Senior Accounts payable specialist - Fixed Term 1 Year

Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization:

At adidas, we have a clear purpose: “Through sport, we have the power to change lives.” This guiding principle shapes how we operate as a company, how we collaborate with our partners, how we create our products, and how we connect with our consumers. Our values represent essential behaviors and mindsets, reflecting the “You Got This” attitude we strive to see in every team member.

This same purpose and mindset are at the heart of Global Business Services (GBS) the team that delivers consistent, end-to-end business solutions across adidas. By driving process excellence and operational efficiency, GBS enables our partners to focus on what matters most: creating impact.

Within GBS, the Accounts Payable Senior Specialist is responsible for ensuring the accuracy and compliance of vendor-related transactions within the Source to Pay – Accounts Payable process. The role goes beyond invoice postings, focusing on vendor account reconciliations, resolution of vendor queries, and validation of postings ensuring alignment with accounting principles and applicable regulations across the Americas.

By combining strong analytical skills with attention to detail, the AP Senior Specialist supports the integrity of financial records, supports the delivery of month end reports, audit controls and provides visibility on open items and root-causes, ensuring timely resolution of discrepancies with both internal stakeholders and external vendors.

As part of the operational excellence framework, the AP Sr Analyst plays a key role in maintaining reliable vendor relationships, safeguarding compliance, and contributing to the continuous improvement of Accounts Payable KPIs. 

Key Responsibilities:           

• Reconciles key vendor statements with tax authority reports and adidas financial records to ensure accurate and healthy vendor balances, providing stakeholders with clear visibility of findings and supporting issue troubleshooting.
• Monitor and maintain accuracy of high-risk or strategic supplier accounts, proactively identifying anomalies and implementing corrective actions.
• Act as the escalation point for vendor queries, driving effective and timely resolution through collaboration with internal teams and external partners.
• Validate and oversee invoice postings performed by the processing team, ensuring compliance with accounting standards, tax regulations, and adidas internal controls.
• Ensure business continuity by processing urgent invoices and resolving payment-blocking issues under tight deadlines.
• Perform root cause analysis on recurring or complex discrepancies, recommending and implementing preventive actions and driving continuous improvement initiatives.
• Support month-end closing and reporting activities, ensuring transparency of accounts payable positions and alignment with finance timelines.
• Prepare and maintain audit-ready documentation to support both internal and external audit processes, reinforcing compliance and data integrity.
• Collaborates across teams to coordinate workload distribution, resolve complex cases efficiently, and foster cross-functional alignment.
• Act as a point of reference for best practices, mentoring team members and supporting continuous improvement initiatives focused on efficiency, quality, and standardization across markets.

Key Relationships:

• Internal: local market finance teams, internal control, procurement teams, GPO and IT support.
• External: Vendors/suppliers, external auditors.
• Operational Partners: Delivery team (for invoice postings) business users (for GR/PO resolution).

Requisite Education and Experience / Minimum Qualifications:

• Language Skills: Fluent in Portuguese and Spanish; English is a plus.
• University degree in Accounting, Commerce/Business Administration/Finance.
• +4 years’ relevant work experience in the AP area and reconciliation of vendor accounts.
• Demonstrated ability to apply analytical and problem-solving methodologies to complex financial cases.
• Professional Skills: Strong financial acumen with both AP and T&E exposure; Solid understanding of accounting principles, tax implications, and compliance controls in the Americas region.
• Highly adaptable, collaborative, and customer-focused, with the ability to influence cross-functional teams and foster a culture of accountability and excellence.
• Demonstrated continuous improvement mindset, driving process enhancements and efficiency through technology and best practices.