Director, FP&A-Budgeting & Forecasting

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Full Time Director Albany, NY, US

Salary Range: $ To $ Annually

We are seeking a Director, FP&A — Budgeting & Forecasting to lead financial planning, budgeting, forecasting, and long-range planning for First Light Fiber. This role will own the annual planning cycle, rolling forecast process, and management reporting while serving as a strategic financial partner to the SVP, Finance and executive leadership team.

The Director, FP&A — Budgeting & Forecasting is a senior finance leadership role responsible for driving the company's planning and forecasting processes end to end. Reporting directly to the SVP, Finance, this leader will deliver actionable financial insight, lead a team of FP&A professionals, and partner cross-functionally across Network, Operations, Sales, Marketing, and Technology.

• Lead the end-to-end annual budget process across delivering a consolidated, board-ready financial plan.
• Build and maintain integrated budget models covering revenue by product, capital expenditures, operating costs, and headcount.
• Establish the budget calendar, governance framework, and executive review cadence to ensure on-time delivery and senior leadership alignment.
• Own the rolling 12-to-18-month forecast process, providing timely and accurate visibility into financial performance and risk.
• Lead long-range plan, incorporating subscriber growth assumptions, spectrum deployment timelines, competitive dynamics, and macro-economic factors specific to the telecom sector.
• Develop scenario and sensitivity analyses (ARPU compression, churn, capex cycles, regulatory changes) to support capital allocation and strategic decision-making.
• Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual management reporting packages for the CFO, CEO, and Board of Directors, including variance analysis, bridge analyses, and forward-looking commentary.
• Develop executive dashboards tracking key telecom KPIs: ARPU, installs, churn, EBITDA margin, capex efficiency, and free cash flow.
• Support investor relations with financial analysis and earnings guidance inputs.
• Serve as a financial advisor to Network, Technology, Sales, and Marketing leadership on major strategic and capital investment decisions, including network buildouts, spectrum acquisitions, and M&A opportunities.
• Evaluate and optimize FP&A technology solutions) to improve planning accuracy and reduce cycle time.
• Drive automation of recurring reporting and forecasting; identify opportunities for advanced analytics and AI-enhanced forecast capabilities.
• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of FP&A professionals with clear performance expectations and individual development plans.
• Support ad hoc financial analyses, special projects, and executive data requests as business needs evolve.

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a related field required; MBA, CPA, or CFA strongly preferred.
• 7+ years of progressive finance experience, with at least 3 years in FP&A leadership roles.
• Telecommunications industry experience preferred but not required.
• Proven track record managing full-cycle budget and forecast processes in a complex, multi-segment business environment.
• Experience supporting Finance leadership and presenting to executive leadership and boards of directors.
• Expert-level Excel modeling; hands-on experience with FP&A platforms such as Anaplan, Adaptive Insights, One Stream, Hyperion, or Oracle EPM.
• Proficiency with ERP systems (SAP, Oracle, Netsuite or similar) and BI tools (Power BI, Tableau, Looker).
• Deep understanding of telecom financial metrics including ARPU, EBITDA, capex intensity, churn, and subscriber economics.
• Exceptional executive communication skills; ability to translate complex analysis into clear narratives for non-finance audiences.
• Strong cross-functional influencing skills and ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Collaborative leadership style with a genuine commitment to team development and mentorship.

First Light, headquartered in Albany, New York, provides fiber-optic data, Internet, data center, cloud and voice services to enterprise and carrier customers throughout the Northeast connecting more than 13,000 locations in service with more than 125,000 locations serviceable by our more than 25,000-route mile network. First Light offers a robust suite of advanced telecommunications products featuring a comprehensive portfolio of high bandwidth connectivity solutions including Ethernet, wavelength, and dark fiber services as well as dedicated Internet access solutions, data center, cloud and voice services.

First Light’s clientele includes national cellular providers and wireline carriers and many leading enterprises, spanning high tech manufacturing and research, hospitals and healthcare, banking and…