Senior Director of FP&A

Ursa Major; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 230,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Unlimited PTO

Parental and adoptive leave

Medical, dental and vision insurance

401k with company match

Job summary

Ursa Major seeks a Senior Director of Finance to serve as the primary financial partner to the President and engineering leadership. This role drives program economics, EAC/ETC forecasting, and contract pricing strategy across defense and space programs, ensuring robust governance and GAAP/FAR/CAS compliance.

Building and mentoring a high-performing FP&A team, you will optimize reporting, backlogs, and revenue recognition while advancing tools like Deltek Costpoint, SAP, Anaplan, and Power BI to

Qualifications

• 15+ years of progressive finance experience with significant leadership roles in Aerospace/Defense/Space hardware.
• Mastery of program economics, government and commercial contracting, CAS, FAR, and EAC/ETC methodologies.
• Executive presence with C-suite and senior operational leadership.
• Hands-on experience with ERP/BI platforms and financial planning tools.

Responsibilities

• Act as the direct financial copilot to the President, translating milestones into financial targets, risks, and opportunities.
• Lead program finance across product lines, managing program-level P&Ls, bookings, backlog, revenue recognition, and margins.
• Direct EAC/ETC cadence across major programs, identifying variances and supply chain impacts early.
• Implement and monitor Earned Value Management (EVM) aligning milestones, schedules, and cost performance (CPI/SPI).
• Lead multi-year long-range planning, capital forecasting, and annual budgets across business units.

Skills

Executive presence

Systems analytics

Leadership

Program finance mastery

EVM expertise

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Engineering, or related field

MBA or advanced degree

Tools

Deltek Costpoint

SAP

Anaplan

Power BI

Excel

Job description

The future of aerospace and defense starts here.

Ursa Major was founded to revolutionize how America and its allies access and apply high-performance propulsion, from hypersonics to solid rocket motors, satellite maneuvering and launch. We design and deliver propulsion and defense systems that solve the most urgent and critical national security demands.

Ursa Major is scaling rapidly, transitioning key propulsion programs from development into high-rate production and expanding our commercial and defense footprint. We are seeking an accomplished Senior Director of Finance to serve as our lead business unit finance partner and build out an elite program finance and operational FP&A organization.

Reporting directly to the President, the Senior Director of Finance will own full financial cadence across all business lines and operational programs. This leader will serve as the primary strategic copilot to the President, program managers, and engineering leadership, driving program economics, long-range capacity and resource planning, EAC/ETC forecasting, and contract pricing strategy. The ideal candidate brings extensive leadership experience in defense, aerospace, or space manufacturing, uniting corporate FP&A discipline with rigorous government contracting and program finance execution.

Key Responsibilities

• Executive Partnership & Business Line Cadence: Act as the direct financial copilot to the President, translating operational, flight-test, and production milestones into clear financial targets, risks, and opportunities.
• Program Finance & Unit Economics: Establish and lead program finance across all product lines, managing program-level P&Ls, bookings, backlog conversion, revenue recognition, contract margins, and cash generation.
• Estimates at Completion (EAC / ETC): Direct the comprehensive monthly and quarterly Estimate at Completion (EAC) and Estimate to Complete (ETC) cadence across major development and production programs, identifying cost variances, labor run-rate anomalies, and supply chain impacts early.
• Earned Value Management (EVM): Partner with Program Management and Integrated Master Schedulers to implement and monitor EVM frameworks, ensuring clear alignment between technical milestones, project schedules, and cost performance index (CPI) / schedule performance index (SPI) metrics.
• Annual Operating Plans & Long-Range Planning (LRP): Lead multi-year long-range planning, capital expenditure forecasting, annual operating budgets, and dynamic scenario modeling across business units to support high-rate propulsion delivery.
• Proposals, Pricing & Contract Negotiations: Partner with Business Development and Engineering on complex proposals, pricing strategies, cost volumes, and negotiations across Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP), Cost-Plus (CPFF/CPIF), and milestone-based commercial and government contracts.
• Systems Architecture & Operations: Champion the modernization of our program finance and operational reporting infrastructure, optimizing systems such as Deltek Costpoint, SAP, Anaplan, and Power BI to automate reporting and deliver real-time operational visibility.
• Team Leadership & Scale: Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing team of program finance managers and business unit financial analysts, fostering a culture of technical rigor, ownership, and cross-functional transparency.
• Public Readiness & Governance: Ensure robust, auditor-ready forward-looking internal controls, GAAP/FAR/CAS compliance, and program data integrity across all business line forecasts.

Required Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Engineering, or a related quantitative field.
• Experience: 15+ years of progressive finance experience with significant tenure in leadership roles, including substantial direct leadership of program finance and business unit FP&A within Aerospace, Defense, or Space hardware environments.
• Program Finance Mastery: Proven mastery of program economics, government and commercial aerospace contracting, cost accounting standards (CAS), FAR regulations, milestone billing, and EAC/ETC methodologies.
• Executive Presence: Track record of serving as a trusted advisor to C-suite and executive operational leadership, delivering candid insights and strategic clarity in high-velocity operating environments.
• Systems & Analytics: Deep hands-on experience leveraging enterprise defense/manufacturing ERPs and planning platforms (e.g., Deltek Costpoint, SAP) alongside advanced business intelligence and modeling tools (e.g., Anaplan, Power BI, Excel).
• Leadership & Team Building: Demonstrated success scaling finance teams, structuring workflows, and coaching senior managers and analysts in complex manufacturing environments.

Desired Qualifications

• Master of Business Administration (MBA) or relevant advanced technical/business degree.
• Professional certifications such as CPA, CMA, or EVM certification.
• Prior experience leading finance through production rate ramp-ups, major capital markets transactions, or within a high-growth publicly traded aerospace/defense prime.

Colorado law requires us to tell you the base compensation range of this role, which is $230,000 - $300,000, determined by your education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities. What we can’t quantify for you are the exciting challenges, supportive team, and amazing culture we enjoy.

Classification: Full-time Exempt

Benefits Include: (Please note, Interns are not eligible for benefits)

• Unlimited PTO - Vacation, Sick, Personal, and Bereavement
• Paid Parental and Adoptive Leave
• Medical, Dental and Vision Insurance
• Tax Advantage Accounts (HSA/FSA)
• Employer Paid Short and Long Term Disability, Basic Life, AD&D
• Additional Benefit Options Including Voluntary Life and Emergency Medical Transport
• EAP Program
• Retirement Savings Plan - 401k with Company Match

NOTE:

Research suggests that women and BIPOC individuals may self-select out of opportunities if they don't meet 100% of the job requirements. We encourage anyone who believes they have the skills and the drive necessary to succeed here to apply for this role.

Must be a U.S. Person (this includes U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents).

Eligibility to obtain and maintain a U.S. Security Clearance.

We're an equal-opportunity employer. You will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status.