Manager, Strategic Finance

Paul Hastings; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 135,000 - 175,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, Vision

Long Term Disability

401(k) Plan

Paid Holidays

Generous PTO

Job summary

Paul Hastings, a leading international law firm, is seeking a Manager, Strategic Finance in Boston. The role drives budgeting, forecasting, expense management, and financial planning to support strategic objectives.

You will partner with Finance leadership, practice groups, and admin heads to strengthen governance and provide actionable insights for resource allocation. The position requires strong Excel skills, data analytics, and experience in a professional services environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Administration, or related field required.
• 7+ years of progressive experience in strategic finance, FP&A, budgeting, or financial management, preferably within a professional services or law firm environment.

Responsibilities

• Manage the firm’s budgeting process with leadership and department heads.
• Strengthen project-based budgeting with governance and process improvements.
• Act as primary finance partner to practice groups and department heads.
• Enhance budget-to-actual analytics for insights and decision-making.
• Identify opportunities to improve budgeting, forecasting, and reporting processes.
• Promote governance over budgeting, forecasting, approvals, and financial accountability.
• Collaborate on procure-to-pay processes and expense governance.
• Refine general ledger structure and expense reporting for accuracy.

Skills

Advanced Excel

PowerPoint

Financial analysis

Communication

Project management

Problem solving

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance/Accounting

CPA/CFA preferred

Tools

Alteryx

Power BI

3E

P2P systems

Job description

Paul Hastings is a leading international law firm that provides innovative legal solutions to many of the world’s top financial institutions and Fortune Global 500 companies. With a strong presence throughout the U.S., Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East, we have the global reach and extensive capabilities to provide personalized service wherever our clients’ needs take us. As one of the world’s leading law firms, we seek dynamic individuals who share our commitment to service, innovation, and professional growth.

Job Title

Manager, Strategic Finance

Location

Boston, New York

Regular/Temporary

Regular

Job Description Summary

We have an opening for a Manager, Strategic Finance. The Manager, Strategic Finance is a key member of the Finance team responsible for managing the execution of the firm’s budgeting, forecasting, expense management, and financial planning processes. Reporting to the Director of Strategic Finance, this role partners closely with Finance leadership, firm management, practice leaders, and administrative department heads to strengthen financial planning, enhance operational decision-making, and support the firm’s strategic and financial objectives. A primary responsibility of this position is advancing the firm’s project-based budgeting framework by strengthening budgeting processes, improving governance and consistency, and providing greater visibility into project-level financial performance to support informed resource allocation and operational decision-making. The Manager will partner with budget owners across the firm to enhance planning, accountability, cost transparency, and forecasting discipline while identifying opportunities to refine budgeting methodologies, financial processes, and reporting capabilities. The Manager will also play a key role in the continued evolution of the firm’s expense management program by partnering on procure-to-pay processes, strengthening financial controls, and enhancing reporting and business intelligence capabilities that provide leaders with timely, actionable insights into financial performance.

Job Description

• Manage the firm’s budgeting process by coordinating with firm leadership, practice group leaders, and administrative department heads to develop comprehensive operating, workforce, and project-based budgets aligned with the firm’s strategic priorities;
• Strengthen the firm’s project-based budgeting framework by refining methodologies, enhancing governance and consistency, and implementing process improvements that improve planning, forecasting accuracy, financial transparency, and operational effectiveness;
• Serve as the primary finance business partner to practice group leaders and administrative department heads by evaluating budget requests, monitoring budget performance and forecasts, performing variance analysis, identifying risks and opportunities, developing financial models and scenario analyses, and recommending actions that support informed decision-making;
• Enhance financial reporting by expanding budget-to-actual analytics that provide budget owners, stakeholders, and firm leadership with timely, actionable insights into spending trends, project performance, forecasts, key performance indicators, and overall financial performance;
• Identify and implement opportunities to improve budgeting, forecasting, expense management, and reporting processes through workflow standardization, automation, enhanced data quality, and other continuous improvement initiatives;
• Promote the consistent application of governance over budgeting, forecasting, approvals, and financial accountability through standardized financial policies, processes, and internal controls across the firm;
• Support the continued maturation of the firm’s expense management function by partnering with Finance and Procurement to implement and optimize procure-to-pay (P2P) processes, approval workflows, financial controls, and expense governance that promote accountability, transparency, and compliance;
• Partner with Finance and business stakeholders to refine general ledger account structure, expense coding practices, and expense reporting, promoting consistent financial management, enhancing reporting accuracy, and delivering meaningful budget-to-actual insights for business leaders; and
• Advise Finance and business stakeholders on general ledger account structure, expense coding practices, approval workflows, and expense reporting to promote consistent financial management and provide meaningful budget-to-actual insights for business leaders.

Proficiencies

• Intermediate to advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint;
• Proficiency with Alteryx, Power BI, or similar data analytics and visualization tools;
• Experience with 3E accounting software or similar enterprise software programs;
• Experience leveraging automation, reporting tools, and data analytics to enhance financial insights and support decision-making;
• Strong understanding of cost allocation methodologies, expense management, and operational finance and basic accounting principles;
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to effectively communicate financial concepts to non-financial stakeholders;
• Exceptional analytical, problem-solving, and critical-thinking capabilities; and
• Strong project management, organizational, and prioritization skills with the ability to manage multiple competing priorities.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Administration, or related field required; and
• 7+ years of progressive experience in strategic finance, FP&A, budgeting, or financial management, preferably within a professional services or law firm environment.

The salary wage range for Boston that we expect to pay for this position is a minimum of $134,500 and a maximum of $174,500 annually. The actual pay wage may vary based on experience or other relevant factors.

Employees will be provided with an excellent career opportunity in a collaborative environment, in addition to a generous total compensation package with the opportunity to earn bonuses based on individual contribution and firm profitability.

The actual salary offered will depend on a variety of factors, including without limitation, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and if applicable, the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job. This role is exempt meaning it is not overtime pay eligible.

Eligible employees can participate in the Firm’s comprehensive benefits program, which include the following:

• Medical, Dental, Vision, Life/AD&D, Long Term Care, and Short- and Long-Term Disability
• Flexible Spending Accounts and Health Savings Account
• Healthcare Concierge and Advocacy
• Lifestyle Spending Account
• Voluntary 401(k) Plan and Profit Sharing
• 10 Paid Holidays per year and a generous PTO Program
• Family Support including Paid Parental Leave, Fertility Benefits, Breast Milk Shipping, Back-up Child Care, Elder Care, and Tutoring
• Wellbeing programs (Employee Assistance Program, Relationship Support, Mental Health, Menopause and Midlife Health and Well-Being Events)
• Retirement Plan Consulting
• Anniversary Bonus Program
• Professional Development Programs
• Transportation and Commuter Benefits
• International Travel Insurance
• Critical Illness, Hospital Indemnity and Accident Insurance
• Auto/Home/Pet Insurance
• Prepaid Legal Insurance
• Employee Discounts
• And More!

The Firm fosters an open and inclusive work environment that enables us to provide clients with the innovative thinking of teams rich in talent, experience and creativity. We regularly host programs intended to increase cultural competencies and address key topics related to community, opportunity and inclusion. Learn more about our Global Inclusion initiatives here: Global Inclusion.

Paul Hastings is an equal opportunity employer. Pursuant to applicable local law, we will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the relevant fair chance ordinance.