Senior Financial Planning Analyst

The FP&A Senior Analyst is a strategic finance partner responsible for transforming data into actionable insights that drive business performance. This role goes beyond reporting numbers — it exists to explain, influence, and improve results.

The FP&A Senior Analyst leads forecasting, budgeting, month-end analysis, and financial modeling efforts that inform critical decisions for leadership and the Board. The ideal candidate combines analytical rigor with strong business acumen, communicates clearly, and takes full ownership of deliverables from start to finish. This position requires curiosity, initiative, and the confidence to challenge assumptions while maintaining accuracy and professionalism.

Key Responsibilities

Month-End Reporting & Analysis

• Lead the month-end financial analysis process, delivering accurate and timely reporting packages that summarize company performance.
• Perform detailed variance analysis versus budget, forecast, and prior year — identifying root causes and actionable insights.
• Prepare the monthly Executive Financial Package and quarterly Board reporting slides, including commentary that clearly communicates key trends, risks, and opportunities.
• Partner with Accounting to ensure understanding of key accruals, adjustments, and timing variances impacting reported results.
• Present monthly results to Finance leadership and support follow-up analysis as needed.

Financial Planning & Forecasting

• Lead the monthly forecasting process, ensuring completion and submission by the 8th business day of each month.
• Partner with business leaders to identify drivers, risks, and opportunities that impact performance.
• Build and maintain forecasting frameworks that link operational inputs (sales, traffic, units, and headcount) to financial outcomes.
• Prepare clear variance analyses and commentary that summarize financial trends and inform future forecasts.
• Support leadership with forward-looking projections and scenario analyses that guide business decisions.

Budgeting & Strategic Planning

• Own the annual budgeting process from timeline creation to Board presentation.
• Coordinate data collection and validation across departments to ensure completeness and accuracy.
• Consolidate departmental budgets into a fully reconciled company-wide budget, with supporting schedules and assumptions.
• Develop presentation materials and narratives summarizing key takeaways, performance goals, and strategic priorities.
• Deliver a final, presentation-ready budget that requires minimal management intervention.

Financial Modeling & Analysis

• Design and maintain an integrated forecasting model that projects revenue through cash monthly.
• Use models to perform sensitivity analysis and scenario testing, evaluating the financial impact of different business outcomes.
• Continuously improve model accuracy and usability through automation, data integration, and enhanced logic.
• Translate model outputs into clear, actionable recommendations that inform leadership decisions.

Performance Reporting & Insights

• Oversee the creation and maintenance of recurring operational reports and dashboards (Power BI, Excel, or similar), ensuring the development team delivers clear, actionable insights into project progress, throughput, quality, and overall departmental performance.
• Automate recurring reports to improve efficiency and timeliness while ensuring accuracy and consistency.
• Produce executive-ready slides and analyses that summarize the “what,” “why,” and “what’s next” of company performance.
• Partner with department leaders to explain trends and ensure alignment on drivers, impacts, and corrective actions.
• Continuously evolve reporting tools to enhance clarity and relevance to the business.

Business Partnership & Communication

• Serve as the financial partner to department and operational leaders.
• Communicate proactively — sharing insights and updates before being asked.
• Participate in business reviews, providing clear financial context and recommendations for improvement.
• Build trust and credibility through consistent follow-through, accuracy, and ownership.

Process Improvement & Leadership

• Identify opportunities to streamline and automate planning, reporting, and analysis processes.
• Collaborate with IT/Development to improve data accuracy and integration across systems (ERP, Power BI, Excel).
• Mentor team members by sharing best practices in modeling, variance analysis, and presentation development.

Education & Experience Requirements

Education & Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field required; MBA or CFA a plus.
• 5–8 years of progressive experience in FP&A, corporate finance, or strategic analysis.
• Strong experience with month-end financial reporting, forecasting, and executive presentations.
• Proven ability to manage the budgeting process and deliver insights directly to senior leadership.
• Retail, distribution, or multi-location business experience preferred

Technical Skills:

• Experience with ERP systems (Royal4, STORIS, NetSuite, or comparable).
• Strong understanding of GAAP financial statements, variance analysis, and data validation.
• Ability to automate reporting processes and build efficient analytical tools.

Core Competencies:

• Extreme Ownership: Takes full accountability for results and outcomes.
• Analytical Rigor: Synthesizes large data sets into clear, actionable insights.
• Proactive Communication: Keeps leadership informed and anticipates information needs.
• Strategic Thinking: Connects financial data to business drivers and outcomes.
• Process Improvement: Continuously challenges inefficiencies to optimize performance.
• Executive Presence: Delivers analysis and recommendations confidently and clearly.

• Advanced Excel skills (complex formulas, dynamic arrays, pivot tables, scenario modeling).
• Proficiency in Power Query and Power BI or other business intelligence tools.