely with Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Engineering, Program Management, and Executive Leadership to improve cost visibility, strengthen financial controls, and enable data‑driven decision making across the organization.

You will own standard costing, inventory valuation, manufacturing analytics, capital planning support, and operational finance processes while ensuring compliance with US GAAP and maintaining a scalable control environment. This role will play a critical part in supporting Saildrone’s transition from prototype‑driven development to high‑volume production.

• Lead the Manufacturing Finance, Fixed Assets and Cost Accounting organization, including hiring, mentoring, and developing a high‑performing team.
• Own standard costing methodologies, cost rollups, inventory valuation, variance analysis, and overhead allocation processes.
• Partner with Manufacturing and Supply Chain leadership to improve operational efficiency, capacity planning, utilization, and profitability.
• Analyze material, labor, overhead, yield, scrap, and absorption performance and drive corrective actions.
• Develop product costing models to support pricing, business cases, new product introductions, and strategic investment decisions.
• Establish periodic cost reviews to ensure standards accurately reflect operational realities.
• Oversee inventory accounting, cycle counts, physical inventories, reserves, excess and obsolete inventory analyses, and inventory health metrics.
• Support monthly close, forecasting, budgeting, long‑range planning, and executive reporting activities.
• Develop manufacturing KPIs and dashboards covering yield, throughput, utilization, labor efficiency, inventory turns, and cost performance.
• Drive ERP, MES, PLM, and reporting automation initiatives to improve data quality and scalability.
• Ensure compliance with US GAAP, SOX‑style internal controls, audit requirements, and corporate accounting policies.
• Partner with Engineering and Program Management to evaluate capital investments, manufacturing initiatives, and return‑on‑investment opportunities.

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, Engineering, or a related field.
• 12+ years of progressive experience in manufacturing finance, cost accounting, or operations finance.
• Experience leading teams in complex manufacturing environments with multi‑level BOMs and inventory‑intensive operations.
• Deep expertise in standard costing, inventory accounting, variance analysis, and manufacturing financial controls.
• Strong understanding of US GAAP related to inventory, capitalization, and manufacturing accounting.
• Demonstrated success building scalable processes, systems, and teams in high‑growth organizations.
• Advanced ERP experience and strong analytical capabilities.
• Excellent communication and cross‑functional leadership skills.

• MBA and/or CPA.
• Experience supporting aerospace, defense, robotics, maritime, energy, hardware, or other…