Director, Finance Business Partner

Your Impact at Lila

• Lila Sciences is scaling its Scientific Superintelligence platform, and we’re building the finance backbone to match. You’ll be a builder-operator who partners with our leadership team to turn data into decisions and to bring structure in ambiguity.
• Ideal profile: You’re a builder‑operator who partners deeply with leaders to turn data into decisions, bring clear structure, and raise the bar on operating rigor. You stand up dynamic planning processes, design the KPI and reporting engine leaders rely on, and shape resource allocation across lab automation, robotics, compute, real estate, and other key resources. You know how to juggle between refining the cash runway, pressure‑testing major investments, and distilling clear recommendations for executives, the Board, and investors. You communicate with clarity, using an 80/20 mindset and strong ownership to drive outsized impact.

What You'll Be Building

• Strategic Finance Leadership
  • Serve as the primary finance business partner for our Autonomous Science Platform division, providing end‑to‑end financial leadership: planning, performance management, investment governance, and risk/controls.
  • Translate strategy into financial outcomes with clear P&L, cash, and capital implications; frame tradeoffs and decisions clearly for leaders.
  • Produce Board and investor materials; support fundraising and diligence with crisp analyses and data room prep
• Forecasting, insights, and communications
  • Assist with cash runway modeling and scenario planning; pressure-test assumptions and communicate risks/opportunities
  • Lead headcount and capacity planning across rapidly growing teams; track hiring pace and resource allocation among critical projects
  • Translate complex data into clear narratives, recommendations, and decision frameworks for executives and cross-functional leaders
• Build and scale FP&A foundations
  • Co-own the design and rollout of financial models and rolling forecasts encompassing headcount, OPEX, CAPEX, lab/robotics costs, cloud/GPU spend, and facilities expansion
  • Help to iterate and expand the KPI framework and monthly/quarterly reporting package; automate dashboards and variance analyses for executives and budget owners
  • Help implement and operationalize an FP&A tool for collaborative planning; leveraging integrations with NetSuite, HiBob, Greenhouse, Ramp, and Salesforce to streamline reporting
• Systems, data, and process improvement
  • Build on and help further implement the FP&A operating cadence in concert with the overall Lila operating rhythm (MBR/QBRs, ELT reviews, Board prep, and investor updates); codify best practices
  • Partner with Accounting, IT, and Procurement to enhance data quality, CoA structure, and source-of-truth metrics
• Operate like an owner
  • Move fast with an 80/20 mindset while knowing when precision matters; bring structure to ambiguity and ship iteratively
  • Model high integrity, low ego, and a bias to action; raise the bar for analytical rigor and clarity

What You’ll Need to Succeed

• 7-10+ years in FP&A, strategic finance, investment banking, consulting, or similar analytical roles; startup or scale-up experience strongly preferred
• Demonstrated zero-to-one build experience: driver-based models, annual planning, rolling forecasts, KPI dashboards, and management reporting
• Strong financial acumen and accounting fluency; adept at wrangling imperfect datasets and reconciling to source systems
• Clear, concise communicator who can simplify complexity, influence cross-functionally, and present to executives and the Board
• Thrives under tight timelines and changing priorities; balances precision with pragmatism in a high-growth, resource-constrained environment.
• Bachelor’s degree in finance, economics, engineering, math, or related field (MBA/CFA a plus but not required).

Bonus Points For

• Domain familiarity with AI-driven R&D, life sciences, or hardware/automation-heavy environments
• Experience implementing or scaling FP&A process within