Accounts Payable Manager - Wego Chemical Group, LP

Wego Chemical Group is a global distributor and sourcing partner of chemicals and ingredients. We are an established player in the global specialty chemical markets, providing end-use manufacturers across industries in North America, LATAM, & EMEA with end-to-end supply chain solutions from across the globe. Our team has been operating for over 45 years, serving customers in over 25 countries, with 200+ professionals in 9 offices strategically located across 4 continents. Wego is family owned and operated, with 3 members of ownership across 2 generations actively serving in leadership as CEO, COO, and CCO.

Job Summary
The Accounts Payable (AP) Manager, reporting directly to the Global Controller, is responsible for managing Wego's Purchase-to-Pay process. This includes overseeing supplier onboarding and the creation and validation of invoices for primarily materials (PO-based) and incidental expenses (non-PO) across ten legal entities. The role manages an AP portfolio with an open balance of approximately $45 million, supporting around 2,500 suppliers and processing approximately 6,000 invoices each month. The AP Manager leads a team of three AP Analysts and three AP Specialists.

Responsibilities

• Manage the Accounts Payable department, overseeing invoice processing for both material and incidental invoices, supplier registration across various sourcing offices, and application of payment term policies.
• Ensure exceptional service to key stakeholders by managing complex vendor queries, setting up new vendors in line with SLA, paying material and invoice PO timely and maintaining strong relationships with Logistics and China Sourcing Offices.
• Supervise payment planning and execution, reviewing cash sheet daily for accuracy and aligning payment cash projections with treasury needs for cash pooling and optimization.
• Lead the month-end close process for AP operations, including reconciliation of the AP subledger to the general ledger, bank reconciliations, accruals for vouchered but not yet invoiced items, analysis of advance suppliers, and ensuring appropriate coding in Trial Balance.
• Establish performance goals for the AP department, focusing on efficiency KPIs (e.g., number of invoices processed per headcount) and effectiveness KPIs (e.g., number of overdue payments per month).
• Align with Controllers to review complex or large vendor payment and funding of bank balance.
• Elevate departmental standards by training the team on Oracle best practices (e.g., creating material invoices, validating freight in OTM), documenting key processes (e.g., reconciliation of prepayments, multi-period accounting), and resolving issues when necessary.
• Lead process improvements such as payment optimization, supplier onboarding, master data
• compliance, automation of Concur reporting, and reconfiguration of the ticketing system.
• Monitor response time to query levels in FreshService in alignment with Service Level
• Agreements.
• Ensure timely execution of Concur employee reimbursement.
• Support external and internal audits, delocalization project, ensuring compliance and accuracy.

Key Qualifications

• BS/BA in Accounting, Finance, or related field; advanced degree is a plus.
• Minimum of 10 years in accounting functions with progressively expanding roles
• Minimum of 4 years leadership experience in AP
• Excellent communication skills, both verbally and written
• Strong time management skills, with an ability to multi-task and prioritize tasks against competing deadlines in a challenging environment.
• Technologically savvy with extensive ERP system experience; Oracle is a plus.