Manager of Financial Planning and Analysis

Liberty Personnel Services, Inc.; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 135,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Liberty Personnel Services, Inc. seeks a Manager of Financial Planning and Analysis to lead budgeting and forecasting for a professional services firm. The role emphasizes partner compensation modeling and practice group analysis in a hybrid setting.

The ideal candidate will have law firm FP&A experience, strong expertise in rates, realization, utilization, and leverage, and the ability to translate complex data into actionable leadership insights.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, economics, or related field; MBA preferred.
• 3+ years of progressive FP&A experience, ideally in a law firm.
• Deep understanding of legal accounting standards and law firm capital structures.
• Proficiency with Elite 3E or Aderant; strong Excel and BI tools.

Responsibilities

• Lead budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting processes.
• Model partner compensation, and analyze profitability by partner and practice group.
• Monitor key law firm metrics: utilization, realization, collections, and leverage.
• Develop financial models for strategic initiatives like lateral hiring and office expansions.

Skills

Financial modeling

Strategic planning

Leadership

Data interpretation

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Finance/Accounting/Economics

MBA or Master's in Finance

Tools

Thomson Reuters Elite 3E

Aderant Expert

Excel

Power BI

Tableau

Adaptive Insights

Anaplan

PowerPoint

Job description

Manager of Financial Planning and Analysis

Manager of Financial Planning & Analysis - Hybrid - $135-150k

*Prior/current law firm industry experience is required!

The Manager of Financial Planning and Analysis plays a critical strategic role in driving the financial strategy, operational analysis, and profitability of the firm. This position is responsible for leading the firm's budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, partner compensation modeling, and practice group analysis.

The ideal candidate will posses deep expertise in professional services or legal finance, a sophisticated understanding of law firm operational metrics such as rates, realization, utilization, and leverage, and the ability to translate complex financial data into actionable insights for firm leadership and practice group leaders.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Financial Planning and Forecasting

Lead the preparation, consolidation, and analysis of the annual firmwide operating budget, revenue projections, and capital expenditure plan.

Build and maintain continuous revenue and cash flow forecasts, integrating key variables such as attorney headcount, billable rate changes, and billing efficiency.

Assist the CFO and Compensation Committee with financial modeling, partner profit distributions, capital call structures, and year-end compensation formulas.

Legal Practice Performance and Profitability Analysis

Analyze profitability by partner, practice group, client, office, and matter to identify margin drivers and underperforming practice areas.

Monitor and report on core law firm metrics, including Utilization, Realization (Gross and Net), Collections, Billable Hours, Days Sales Outstanding, and Leveraged Ratios.

Collaborate with practice leaders and client value teams to analyze rate structures, propose annual billing rate increases, and evaluate Alternative Fee Arrangements.

Financial Reporting and Executive Decision Support

Prepare monthly and quarterly reporting packages and presentation materials for the Executive Committee, Management Committee, and Practice Group Leaders.

Conduct regular variance analyses against budget and prior year periods, providing clear narrative explanations of revenue and expense drivers.

Develop financial models for strategic initiatives, including lateral partner hiring, office expansions or consolidations, firm mergers, and technology investments.

Team Leadership and Operations

Oversee and mentor FP&A analysts or financial reporting specialists.

Evaluate and improve financial systems, data architecture, and reporting tools to streamline analysis and automate routine reporting.

Partner with accounting, billing, and IT departments to ensure data integrity across enterprise systems.

Qualifications and Requirements

Education and Experience

Bachelor's Degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a related quantitative field required; MBA or Master's in Finance preferred.

Progressive FP&A experience, with at least 3+ years within a law firm.

Deep understanding of legal accounting standards, accrual vs. cash reporting, and law firm capital structures.

Technical Skills

Expertise in legal Enterprise Resource Planning systems such as Thomson Reuters Elite 3E or Aderant Expert.

Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, including complex financial modeling, financial functions, and scenario building, as well as PowerPoint.

Hands-on experience with Business Intelligence and corporate performance tools such as Power BI, Tableau, Adaptive Insights, or Anaplan.