What are the responsibilities and job description for the FP&A Business Partner, R&D and Product position at Aderant?
Aderant is a global industry leading software company providing comprehensive business management solutions for law firms and other professional services organizations with a mission to help them run a better business. We are motivated by a collective desire to drive the legal industry to the forefront of innovation. With over 2,500 clients around the world, including 95 of the top AmLaw 100 firms, we are changing the outside perception of the legal sphere; where there was once resistance to modernization, we are creating a culture that embraces new ideas and technology.
At Aderant, the “A” is more than just a letter. It is a representation of how we fulfill our foundational purpose, serving our clients. It embodies our core values and reminds us that to achieve success, every day must start with the “A”. We bring the “A” to life by fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and personal growth. We encourage our diverse teams to bring their whole selves to work – ideas, experience, and passion – to drive our mission forward.
Our people are our strength.
We are seeking a highly analytical and detail-oriented FP&A Business Partner to support our R&D and Product organizations. In this role, you will act as the primary finance partner to Product Management, R&D, and Cloud Ops leaders, providing financial insights to support product investment decisions, resource planning, and long-term strategy. You will be responsible for budgeting, forecasting, and performance analysis across product development initiatives, translating complex financial data into clear, actionable insights.
The ideal candidate has a strong FP&A foundation, experience partnering with non-finance stakeholders, and a curiosity for how product strategy, resourcing, and financial outcomes intersect.
Responsibilities
At Aderant, the “A” is more than just a letter. It is a representation of how we fulfill our foundational purpose, serving our clients. It embodies our core values and reminds us that to achieve success, every day must start with the “A”. We bring the “A” to life by fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and personal growth. We encourage our diverse teams to bring their whole selves to work – ideas, experience, and passion – to drive our mission forward.
Our people are our strength.
We are seeking a highly analytical and detail-oriented FP&A Business Partner to support our R&D and Product organizations. In this role, you will act as the primary finance partner to Product Management, R&D, and Cloud Ops leaders, providing financial insights to support product investment decisions, resource planning, and long-term strategy. You will be responsible for budgeting, forecasting, and performance analysis across product development initiatives, translating complex financial data into clear, actionable insights.
The ideal candidate has a strong FP&A foundation, experience partnering with non-finance stakeholders, and a curiosity for how product strategy, resourcing, and financial outcomes intersect.
Responsibilities
- Financial Planning & Forecasting:
- Own budgets, forecasts, and long-range plans for R&D, Cloud Ops, and Product teams.
- Partner with functional leaders to understand headcount plans, project timelines, and investment priorities.
- Track actuals versus plan and explain variances with clear operational and financial drivers.
- Business Partnering & Decision Support:
- Serve as a trusted finance advisor to Product and Engineering leadership.
- Support financial business cases for new product initiatives, feature development, and tooling investments.
- Analyze ROI, cost drivers, and tradeoffs related to product development and roadmap decisions.
- Reporting & Performance Management:
- Develop and maintain management reporting and dashboards for R&D and Product performance.
- Partner with Product and R&D leaders to align operational KPIs (delivery velocity, roadmap execution, etc.) with financial outcomes and investment performance.
- Provide insights on spend efficiency, productivity trends, and investment outcomes.
- Prepare executive-level summaries and presentations highlighting key risks, opportunities, and recommendations.
- Forecasting, Budgeting & Long-Range Planning:
- Support annual planning, quarterly forecast cycles, and multi-year product investment planning.
- Analyze historical trends and partner with Product and Engineering to refine forward-looking assumptions.
- Improve forecast accuracy through better cost visibility and planning discipline.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration & Process Improvement:
- Partner closely with Accounting on accruals and expense classification where applicable.
- Collaborate with FP&A peers to improve planning processes, reporting consistency, and analytical rigor.
- Leverage FP&A systems and tools to automate reporting and scale insights.
- Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a related field.
- 3–5 years of experience in FP&A, corporate finance, or a related analytical role.
- Strong financial modeling, forecasting, and variance analysis skills.
- Advanced Excel skills, including PivotTables, lookup functions, and scenario modeling.
- Strong communication skills with the ability to translate financial data for non-finance audiences.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
- Preferred:
- Experience in a SaaS, technology, or product-driven business.
- Experience partnering with Product, Engineering, or R&D teams is preferred.
- Familiarity with product development or Agile methodologies.
- Experience with FP&A tools such as Adaptive, Anaplan, or similar platforms.
- Experience with Power BI, Tableau, or other data modeling/dashboarding tools