Director, Financial Planning & Analysis

Director, Financial Planning & Analysis (Vancouver, BC)

About Us
Recognized as a leader in innovative energy solutions, Creative Energy designs, builds, owns, and operates sustainable district energy systems across Canada and parts of the US. Our team has a client-focused, community-vested approach to projects that deliver outstanding quality and service while providing tangible value for continued growth.

In addition to owning and operating one of Canada’s largest thermal networks in downtown Vancouver, we provide value to developers, landowners, end-users and the broader community through flexible thermal neighbourhood energy systems. Our projects focus on innovation, resiliency, and sustainability, and span across a broad spectrum of technologies including geo-exchange, ocean exchange, cogeneration, microgrids, solar PVs, and sewer heat recovery.

Serving Canadians for over 55 years with a reliability rate of 99.99%, we’re developing more than a dozen new low-carbon district energy systems across North America, including the revitalization and decarbonization of our downtown Vancouver steam plant which will be one of North America’s largest thermal fuel-switch projects and provide downtown Vancouver with renewable energy infrastructure for decades to come.

The Opportunity:
We are seeking a Director, Financial Planning & Analysis to lead a team of talented professionals and oversee the delivery of comprehensive financial planning & analysis services, while promoting a culture of corporate excellence and continuous improvement to drive value across the business. Reporting to the CFO, you will lead Long-Term Planning, Budgeting and Forecasting, Reporting and Analysis, Financing, Enterprise Risk Management and Insurance, as well as supporting the regulatory, project delivery and operations teams in analysis and decision making.

Your core responsibilities include the following:

Leadership and Management

• Provide leadership to the team through performance management, daily mentorship, and skill development, driving a deeper understanding within the team of the projects, opportunities and operations of Creative Energy.
• Work closely with other senior leaders and the CFO to support scalable growth, and ensure continuity, effectiveness, and continuous process improvement.
• Lead, manage and coach direct reports with personal integrity and in an environment of mutual respect, consistent with Creative Energy’s values, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability and innovation.

Long-Term Planning

• Develop and maintain long-term (typically 5-year outlook) financial plans and models to support strategic initiatives.
• Collaborate with senior management to align financial plans with business goals.
• Conduct scenario analysis to evaluate potential financial outcomes and risks.
• Provide strategic recommendations based on long-term financial projections.

Budgeting and Forecasting

• Lead the annual budgeting process, ensuring alignment with organizational objectives; prepares consolidated budgets and supporting schedules.
• Prepare and update financial forecasts on a regular basis; at least quarterly.
• Monitor budget performance and identify variances, recommending corrective actions.
• Work with department heads to ensure accurate and realistic budget submissions and forecast updates. Ensures budget holders clearly understand their accountabilities.

Reporting and Analysis

• Prepare and present financial reports to senior management and the board of directors.
• Conduct detailed financial analysis to support decision-making.
• Develop key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to track financial performance.
• Provide insights and recommendations based on financial data and trends.

Financing

• Work with the CFO to identify financing solutions as needed.
• Manage the relationship with the Company’s lenders and works with Controllership to ensure Credit Agreement are understood and compliance with all covenants, proactively identifying solutions and opportunities.
• Oversee preparation of detailed forecasts for cash planning efforts and recommendations to optimize cash and debt planning strategies.
• Monitor debt levels and compliance with debt covenants to ensure debt payments are made on a timely basis.
• Analyze risk mitigation strategies including hedging of foreign exchange and interest rate risk.

Enterprise Risk Management

• Develop and implement an enterprise risk management framework.
• Identify, assess, and prioritize risks across the organization.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to mitigate risks and implement risk management strategies.
• Prepare risk reports for senior management and the board of directors.

Insurance

• Manage the company's insurance portfolio, including property, liability, and other coverage.
• Evaluate insurance needs and negotiate policies to ensure adequate coverage.
• Coordinate with insurance brokers and carriers to handle claims and renewals.
• Ensure compliance with insurance regulations and requirements.

Regulatory, Project Delivery and Operations Support

• Lead preparation of financial analysis as required, for capital investments, pricing decisions, and contract negotiations.
• Support revenue requirements applications and project driven regulatory applications.
• Identify and execute continuous improvement initiatives.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance or related field; MBA or CPA preferred.
• 10+ years of experience in financial planning and analysis, with at least 5 years in a leadership role (includes out-sourced resources), including 10-15 years of related industry experience, demonstrating understanding of technology and other business functions.
• Experience in planning, implementing, and integrating new process improvement and automation projects; particularly analytics.
• Proven ability to lead and develop high-performing teams.

Specialized Skills and Knowledge:

• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, verbally and in writing, with internal and external stakeholders.
• Excellent time management, organizational and planning skills and demonstrated flexibility coping effectively with changing priorities in a fast-paced work environment.
• Ability to deliver projects in-scope, on-time, and on-budget.
• Excellent problem solving and analytical skills.
• Strategic thinker and strong business acumen with the ability to analyze and work with financial data.
• Ability to collaborate and to build and maintain relationships of trust with internal staff, stakeholders, and key external entities, such as auditors, accounting and tax advisors, and the BC Utilities Commission; committed to providing superior customer service.
• Operational excellence and focused on business process improvement and automation that can scale to meet the growth needs of the company.
• Good knowledge and understanding of the energy industry and public utility regulation.

What we Offer:

• Be part of a team that values innovation, collaboration and excellence.
• Competitive starting salary - $148,700 - $186,000 and performance-based bonus program; the salary range is a guide and placement on the range is dependent on your applicable experience, qualifications, skills and knowledge. We are committed to providing a fair, equitable and competitive compensation package that reflects the value an individual brings to the team.
• Comprehensive benefits package, including an RRSP matching program at 5%.
• Support to maintain your professional credentials.

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, we will only be contacting selected candidates for follow-up.