Strategic Finance Manager at Earnest

Earnest’s mission is to make higher education accessible and affordable for everyone. We empower past, present, and soon-to-be students to maximize their financial futures through thoughtful guidance and impactful products.

We build tools that help people feel in control of their financial future, including:

• Private student loans - low rates, people-first service, and flexible payments.
• Student loan refinancing - break free from high interest rates or monthly payments.
• Scholarships - access to thousands of scholarships to help students pay less. 

The Strategic Finance Manager position will report to Senior Manager, Financial Planning & Analysis.

As the Strategic Finance Manager, you will:

• Serve as a pivotal leader within Earnest, providing crucial financial insights, and strategic guidance to inform decision-making to support senior leadership
• Design, develop, and maintain advanced financial models to facilitate these activities, along with managing revenue forecasting processes
• Be responsible for synthesizing financial and operational data into clear, actionable insights and recommendations
• Involve working closely with senior management to develop comprehensive financial strategies and guide investment decisions

Your Impact:

• Develop partnerships with business leaders across General Management, Marketing, Product, and other functions in the development and execution of strategic plans, initiatives, and overall corporate strategy
• Conduct detailed analysis of key performance indicators, business drivers, and trends to identify opportunities for growth and profitability to improve company performance and surface results of analysis to offer recommendations that yield significant measurable financial impact
• Develop return on investment frameworks and processes to guide financial strategy and facilitate strategic decision-making for top company initiatives
• Develop, update, and maintain long-range scenario-based financial models to guide strategic planning
• Construct driver-based financial models from bottom up for existing and new business lines by closely collaborating with business partners to understand key business drivers and inputs and work closely with various stakeholders to build and validate assumptions used in models and forecasts
• Provide assistance during the monthly close process. Ensure all top-line revenue-related entries are properly captured, recorded, and transferred to the consolidated P&L

About You: 

• 5+  years of experience in strategic finance, investment banking, management consulting, private equity, corporate FP&A, or other related fields
• High proficiency with Excel, Google Sheets, PowerPoint, and Financial ERP systems
• Experience working with C-suite level leadership (direct reporting, presentations, etc.) and comfortable speaking in large groups
• Experience building dynamic financial models and experience working with large data sets to disseminate trend analysis for forecasting / manipulating data to tell a story with supporting evidence
• Experience and/or knowledge of the lending industry, amortization tables, loan loss models, securitization structures, warehouse financing facilities and risk-based pricing
• Ability to build strong relationships of trust & influence, ability to lead work initiatives with cross-functional coordination with stakeholders

Even Better:

• MBA a plus
• Prior experience working in the lending industry is highly valuable and/or familiarity with the FinTech landscape, including emerging trends, technologies, and regulatory requirements
• Knowledge of GAAP Accounting and Non-GAAP Investor Reporting
• Knowledge of database and accounting systems software (Workday, Hyperion, and Data Warehouses)
• SQL or other database coding experience
• Experience rolling out new products/analyzing new product financials

About Us:

What makes an “Earnie” culture: 

• Drivers – Drivers are satisfied by making things happen, not coming along for the ride. They feel a strong sense of ownership for their projects and teams and demand high standards from themselves and others.
• Humility – Humble team players check their egos and consider the team’s needs above their own. They are self-aware of their strengths and opportunities for improvement.
• Growth Mindset – People with a growth mindset approach challenges and failures as learning opportunities. They seek feedback to improve, give feedback to others, and genuinely want to perform well. 

Earnies are committed to helping students live their best lives, free from the stress of student debt. If you’re as passionate as we are about our mission, read more below, and let’s build something great together! 

Earnest believes in enabling our employees to live their best lives. We offer a variety of perks and competitive benefits, including: 

• Health, Dental, & Vision benefits plus savings plans
• Work anywhere in the U.S. 
• Mac computers + work from home stipend to set up your home office
• Monthly internet and phone reimbursement
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan
• RSUs
• 401(k) plan to help you save for retirement plus a company match
• Robust tuition reimbursement program
• $1,000 travel perk on each Earnie-versary to anywhere in the world 
• Competitive days of annual PTO
• Annual “my day” 
• Pet insurance!
• Competitive parental leave
• Plenty of Earnest swag, optional in person team gatherings, picnics, celebrations, and plenty of fun virtual events 

At Earnest, we are committed to building an environment where our employees feel included, valued, and heard. Our belief is that a strong commitment to diversity, inclusion, equity, and belonging enables us to move forward with our mission. We are dedicated to adding new perspectives to the team and encourage anyone to apply if your experience is close to what we are looking for.  

Earnest provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status disability or genetics. Qualified applicants with criminal histories will be considered for the position in a manner consistent with the Fair Chance Ordinance.

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