Manager Accounts Payable

Job Summary:

Lineage is seeking a Manager Accounts Payable to lead Accounts Payable operations within its growing department in Heywood, UK. This role will oversee end-to-end Accounts Payable and Travel & Expense (T&E) processes for multiple entities, ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant processing of supplier invoices, payments, and employee expense reimbursements while delivering performance against defined Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

As Lineage continues to expand its departments, the role will support the transition of European Accounts Payable activities. The position will focus on building a high-performing team, driving process standardization and operational discipline, and strengthening controls across the procure-to-pay process.

The Accounts Payable Manager will partner closely with regional finance leaders, procurement, treasury, and other stakeholders to establish scalable, efficient AP operations and support the continued development of the department.

Key Responsibilities:

Transition and Integration Leadership

• Lead the transition of Accounts Payable activities from European operating companies, including process mapping, risk identification, and stabilization.
• Partner with local finance teams to assess current-state processes and design standardized future-state models aligned with global AP governance.
• Develop transition plans, including knowledge transfer, cutover management, and hyper-care support.
• Manage stakeholder expectations during organizational and reporting line changes.

Service Delivery & Operational Ownership

• Lead daily operations for supplier invoice processing in AppZen (payable automation tool) and Workday (ERP): intake/validation, matching (PO/non‑PO), routing for approvals, coding, posting, and exception management.
• Oversee payment processing and reconciliation, ensuring accurate and timely settlement of approved liabilities in line with agreed payment terms.
• Develop resource and capacity planning models to support expansion across EMEA.
• Build succession depth and cross-training to mitigate key-person risk.
• Manage work queues, prioritization, and escalations to ensure service continuity during peaks (month‑end, quarter‑end, travel peaks).
• Consider the complexities of European regulatory and cross-boarder requirements (e.g., VAT regimes, reverse charge, multi-currency, SEPA, e-invoicing).

Leadership & Stakeholder management

• Serve as primary AP contact for EMEA country controllers and finance leaders.
• Support country-level audits and statutory reporting requirements.
• Lead, coach, and develop a team of AP specialists; allocate workload, set clear expectations, and ensure quality output.
• Drive onboarding, training, and cross‑training; maintain up‑to‑date work instructions and SOPs to enable consistent delivery across EMEA entities.
• Foster a culture focused on responsiveness, ownership, and continuous improvement.
• Act as escalation point for complex AP matters: blocked invoices, mismatches, vendor queries, reimbursement issues, and sensitive policy exceptions.
• Partner with Procurement, local Finance/Controllers, Treasury, IT, MDM, and business approvers to improve end‑to‑end P2P outcomes.

Continuous Improvement, Standardization & Workday Optimization

• Identify and drive process improvements across AP and Expenses workflows (standard work, automation opportunities, reduced manual touchpoints).
• Improve supplier management discipline (accurate supplier data, payment terms, and clean master data) as supported by Workday’s vendor management capabilities.
• Maintain process documentation and ensure consistent execution across EMEA entities and languages/cultures typical of SSC environments.

SLA/KPI Management & Performance Reporting

• Own delivery against SLAs and track KPI performance (backlog, cycle time, first‑time‑right, on‑time payment/reimbursement, dispute rates).
• Execute the global AP process framework as defined by the AP Business Process Owner (BPO).
• Provide operational feedback to support global process design enhancements.
• Leverage Workday reporting/analytics to identify bottlenecks and proactively drive corrective actions and service improvements.

Controls, Compliance, and Audit Readiness

• Enforce compliance with global P2P policies and approval authorities.
• Challenge non-compliant behavior and escalate control breaches where necessary.
• Drive reduction policy exceptions as well as invoices not supported by POs.
• Support internal and external audits: prepare evidence, respond to findings, and implement corrective actions.
• Maintain strict controls for supplier master changes and payment details to mitigate fraud risk

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting/finance (or equivalent).
• 5+ years of P2P experience, ideally in an international Shared Service Center environment.
• Experience driving standardization or automation initiatives in AP/T&E workflows.
• Proven track record leading teams through organizational change or process transformation.
• Demonstrated ability to build high-performing teams during periods of growth and structural change.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to influence stakeholders across multiple countries and cultures.
• Strong systems and process mindset; confident in using ERP and reporting tools
• Advanced Excel and strong analytical/problem‑solving skills.
• Fluent English; additional European language(s) an advantage.

What’s in it for me:

• 28 days holiday (including bank holidays), the opportunity to earn additional holidays each year up to an extra week after 5 years.
• Purchased holidays – purchase up to an extra week holiday
• Free onsite car park
• Social environment with a team who like to support each other to achieve goals, with recognition schemes and shared spaces to enjoy lunch and rest breaks together
• Support your emotional well-being with access to a 24/7 employee assistance phone line offering confidential free counselling and advice

About Lineage:

Lineage is a warehousing and logistics partner committed to delivering sophisticated, customized, and dependable cold chain solutions to leading food, retail, agriculture and distribution companies. We serve customers who put a premium on excellence and reliability to ensure our nation’s food supply is handled, stored and delivered safely and securely through the entire supply chain

At Lineage, we have a shared purpose: We are transforming the food supply chain to eliminate waste and help feed the world. Lineage is the industry’s leading innovator in temperature-controlled supply chain and logistics. Lineage’s expertise in end-to-end logistical solutions, its unrivaled real estate network, and its use of technology combined to promote food safety, increase distribution efficiency, advance sustainability, lessen environmental impact, and minimize supply chain waste. As a result, Lineage helps customers ranging from Fortune 500 companies to small family-owned businesses increase the efficiency and protect the integrity of their temperature-controlled supply chain. In pursuit of this shared purpose, we are working to build a world class Finance team.

Why Lineage?

We are a global company with more than 22,000 employees spanning 20 countries and more than 400 locations across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and South America.

At Lineage Logistics, we have a shared purpose; we are transforming the food supply chain to eliminate waste and help feed the world. This means working at Lineage is not just a job – it’s an opportunity to innovate and put your mark on how food moves from the farm to dinner tables around the world. As a member of our team, you will be a critical link in the food supply chain.

Our shared purpose drives everything we do in all parts of our organisation, from the warehouse floor to the office. Our team members are passionate about the impact they make every single day.

We are an equal opportunities employer and positively encourage applications from persons regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status, or pregnancy and maternity. At Lineage we also recognise that Ex-Military, veterans, and military families have great experience with transferable skills and core values that can add significant value to our organisation.

Benefits

As a Lineage team member, we aim to provide everything you and your family need to thrive. That’s why we offer competitive rates of pay, paid time off, skills training, and development opportunities to grow a long and fulfilling career with us – plus generous financial rewards when you successfully refer new employees. This is enhanced by recognition schemes (so that your hard work won’t go unnoticed), plus the chance to make your salary go even further with our cycle-to-work scheme and preferential rates for loans and savings courtesy of a leading credit union.

Your everyday wellbeing is also important to us, so we will provide you with all the protective equipment you need to be safe and comfortable at work, and you will have access to a free 24/7 employee assistance phone line, which offers confidential counselling and advice. With all of this offered against the backdrop of a fun and social environment in which you will be supported by a team who enjoy helping each other in achieving their goals, we are confident you will excel with us.