Accounts Payable Manager

About Adams Group 

Adams Group is a fifth-generation, family-owned specialty food company built on over 110 years of a simple but powerful belief: good food starts with good people. Founded on the principle of doing the right thing, we've grown to become the most trusted provider of high-quality specialty grains, oils, and seeds—delivering quality ingredients from seed to shelf. 

Rooted in trusted farmer partnerships and vertically integrated operations, we combine agricultural expertise with intentional innovation to deliver specialty at scale. Our commitment to quality, sustainability, and integrity isn't just what we do—it's who we are. 

Our Legacy of Innovation 

While we stay true to our values, our success across five generations comes from our entrepreneurial spirit and ability to adapt to the needs of a changing food landscape. Embodying the spirit of California, we push boundaries, pioneer new standards, and create better-for-all alternatives that nourish people from infancy to adulthood. 

More Than a Job—A Purpose 

At Adams Group, we offer more than careers; we offer the opportunity to be part of something meaningful. Whether you're producing high-quality ingredients, supporting sustainable practices, or building trusted relationships across our global network, your work helps nourish lives and communities across generations. 

We care deeply for our people, build strong relationships with our partners, deliver consistently for our customers, and enrich the communities we serve. Together, we're elevating industry standards and making a lasting impact on the world. 

Join Our Story 

Come be part of a legacy where good starts with you. At Adams Group, you don't just have a career—you have a legacy. 

Our Core Values 

At Adams Group, we live by five core values that guide everything we do: 

• Quality in all we do 
• Doing the right thing 
• Building relationships for shared success 
• Adapting to change 
• Leaving the world better than we found it 

Position Summary:

The Accounts Payable Manager is a hands-on, process-driven leader responsible for overseeing and continuously improving the full-cycle accounts payable function across all divisions and legal entities within Adams Group. Reporting directly to the Corporate Controller, this role serves as a key financial operations partner—standardizing AP policies and procedures at a global level, driving technology and process improvements, and ensuring the AP function supports the organization’s cash flow management objectives. The ideal candidate brings both strategic vision and a willingness to roll up their sleeves to build a best-in-class AP operation.

Key Responsibilities:

AP Operations & Leadership

• Oversee the end-to-end accounts payable process, including invoice receipt, coding, approval workflows, and payment execution across all divisions and legal entities.
• Lead, assist, mentor, and develop AP team members, fostering a culture of accuracy, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Ensure timely and accurate month-end close activities related to AP, including accruals, reconciliations, and reporting.

Global Policy & Procedure Standardization

• Proactively identify inefficiencies in existing AP processes and lead initiatives to streamline workflows, reduce costs, and improve turnaround times.
• Develop, implement, and enforce standardized AP policies and procedures across all divisions, entities, and global engagements within Adams Group.
• Ensure consistent application of internal controls, procurement policies, and approval authority matrices company-wide.
• Partner with divisional finance and operational leaders to drive adoption of global standards while accommodating local regulatory requirements.

Cash Flow & Payment Forecasting

• Develop and maintain a weekly payment forecast plan to support the organization’s cash flow projection and treasury planning efforts.
• Build and manage a 13-week rolling payment forecast, providing visibility into upcoming payment obligations to enable proactive cash management decisions.
• Collaborate with the Corporate Controller to align payment timing with cash availability and working capital goals.

System Implementation & Strategic Projects

• Lead or actively participate in AP-related system implementations, upgrades, and integrations—including ERP systems implementation, AP automation platforms, and payment solutions.
• Identify opportunities to leverage technology to eliminate manual processes, reduce cycle times, and improve accuracy throughout the AP function.
• Define system requirements, support user acceptance testing, and manage change management efforts for new tools and platforms.
• Lead the Vendor Master Data Cleanup project—reviewing, validating, and consolidating vendor records to ensure data integrity across all systems.
• Drive the conversion of all vendor payments to electronic payment methods (ACH and wire), reducing reliance on paper checks and improving payment security and efficiency.
• Ensure compliance with GAAP, company policies, and applicable regulatory requirements; support internal and external audit processes.

Required Qualifications:

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or a related field; equivalent experience will be considered.
• 7+ years of progressive accounts payable experience, including 3+ years in a supervisory or management role.
• Proven experience leading or participating in ERP or AP system implementations.
• Demonstrated success developing and implementing AP policies and procedures across multiple entities or business divisions.
• Hands-on experience building and managing payment forecasts, including 13-week rolling cash forecasts.

Skills and Competencies:

• Strong command of AP best practices, internal controls, and three-way matching processes.
• Proficiency in ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics) and AP automation tools; advanced Microsoft Excel skills.
• Ability to build and manage rolling payment forecast models and translate financial data into actionable cash management insights.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills; able to influence stakeholders at all levels and drive cross-functional adoption of new policies and processes.
• Detail-oriented with a continuous improvement mindset and the willingness to roll up sleeves to refine processes and add efficiencies at the departmental level.

Certifications/Licenses:

CPA or AP certification (e.g., IAPP Certified AP Professional) preferred but not required.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in a multi-entity or global AP environment, particularly within food manufacturing, agriculture, or CPG industries.
• Familiarity with treasury and cash management functions, including working capital optimization.
• Experience leading vendor master data governance and electronic payment conversion initiatives.
• CPA or AP professional certification (e.g., IAPP Certified AP Professional).

Working Conditions:

• Primarily sedentary role; extended periods of computer use. Minimal physical demands.
• Office-based or hybrid work environment. Standard business hours with occasional extended hours during month-end close, year-end, department projects or system implementations. Minimal travel may be required to visit other company facilities or divisions.

Food Safety Policy:

Adams Group is committed to producing and distributing high quality products through adherence to industry and regulatory standards. As an Adams Group employee, you will be trained on our food safety policies and will be held accountable to adhering to them.  You will be encouraged and required to notify supervision about actual or potential food safety issues. Everyone at Adams is involved in delivering safe food - within your scope of work you will be empowered to act to resolve food safety issues.

EEO Statement:

Adams Group is committed to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, lactation, childbirth or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, age (40 and over), national origin or ancestry, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, genetic information (including testing and characteristics), or protected veteran status, uniformed servicemember status or any other status protected by federal, state or local law. This commitment extends to all aspects of the Company’s employment practices including, but not limited to, recruiting, hiring, promoting, transferring, compensation, benefits, training, leaves of absence, termination, and other terms and conditions of employment.