Company: JOST International

Location: Grand Haven, MI 

Industry: Tier 1 Supplier – Transport & Agriculture

Department: Finance

About the Company:

JOST International began as a small business in the early 1980s, where we submitted the patent application for the very first steel cast fifth wheel coupling. Since our start in Grand Haven, Michigan, JOST International has grown to become a world market leader for fifth wheels and landing gear and an international supplier for the commercial trucking industry.

Though we’ve grown through the years, JOST International is proud to retain the same values and principles that launched our business decades ago — a dedication to safety and continuous innovation, and above all, a close relationship with our customers and our employees.

JOST International is a leading Tier 1 supplier in diverse industries, specializing in innovative solutions for the commercial truck, trailer, and agriculture markets. Our commitment to quality, customer satisfaction, and continuous improvement has established us as a trusted partner to OEMs and major industry players.

Position Overview:

The Commercial Finance & Integration Director – Region Americas is a strategic operator and hands-on builder responsible for accelerating value creation across the JOST portfolio in North and South America. This role combines commercial finance leadership with post-merger integration execution, translating strategy into measurable profitability impact.

This position personally builds financial models, business cases, dashboards, and executive presentations that drive commercial decisions, margin improvements, and synergy realization. Acting as the financial “engine room” for the integration, this role identifies opportunities, structures initiatives, ensures execution discipline, and reports progress into the Americas leadership and Global PMI governance.

Key Responsibilities:

Commercial Finance Leadership

• Develop pricing and margin models for customer negotiations, product strategies, and channel decisions.
• Build customer and product profitability analytics, highlighting opportunities to improve contribution margin and working capital.
• Prepare clean, executive-ready recommendation packs for the President & CEO, CFO, and Commercial leadership.
• Support implementation of the global Steering Model across the region to shape commercial discipline.
• Partner with Sales leaders to influence decisions through financial narratives, not just reporting.

Post-Merger Integration & Synergies

• Lead synergy identification workshops across Transport, Agriculture, Hydraulics, and Recycling businesses.
• Build and manage the synergy pipeline with clear stage-gates (idea ? validation ? approval ? execution ? realized impact).
• Own the Monthly Synergy Report, presenting realized and forecasted financial impact to regional leadership.
• Ensure initiatives have clear scope, milestones, owners, and financial targets tied to profit and cash results.
• Develop reusable integration playbooks, models, and templates for future acquisitions and strategic projects.

Financial Modeling & Reporting

• Build first-principles business models across revenue, COGS, OpEx, CapEx, and working capital.
• Develop dashboards (e.g., Power BI) in collaboration with Controlling and Data teams.
• Validate synergy assumptions with Finance and reflect run-rates into forecasts (Budget, LE).
• Prepare executive steering materials and integration updates for the Americas CEO/CFO and Global Integration Office.

Execution & Governance Support

• Support the regional PMI cadence, including preparation of materials for monthly and quarterly reviews
• Track initiative progress, identify risks, and escalate issues with data-backed recommendations
• Maintain disciplined documentation supporting reported financial impacts

Operating Model Alignment

• Support harmonization of core operating processes across commercial strategy, sales governance, operations, supply chain, and finance.
• Partner with HR and Functional Leaders to support capability mapping and future-state operating model design.

Change Leadership & Communication

• Prepare executive-level decks, dashboards, and decision papers with clear, concise storylines.
• Communicate progress on synergies, milestones, and integration impact in ways that build confidence and alignment.
• Build strong working relationships with Plant Directors, Sales leaders, functional heads, and global stakeholders across JOST and Hyva.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field (MBA a plus, not required)
• 5–8+ years of experience in commercial finance, FP&A, business controlling, integration, or operational finance
• Experience in industrial manufacturing, automotive, or heavy-equipment environments preferred
• Strong hands-on Excel and financial modeling skills
• Experience preparing executive-level PowerPoint materials
• Familiarity with SAP, Power BI, and reporting tools preferred
• Comfortable influencing cross-functionally without direct authority

Personal Attributes:

• Commercial & Financial Acumen – Can connect commercial decisions to P&L, cash, and long-term value.
• Executive Presentation & Storytelling – Turns complex topics into clear, simple narratives backed by data.
• Hands-On Execution – Personally builds the models, dashboards, and decks; not just managing others.
• Program Leadership – Orchestrates multiple initiatives, holds owners accountable, and drives follow-through.
• Change Leadership – Comfortable challenging the status quo and driving adoption of new ways of working.
• Structured Problem-Solving – Analytical, data-driven, and able to break down ambiguous problems into actionable plans.
• Travel – 15-25% in Americas region.

Physical Requirements:

a) Work is generally performed in an office setting. 

b) While performing duties of this job, the employee will regularly; sit, stand, walk, reach, bend, twist and occasionally will be required to stoop, kneel, lift or move objects of 51 pounds or less with or without assistance.