What we’re looking for        
InStride is looking for a Senior Analyst, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) to join a high-performing FP&A practice (processes, software tools, etc.) that can scale with our emerging, high growth company. This role will perform analysis and prepare reports to support the annual budget process, contribute to financial and operational close and reporting processes, and assist in putting together the financial forecast.

The ideal candidate will be able to partner with leaders and team members to provide financial / analytical guidance and influence key decisions that enable the company to achieve its core mission and improve enterprise value. This candidate will be a dynamic individual who can objectively research and analyze sophisticated issues and present recommendations in a clear and simple way to elicit support from other team members.

This is a hands-on seat on a small team. You will own recurring deliverables end to end - the model, the tie-out, the commentary and the slide - for audiences that include our executive team, our board, our sponsor and our lenders.

Skills we’d love to see you show off

• Financial Analysis: Expertise in modeling, variance analysis, and budgeting to drive informed decisions.
• Collaborative Problem-Solving: Skilled in partnering across teams to shape strategy and drive business results.
• Systems Proficiency: Experienced with tools like NetSuite, Cube and Tableau, focusing on automation and process improvement.
• AI Fluency: Comfortable using AI tools to move faster on analysis, drafting and quality checks — and clear-eyed about where they help, where they don’t, and what still has to be verified by hand.
• Presentation & Communication: Ability to translate complex data into clear insights for leaders and stakeholders.
• Attention to Detail: Instinct to tie numbers out across files and systems before they go to a CFO, a board or an auditor, and to flag a variance rather than quietly bridge it.
• Curiosity & Learning: Passion for understanding trends and continuously developing skills.
• Analytical Thinking: Capable of identifying problems and offering innovative growth solutions.
• Adaptability: Thrive in fast-paced settings, managing priorities with a high standard of work.
• Cultural Awareness: Strong in navigating diverse environments, fostering inclusion, and building relationships.

Who you are

• You believe in the power of education to transform lives and are motivated by the impact we’re making. You share our values of inclusivity, authenticity, and commitment to social good.
• You enjoy working closely with others and believe that the best solutions come from diverse perspectives. You’re eager to partner with colleagues from across the business, bringing financial insights that drive collective success.
• You’re naturally curious and constantly seeking out new knowledge, whether it’s about market trends, financial systems, new AI tooling, or how to be a better teammate.
• You are proactive and take initiative. You thrive in environments where things move quickly and priorities can shift, and you’re ready to adapt without missing a beat.
• You are dependable in the unglamorous moments. When something lands late in the day or needs one more check before it goes out, you pick it up and close it out without being chased.
• You understand that people are at the core of what we do. You can navigate different personality types and work styles with ease, creating a positive and psychologically safe environment for everyone.
• You’re passionate about making a difference, not just for business but for society. You seek roles where your work can have a lasting impact, and you’re excited about being part of a mission-driven company.

EXPERIENCE WE’RE LOOKING FOR

• 4+ years of finance experience, preferably in a high-growth technology company or consulting firm
• Prior experience working for a private-equity backed company, including the reporting cadence that comes with a sponsor and lenders
• Proven track record of achievement and delivering impactful results
• Strong background in financial analysis with strong problem-solving skills
• Consistent track record to distill issues into simple, structured frameworks that can be clearly communicated to key leaders and partners inside and outside of the company
• Experience partnering with leaders across sales, marketing, R&D, operations, etc.
• A curiosity and aim to thoroughly analyze issues and to come forward with clear recommendations for moving forward
• Strong communication skills, including the ability to communicate effectively with individuals at all levels of the organization
• Proven ability in a fast-paced environment and motivated by the challenge
• Experience working in key systems to help improve and automate the finance function (ERP, FP&A, Analytics, CRM, etc.)
• Prior experience with NetSuite, Cube and Tableau is a plus
• Hands-on use of AI tools in finance or analytical workflow is a plus — we care more about judgment in applying them than about any tool
• Ability to collaborate across teams internally and with partners e.g. with universities, corporate clients and the team

How you will create impact

PLANNING & FORECASTING

• Assist in updating the long-range financial forecast model and partner with other teams across the organization to ensure that the modeling assumptions are reasonable and current
• Help drive the annual budgeting process for functional areas, maintaining the budget templates and scenarios that functional leaders build from
• Own headcount and contractor cost forecasting - roster-level detail, burden rates and role-by-role phasing — and reconcile it back to the plan each cycle

CLOSE, REPORTING & AUDIT

• Assist in the creation, consolidation and distribution of monthly reports and critical metrics to key partners
• Support the monthly financial close process and the annual financial audit as required
• Prepare the recurring YTD and full-year reporting packages requested by our external auditors, lenders and sponsor, and stand behind the tie-outs between the model, the general ledger and the reported figures
• Perform detailed budget vs. actual variance reports to each functional leader within the organization and support in presenting/distributing

BUSINESS PARTNERING & DECISION SUPPORT

• Build and manage relationships across the business and be the POC for analytical support for assigned teams
• Build decks and presentations for executives, the board of directors, and partners/clients — including P&L commentary, revenue bridges and segment or KPI pages that hold up to line-by-line scrutiny
• Provide decision support (return on investment, NPV, benchmarking, etc.) on company decisions (partnerships, customer contracts, M&A activities, etc.)
• Analyze vendor, cloud and other significant spend categories, separating what scales with the business from what does not, and bring cost-efficiency opportunities forward

SYSTEMS, AUTOMATION & AI

• Help research, select, implement, and refine processes and systems to optimize the efficiency and performance of the FP&A team
• Work in our FP&A platform (Cube) and ERP (NetSuite) to maintain scenarios, data fetches and mappings, so the plan and the actuals stay connected without manual rebuilds
• Put AI to work on the parts of the job that are repeatable — first-draft variance commentary, reconciliation checks, deck production, summarizing source documents — and apply judgment about where a human tie-out is still required before anything reaches an executive audience
• Develop an understanding of the markets, customers, and products to provide more substantial financial and analytical support to the organization
• Perform ad required hoc research, analysis, and reporting