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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for FP&A Manager

💰 $120,000 - $165,000

FinanceAccountingFinancial Planning & Analysis

🎯 Role Definition

Are you a strategic thinker with a passion for numbers and a talent for telling the story behind them? This role requires a highly motivated FP&A Manager to join our dynamic finance team. This isn't just about crunching numbers; it's about being a true strategic partner to the business. You will be the financial compass for senior leadership, translating complex data into actionable insights that drive intelligent business decisions, shape our company's direction, and fuel our growth. As the leader of our planning and forecasting cycles, you will have a direct impact on our operational efficiency and long-term success.


📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Senior Financial Analyst
  • Finance Business Partner
  • Senior Accountant with strong analytical experience

Advancement To:

  • Director of FP&A
  • Senior Manager, FP&A
  • VP of Finance

Lateral Moves:

  • Corporate Strategy Manager
  • Corporate Development Manager
  • Operations Finance Manager

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Lead the end-to-end annual budgeting and quarterly forecasting processes, partnering with department heads to build robust, assumption-driven financial plans that align with strategic corporate objectives.
  • Prepare and deliver comprehensive monthly and quarterly financial reporting packages for executive leadership and the Board of Directors, complete with insightful variance analysis and clear commentary on business performance trends.
  • Develop, maintain, and enhance complex financial models to support long-range strategic planning, scenario analysis, and critical business initiatives like new market entries or product launches.
  • Serve as a key finance business partner to executive and operational leaders, providing data-driven recommendations and sound financial guidance to support high-impact decision-making.
  • Analyze and interpret key performance indicators (KPIs) and business drivers, proactively identifying trends, risks, and opportunities to improve operational performance and profitability.
  • Oversee the consolidation and management of the company-wide P&L, balance sheet, and cash flow forecasting, ensuring accuracy and alignment with corporate targets.
  • Drive the financial narrative by preparing compelling presentation materials for investor relations calls, board meetings, and all-hands presentations.
  • Manage, mentor, and develop a team of financial analysts, cultivating their skills and ensuring the delivery of high-quality, accurate work.
  • Partner closely with the accounting team during the month-end close process to ensure the accuracy of financial statements and provide analytical support for accruals and journal entries.
  • Challenge existing assumptions and business paradigms by providing an objective, data-backed perspective in strategic discussions and business reviews.
  • Spearhead the development of detailed business cases and ROI analyses for proposed capital expenditures and strategic investments.
  • Analyze operational and financial data to uncover opportunities for significant cost savings, process efficiencies, and revenue optimization.
  • Own the headcount and workforce planning models in collaboration with Human Resources, ensuring staffing plans are aligned with budget constraints and strategic goals.
  • Provide crucial financial support for potential M&A activities, including target evaluation, financial due diligence, and post-merger integration planning.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and construct exploratory financial analyses for senior management to address urgent and evolving business questions.
  • Identify and champion process improvements within the FP&A function, driving automation and scalability through the optimization of systems and workflows.
  • Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements for our BI and data warehouse teams.
  • Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data and finance systems teams to ensure alignment on key projects.
  • Monitor macroeconomic indicators and industry-specific benchmarks to provide broader context for the company's financial performance and strategic outlook.
  • Assist in the preparation of lender compliance reporting and covenant calculations as required by our credit facilities.
  • Contribute to the organization's data strategy and the continuous improvement of financial systems (ERP, CPM/EPM tools).

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Advanced Financial Modeling: Demonstrated expertise in building complex, dynamic, and scalable three-statement financial models from scratch for various purposes, including valuation, forecasting, and scenario analysis.
  • Advanced Microsoft Excel: Mastery of Excel, including nested formulas, pivot tables, Power Query, and data modeling capabilities.
  • ERP & Financial Systems Proficiency: Hands-on experience with major ERP systems (e.g., NetSuite, SAP, Oracle) and EPM/CPM platforms (e.g., Anaplan, Adaptive Insights, Planful, Vena).
  • Business Intelligence (BI) Tools: Proficiency in using BI and data visualization tools like Tableau or Power BI to create insightful dashboards and reports.
  • Corporate Finance & Accounting Acumen: Strong, in-depth understanding of U.S. GAAP principles and their application to budgeting, forecasting, and financial statement analysis.
  • SQL/Data Querying: Experience with SQL for extracting and manipulating large datasets is highly preferred.

Soft Skills

  • Strategic Business Partnership: Proven ability to build trust and strong relationships with senior leaders and cross-functional stakeholders, acting as a credible and influential advisor.
  • Exceptional Communication: Superior verbal and written communication skills, with a talent for distilling complex financial information into clear, concise, and compelling narratives for non-financial audiences.
  • Leadership & Mentorship: Natural leadership qualities with experience managing, coaching, and developing junior team members.
  • Analytical & Critical Thinking: A highly analytical and curious mindset with a structured approach to problem-solving and the ability to connect disparate data points to form a cohesive conclusion.
  • Impeccable Attention to Detail: A commitment to precision and accuracy, ensuring the integrity of all financial reporting and analysis.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's Degree

Preferred Education:

  • Master of Business Administration (MBA)
  • Professional Certifications such as CPA (Certified Public Accountant) or CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) are highly regarded.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Finance
  • Accounting
  • Economics
  • Business Administration

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 5-8+ years of progressive experience in financial planning & analysis, corporate finance, investment banking, or a related analytical field. A minimum of 1-2 years in a people management or team lead capacity is strongly preferred.

Preferred:

  • Experience in a high-growth, fast-paced environment (e.g., tech, SaaS, e-commerce).
  • Experience working in a public company or a late-stage private company with rigorous reporting standards.
  • Proven track record of successfully implementing or improving financial planning systems and processes.