Career Foundation Program (CFP) Associate – Corporate Finance

Job Description

Career Foundation Program (CFP) Associate – Finance Track | Smithfield Foods

The Tone:
This is a full-time rotational training program for recent college graduates at Smithfield Foods, a global food company committed to sustainably feeding people worldwide by producing good food ethically. This program offers a unique opportunity to explore career options across various locations within the finance function. The role is essential for analyzing business results, tracking key financial targets, and actively contributing to the identification of both threats and opportunities that impact company performance. Associates in this program will learn the business deeply and contribute significantly to the team’s objective of acting as the analytical engine to provide insights that support optimal business decisions for channel and product management.

The TL;DR
• Role: Rotational Training Program
• Type: Full-time
• Location: Locations vary, requires up to 25% travel
• Pay: $21.63–$31.25 hourly
• Mission: Provide analytical insights and support to channel and product management for making optimal business decisions.
• Tech Stack: Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Business Intelligence Tool, SAP, Business Warehouse

What You’ll Actually Do
• Strategic Business Partnering: Provide daily financial direction and strategic input to business line and channel managers, evaluating financial and business-related data, analyzing key performance indicators, performing competitor analysis, and reviewing RFPs for valid revenue rates and cost assumptions.
• Comprehensive Financial Reporting: Support all company financial reporting and analytical data requests, including weekly and monthly reports, ad-hoc analysis, and utilizing business intelligence tools to implement dashboard reporting for monitoring daily sales and cost trends.
• Accurate Financial Forecasting: Prepare precise weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual financial forecasts, aiming to improve and streamline the organization’s planning processes and design concise reports presenting actual and budget data for management decision-making.
• Project Leadership & Contributions: Engage in special requests and actively participate in various projects and presentations, assuming leadership roles for certain initiatives, assisting in problem-solving, and helping departments achieve both short and long-term objectives.

The Must-Haves
• Background: Bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college or university in Accounting, Finance, or a related field; or currently enrolled college student with anticipated graduation by the end of the current semester.
• Experience: Entry-level professional with demonstrated knowledge of financial and business principles, and proficiency in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
• Skills: Must possess a high level of professionalism, discretion, and ability to self-manage time from remote locations, coupled with strong leadership and decision-making skills. Requires excellent written and oral communication skills, high standards of accuracy, and the ability to work well with others in a fast-paced, dynamic environment. Must be currently authorized to work in the U.S. and willing to travel up to 15-25% of the time, including periodic overnight travel.
• Bonus: Possesses a high level of organizational planning, teamwork, and analytical reasoning skills. Experience with Business Warehouse, product costing, or SAP is a plus. Strong presentation skills, self-motivation, organization skills, and the ability to build respectful, approachable, and team-oriented working relationships are also highly valued.