Finance Manager

Swarm Aero Inc.

Oxnard (CA)

On-site

USD 180,000 - 240,000

Full time

14 days+

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Benefits offered by this job

Meaningful equity in a high-growth DEF

Competitive base salary

Medical, dental, vision, and 401k

PTO and paid sick leave

Monthly wellness stipend

Daily catered lunch (office)

Paid parental leave

Direct impact on national security

World-class team of engineers

Job summary

Swarm Aero is building the next era of hardware-backed swarming aircraft and the financial backbone to enable rapid growth. We’re seeking a hands-on FP&A leader who has scaled finance in a venture-backed startup and can own budgeting, forecasting, and reporting for a hardware program.

You’ll build and maintain robust financial models, drive fundraising readiness, and partner with operations, engineering, and supply chain to align strategy with numbers.

Qualifications

5+ years in FP&A or corporate finance at a venture-backed startup.
Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field.
Experience scaling finance ops at Series B, C, or D.
Ability to build complex financial models from scratch.
Familiarity with AP, expense policy, vendor management, and controls.
Strong storytelling skills with numbers for leadership/investors.

Responsibilities

Lead financial planning and analysis: budgets, forecasts, scenario models, and long-range plans
Prepare board and investor reporting, including monthly management packages
Support fundraising activities with financial models and diligence materials
Maintain a living financial model reflecting business in real time
Own and evolve core financial operations: AP, expense policies, vendor cadence
Partner with operations, engineering, and supply chain as a trusted advisor
Drive variance analysis and business reviews linking financials to operations
Establish KPIs and dashboards for leadership visibility
Collaborate with Accounting Lead on close process for accurate numbers

Skills

FP&A

Strategic finance

Corporate finance

Startup experience

Financial modeling

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field

MBA

CFA

Tools

SQL

Data analytics

Job description

Swarm Aero is redefining air power, building the largest swarming UAV and the most versatile swarming aircraft network in the world. The company is moving quickly to launch the first aircraft designed specifically for swarming, as well as the Command & Control software to mobilize swarms of thousands of heterogeneous autonomous assets and empower human operators to achieve superhuman results.

The team has created and exited multiple startups, negotiated defense deals worth billions of dollars, and designed and built 30+ novel aircraft, with aerospace experience from Scaled Composites, Airbus, Archer Aviation, Blue Origin, and Boom Supersonic.

The Role

There's a version of a finance career where the playbook is already written, the policies are set, and the job is to run the process. It's comfortable. Well-defined. And for the right person at the right time, exactly what they need.

This isn't that role.

We're looking for someone who has lived inside a scaling startup and arrived with a playbook in hand. You know what good looks like on AP process, company credit card policy, expense controls, and financial reporting because you've built or inherited those systems somewhere between Series B and D. You didn't just execute someone else's framework, you understood it well enough to adapt it when things changed.

On top of that foundation, you have real exposure to manufacturing or a major hardware program. You've thought about inventory finance, cost structures, and what it means to track the money through a physical product. That context matters here. We're building hardware at scale, and the finance function needs to keep up.

What You'll Do

• Lead financial planning and analysis: budgets, forecasts, scenario models, and long-range plans

• Prepare board and investor reporting, including monthly management packages and quarterly updates for investors and board members

• Support fundraising activities, including financial model preparation, investor diligence support, and board materials

• Build and maintain the financial model as a living tool that reflects the business in real time

• Own and evolve core financial operations: AP process, credit card and expense policies, vendor payment cadence, and financial controls

• Partner with operations, engineering, and supply chain as a trusted financial advisor on key business decisions

• Drive variance analysis and business reviews that connect financial results to operational drivers

• Establish KPIs and dashboards that give leadership visibility into the metrics that matter

• Collaborate closely with the Accounting Lead on the close process to ensure financials are accurate, timely, and decision-ready

What We're Looking For

Required

• 5+ years of experience in FP&A, strategic finance, or corporate finance at a venture-backed startup

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field

• Experience scaling finance operations at a Series B, C, or D company

• Demonstrated ability to build complex financial models from scratch

• Familiarity with core financial operations: AP process, expense policy, vendor management, and financial controls

• Strong communication skills: able to distill financial complexity into clear, actionable narratives

Strongly Preferred

• Exposure to manufacturing, hardware programs, or inventory-intensive businesses

• Familiarity with manufacturing cost structures, including inventory, WIP, and COGS

• Experience preparing materials for senior leadership, boards, or investors

• Aerospace or defense industry background

• Experience partnering with or reporting to a CEO or CFO directly

Nice to Have

• Prior exposure to fundraising processes or investor relations

• MBA or CFA

• SQL or data analytics skills

• Prior experience building a finance function from scratch

Who You Are

• Carries a Playbook: You've seen enough scaling companies to know what good looks like and can adapt it to a new context without starting from zero

• Business-Minded: You understand finance as a tool for better decisions, not just a reporting function

• A Storyteller with Numbers: You can build a model and explain what it means to someone who doesn't live in spreadsheets

• Collaborative: You build trust with operators, not just finance peers

• Self-Directed: You identify what needs to be built and build it without being asked

ITAR requirement

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Swarm Aero is an equal opportunity employer. We value diverse backgrounds and experiences and make employment decisions without regard to race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, or disability.

What We Offer