What are the responsibilities and job description for the Senior Financial Planning Manager position at Iridium?
Company Overview
Iridium is an award-winning and innovative satellite communications company with bragging rights to the only network that offers voice and data connectivity anywhere in the world. For over 20 years, Iridium’s unique network and services have supported critical communications needs for individuals, businesses, and the evolving Internet of Things.
At Iridium, we understand the importance of staying connected and the limitations of traditional communications networks. People across the globe, including first responders, humanitarians, global militaries, scientific researchers, and lone workers, as well as ships, aircraft and remote operations all rely on Iridium to stay connected. We take our responsibility for providing these essential communications very seriously and pride ourselves on offering a reliable lifeline when needed. Likewise, Iridium is committed to providing an exciting and innovative workplace, where employees are challenged to think outside the box and collaborate on new, bold ideas and solutions. Our talented teams are passionate about their work and the impact our company makes around the world. Iridium fosters an empowering and inclusive culture that allows employees to genuinely be their best selves. We are looking for others who want to join this truly unique company that celebrates our employees and provides the opportunity to truly make a difference in the world.
What We’re Looking For:
Iridium is in search of a Senior Financial Planning Manager to join our dynamic Financial Planning and Analysis team. In this role, you will collaborate across various functions, with a primary focus on supporting our COO Organization. Your key responsibilities will include driving analysis and forecasting that support operational efficiency, resource optimization, and data driven business decisions. We are looking for a self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced environment and brings strong analytical acumen, the ability to distill complex data into actionable insights, and polished executive communication skills. This position offers regular interaction with VP-level budget owners and exposure to C-suite executives, all within a collaborative and empowering culture that values initiative and continuous learning.
As a Senior Financial Planning Manager at Iridium, you'll have a significant opportunity to shape the role by refining processes and influencing the evolution of a new financial system towards automated reporting and planning workflows. Your contributions will play a crucial role in strategic discussions and executive decision support, making this an exciting opportunity for professional growth and development.
What You’ll Do:
This position primarily works in an office setting and is largely sedentary with the majority of the position working with a computer. The role typically requires the use of basic office equipment such as a phone, video, computer, keyboard, mouse, and printer.
We believe in-person connection drives innovation, strengthens mentorship, and builds culture, while flexibility enables employees to do their best work. Under Iridium’s Hybrid Work Policy, employees are expected to work at least three days per week (approximately 60%) in an Iridium office to support collaboration, relationship-building, and professional growth.
Additional Information
This job description outlines the general nature and level of work for this role and is not a comprehensive list of duties, responsibilities, or qualifications. Employees may be assigned additional responsibilities as needed.
Iridium is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including individuals with disabilities and protected veterans.
Iridium is an award-winning and innovative satellite communications company with bragging rights to the only network that offers voice and data connectivity anywhere in the world. For over 20 years, Iridium’s unique network and services have supported critical communications needs for individuals, businesses, and the evolving Internet of Things.
At Iridium, we understand the importance of staying connected and the limitations of traditional communications networks. People across the globe, including first responders, humanitarians, global militaries, scientific researchers, and lone workers, as well as ships, aircraft and remote operations all rely on Iridium to stay connected. We take our responsibility for providing these essential communications very seriously and pride ourselves on offering a reliable lifeline when needed. Likewise, Iridium is committed to providing an exciting and innovative workplace, where employees are challenged to think outside the box and collaborate on new, bold ideas and solutions. Our talented teams are passionate about their work and the impact our company makes around the world. Iridium fosters an empowering and inclusive culture that allows employees to genuinely be their best selves. We are looking for others who want to join this truly unique company that celebrates our employees and provides the opportunity to truly make a difference in the world.
What We’re Looking For:
Iridium is in search of a Senior Financial Planning Manager to join our dynamic Financial Planning and Analysis team. In this role, you will collaborate across various functions, with a primary focus on supporting our COO Organization. Your key responsibilities will include driving analysis and forecasting that support operational efficiency, resource optimization, and data driven business decisions. We are looking for a self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced environment and brings strong analytical acumen, the ability to distill complex data into actionable insights, and polished executive communication skills. This position offers regular interaction with VP-level budget owners and exposure to C-suite executives, all within a collaborative and empowering culture that values initiative and continuous learning.
As a Senior Financial Planning Manager at Iridium, you'll have a significant opportunity to shape the role by refining processes and influencing the evolution of a new financial system towards automated reporting and planning workflows. Your contributions will play a crucial role in strategic discussions and executive decision support, making this an exciting opportunity for professional growth and development.
What You’ll Do:
- Own and lead the financial planning cycle for your areas of responsibility, driving cross-functional alignment and accountability across annual budgets, monthly and quarterly forecasts.
- Design, enhance, and govern financial models and planning frameworks, ensuring tight integration between operational drivers, near-term forecasts, and long-term strategic investment models.
- Provide strategic financial insights and recommendations by synthesizing complex financial and operational data to inform executive decision-making, accelerate growth, and meaningfully expand margins.
- Oversee monthly financial performance management, including variance analysis, insights on business performance, and proactive recommendations that guide leadership actions.
- Serve as a key finance partner to senior functional and project leaders, shaping business cases, ROI analyses, and investment prioritization to optimize capital deployment.
- Lead preparation of executive-level financial reporting, including monthly/quarterly packages, board materials, and strategic presentations that clearly communicate performance, risks, and opportunities.
- Drive continuous improvement across FP&A processes, tools, KPIs, and automation, increasing efficiency, scalability, and accuracy of reporting and analytics.
- Mentor and guide junior team members, providing coaching, review, and thought leadership that elevates the broader FP&A organization.
- Execute and oversee complex ad hoc analysis, including scenario planning, sensitization, and business case development that supports enterprise-wide initiatives.
- Bachelor’s degree in Finance/Accounting or related field
- 8 years of progressive FP&A experience, including experience influencing senior leadership and shaping financial strategy.
- Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to distill complex issues into executive-ready narratives and guide decision-making across audiences with varied financial fluency.
- Strong leadership presence, with the ability to build trusted cross-functional relationships, challenge assumptions constructively, and influence leaders at all levels.
- Advanced analytical and critical-thinking abilities, leveraging data to diagnose issues, recommend actions, and develop innovative and scalable solutions.
- Proactive, self-directed problem solver who anticipates needs, identifies opportunities for improvement, and drives initiatives to completion.
- Demonstrated ability to manage and prioritize competing workstreams, and where applicable, oversee work performed by others to ensure deadlines and quality standards are consistently met.
- Change agent mindset, with experience leading process enhancements, system improvements, or analytics modernization efforts.
- Proven ability to drive improved financial outcomes through insight, analysis, and operational partnership.
- Expert-level Excel and financial modeling proficiency, including automation and advanced functions.
- Strong working knowledge of MS Office applications (PowerPoint, Word, Outlook, Teams).
- MBA, CMA certification and/or CPA Degree
- Experience leading system implementations, tool enhancements, or analytics transformation initiatives (preferred tools OneStream, Workday/Adaptive Planning, Hyperion, TM1, Power BI)
This position primarily works in an office setting and is largely sedentary with the majority of the position working with a computer. The role typically requires the use of basic office equipment such as a phone, video, computer, keyboard, mouse, and printer.
We believe in-person connection drives innovation, strengthens mentorship, and builds culture, while flexibility enables employees to do their best work. Under Iridium’s Hybrid Work Policy, employees are expected to work at least three days per week (approximately 60%) in an Iridium office to support collaboration, relationship-building, and professional growth.
Additional Information
This job description outlines the general nature and level of work for this role and is not a comprehensive list of duties, responsibilities, or qualifications. Employees may be assigned additional responsibilities as needed.
Iridium is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including individuals with disabilities and protected veterans.