Principal Financial Analyst

The Principal Financial Analyst is the senior-most individual contributor on the Finance team and serves as the organization’s subject matter expert for financial analysis, forecasting, and financial modeling. This position leads the Cooperative’s most complex and high-impact analytical work, including long-range financial planning, capital and financing strategy, and supports rate and pricing analysis, and translates the results into clear, actionable recommendations for executive leadership and the Board of Directors.

Working with a high degree of autonomy and broad organizational impact, the Principal Financial Analyst establishes analytical standards and best practices, drives enterprise-wide process improvement and automation, strengthens internal controls, and mentors and develops Financial Analysts, Financial Budget Analysts, and other members of the Finance Team. This position partners with accounting, treasury, and operational leaders to support sound, mission-aligned decision-making that serves the Cooperative’s members and maintains compliance with relevant regulations, lender requirements, and internal policies.

• Lead the Cooperative’s most complex financial analyses, identifying trends, variances, risks, and opportunities, and deliver clear, well-supported recommendations to executive leadership and the Board of Directors.
• Lead the annual budget and multi-year financial forecasting processes, coordinating inputs across the organization, setting assumptions, and ensuring plans align with strategic priorities and financial targets.
• Design, build, and maintain enterprise financial models, including long-range financial plans, scenario and sensitivity analyses, and stress tests, to evaluate capital investments, financing strategies, rate and pricing proposals, and other strategic initiatives.
• Analyze the financial impact of strategic decisions, major projects, and changes in the operating or regulatory environment, and advise leadership on risks, trade-offs, and long-term financial sustainability.
• Prepare, review, and present accurate financial reports and analyses for internal and external stakeholders, including executive leadership, the Board of Directors, lenders, and rating agencies.
• Monitor key financial metrics and performance indicators, such as margins, liquidity, leverage, and debt service coverage, and recommend corrective actions to keep the Cooperative within its financial targets and covenants.
• Establish and maintain analytical standards, model governance, documentation, and review protocols to ensure the accuracy, consistency, and integrity of financial analysis and reporting.
• Serve as a technical resource and escalation point for Financial Analysts and Financial Budget Analysts; review their work and provide coaching, training, and mentoring to build the team’s analytical capabilities.
• Collaborate with accounting, treasury, and operational leaders to improve financial performance and to ensure financial data, assumptions, and forecasts are consistent across the organization.
• Design and maintain executive dashboards and key performance indicator frameworks that enable leaders to monitor performance and make timely, data-driven decisions.
• Lead enterprise-wide process improvement and automation initiatives that streamline accounting operations, budgeting, forecasting, and reporting.
• Lead audit and compliance activities, including preparing documentation and responding to auditors and regulators, and develop and continuously strengthen internal controls over financial analysis and reporting.
• Resolve complex, non-routine, and ambiguous financial issues, and lead cross-functional special projects as assigned by the CFO organization.
• Partner…