Director, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A)

Director of FP&A

Reports To: Head of FP&A 
Position Type: Full-Time, High-Impact Leadership 

Location: Santa Clara, CA (Onsite) 

The Role 

We are searching for a Director of FP&A who goes far beyond standard budgeting and spreadsheet management. This is a high-visibility, hands-on leadership role designed for a heavy-hitter who can comfortably sit at the intersection of breakthrough technology and complex commerce. 

In this position, you will be the ultimate connective tissue of our business. Your mission is to connect the dots between Hardware and Software R&D investments, Engineering constraints, and complex, high-value sales cycles. As a critical co-pilot to the business, you will synthesize financial narrative out of data, providing the CFO and the Executive Team with the strategic visibility required to scale our global footprint. 

Key Responsibilities 

1. R&D & Engineering Strategic Partnership

• Capital Allocation & ROI Modeling: Partner with R&D and Engineering leaders to guide resource allocation and build scenario-driven financial models that track investments from early development through commercialization. 
   

• COGS & Margin Analysis: Assess how engineering design changes, manufacturing requirements, and hardware/software deployment architectures affect cost and gross margin. 

1. Commercial & High-Value Sales Connectivity

• Pipeline to Capacity Alignment: Connect sales pipeline indicators to manufacturing capacity and engineering deployment schedules, ensuring top-line projections align perfectly with operational capabilities. 

• Deal Structuring & Optimization: Act as the finance anchor for complex, high-value sales pipelines. Evaluate discounting thresholds, bundled hardware and software arrangements, multi-year software-as-a-service (SaaS) components, hardware leasing options, and associated revenue recognition impacts. 

1. Executive Planning & Decision Support

• Executive & Board Decision Support: Partner with the Head of FP&A to translate cross-functional inputs into clear analysis, board materials, and decision-ready recommendations for the CFO and executive team. 

• Planning, Insights & FP&A Automation: Lead three-statement rolling forecasts, long-range plans, and variance analysis while automating data consolidation, reporting, and core planning workflows. Build scalable processes and self-service insights that improve speed, accuracy, and visibility for business leaders. 

What We Are Looking For (Requirements) 

• The Core Background: 8–10+ years of progressive corporate finance and FP&A experience, with at least 3+ years at a Director or Senior Manager level within a complex technology company (ideally involving a blend of deep hardware R&D and enterprise/analytics software components). 

• Cross-Functional Translator: A proven track record of successfully partnering with brilliant engineers, product managers, and enterprise sales leaders. You must speak both "technical product" and "commercial scale." 

• Financial Modeling & Executive Communication: Advanced financial modeling skills and sound business judgment, with the ability to distill that analysis into concise, decision-ready recommendations for the executive team. 

• Education & Pedigree: Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Engineering, Economics, or a related quantitative field. An MBA, CFA, or professional equivalent from a highly regarded program is strongly preferred. 

Why You Want This Job 

You will not be stuck in a back-office corner running repetitive monthly variances. You will have a seat at the table where technology meets business execution. If you thrive on complexity, possess an unshakeable work ethic, love breaking down cross-functional silos, and want a clear path to driving enterprise-level strategy alongside a world-class executive team, this is your role. 

The base salary range for this full-time position is $200K to $240K. Our total compensation packages include base salary, bonus eligibility, and equity. Your base salary range and title will be determined based on the location, experience, qualification, skills, knowledge, level, and pay of employees in similar positions. 

We offer a comprehensive benefit package including: 

• Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance 

• Flexible Spending Account (FSA) and Health Savings Account (HSA) plans 

• Life, Short-Term Disability, and Long-Term Disability Insurance 

• Paid Time Off and Paid Holidays 

• Employee Referral Program 

• 401K 

• Social events (summer picnic, holiday party, team lunches, etc.) 
• On-site Health & Wellness programs (fitness challenges, outdoor bootcamp, flu-shots, etc.) 

About Picarro: 

We are the world's leader in timely, trusted, and actionable data using enhanced optical spectroscopy. Our solutions are used in a wide variety of applications, including natural gas leak detection, ethylene oxide emissions monitoring, semiconductor fabrication, pharmaceutical, petrochemical, atmospheric science, air quality, greenhouse gas measurements, food safety, hydrology, ecology, and more. Our software and hardware are designed and manufactured in Santa Clara, California and are used in over 90 countries worldwide based on over 65 patents related to cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) technology and are unparalleled in their precision, ease of use, and reliability. 

At Picarro, we are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, sex, color, religion, national origin, protected veteran status, gender identity, social orientation, or disability. Posted positions are not open to third-party recruiters/agencies, and unsolicited resume submissions will be considered free referrals.  

At Picarro, we strive to ensure that all individuals, regardless of their abilities, have equal opportunities. If you are an individual with a disability and require reasonable accommodation to complete any part of the application process or are limited in the ability or unable to access or use this online application process and need an alternative method for applying, please contact Picarro, Inc. at disabilityassistance@picarro.com for assistance.