Director of Financial Planning & Analysis

Director of Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) – Event Technology Industry

SmartSource is a trusted partner for event technology and IT solutions, supporting event and IT professionals across North America for more than 40 years. From corporate events and entertainment to incident response and enterprise IT, we help clients deliver seamless experiences with the right technology and flawless execution. We're a fast-moving, technology-forward organization where marketing plays a critical role in driving growth. We embrace AI across our business and expect our leaders to use emerging technologies to work smarter, automate routine work, and create competitive advantage.

Position Overview:

We are seeking an executive-level Director of Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) with deep expertise tailored to the high-velocity dynamics of the Event Industry (covering entertainment, trade exhibitions, large-scale conferences and meetings, and complex venue management).

This business partner will lead our end-to-end forecasting frameworks, manage granular bottoms-up multi-project event budgeting, and transform localized production and ticketing metrics into clear business narratives for the executive team. Rather than simply calculating static variations, this business partner will define exactly what the performance numbers mean—pinpointing structural gaps in attendance, production overruns, or sponsorship lag, and drafting rigorous Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) packets that outline definitive corrective interventions. Success in this role requires delivering timely, accurate, and insightful financial reporting on a consistent monthly operating cadence, enabling business leaders to make informed decisions and adjust strategies proactively.

Key Responsibilities:

• Granular Bottoms-Up Budgeting: Architect and govern an exhaustive, driver-based bottoms-up planning model for each distinct event or production. Partner directly with regional producers and operations leads to validate baseline operational drivers (e.g., local labor scaling, product utilization, venue rental thresholds, and AV supplier commitments).
• Pipeline & Event Forecast Management: Direct rolling forecasting cadences across shifting multi-year booking horizons. Model long-range customer share of wallet for B2B pipeline velocity trends, sponsorship win-rates, and multi-tier ticketing conversion funnels.
• Executive-Grade MD&A Framing: Act as the primary financial narrator to the Executive Team. Craft corporate-level MD&A pack that shift focus away from raw math to isolate exactly why targets were missed or exceeded (e.g., variance in average ticket, dynamic pricing elasticity, and channel Pricing framework – not Account specific pricing).
• SIOP Integration and focal point on: Lead the financial integration within the Sales, Inventory, Labor and Operations Planning (SIOP) cadence. Synchronize event specific sales across end customers in home markets, sales call commitments, regional capacity peak to trough for equipment and labor leveraging new equipment and labor reservations tool, and transient infrastructure inventory seamlessly with corporate cash flow metrics.
• Pricing & Multi-Channel Distribution: Deliver intensive business analysis on ticket delivery platforms and distribution channels. Supervise tiered offerings good, better, best, channel margins, and dynamic pricing governance models to optimize gross margin yields.
• CapEx & Technical Production Accountability: Enforce institutional control over the capital expenditures (CapEx) matrix. Underwrite large-scale investments in technical staging location of gear, streaming equipment movement, event management protocol, or permanent venue renovations, backed by strict ROI/IRR metrics and post-event audits.
• Pristine & Punctual Execution: Manage and mentor an agile corporate FP&A team under a strict, uncompromised schedule—ensuring monthly Flash reports, rolling projections, linked sequential KPI's and strategic board presentations are flawless and delivered on time.

Core Qualifications & Technical Stack:

• Experience: 20+ years of progressive corporate finance and FP&A mastery, with proven success across departments venue operations ecosystems.
• Credentials: Master of Business Administration (MBA) paired with active, dual CPA and CFM credentials required.
• Technical Stack: Native capability to manipulate database structures via SQL. Advanced dashboard architecture and narrative modeling in Power BI. Full functional mastery of Smartsource operating systems in six months.
• Ability to travel once a quarter.

SmartSource is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. SmartSource does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender (including non-binary/third gender), transgender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation or affectional preference, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, status as a protected veteran, military status, marital status, or status in any group or class protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. SmartSource makes reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Rehabilitation Act, and applicable state and local laws.