Sr Director, FP&A (R&D)

tarsusrx; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

tarsusrx seeks a Senior Director of FP&A to build decision support for R&D and Operations, leading budgeting, forecasting, and long-range planning. You will deliver monthly reporting, drive strategic finance, and partner with program leads to optimize capital allocation.

Responsibilities include leading finance for R&D and Operations, supporting trials accruals, reviewing contracts, and mentoring the finance team in a fast-paced biotech environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance or Accounting
• 12+ years of FP&A experience in publicly traded life sciences
• Hands-on experience with clinical trial forecasting and R&D accruals
• In-house experience owning budget and forecasting processes
• Track record of collaboration and influencing VP- and C-level leaders

Responsibilities

• Build cross-functional partnerships to budget/forecast and embed finance into decision-making processes.
• Lead annual budget and quarterly forecasting for R&D & Operations with PTLs.
• Prepare monthly internal financial reports and perform variance analysis.
• Drive strategic planning for R&D and Operations long-range plan for investments.
• Provide financial direction with proactive recommendations supported by analysis.
• Support CRO reports, patient costs, and site payments.
• Review contracts to analyze financial impacts.
• Support ad hoc analyses and projects with timely insights.
• Drive FP&A process improvements and reporting efficiency.
• Hire, coach and mentor the team and promote high engagement.
• Present analysis to Executive Team to support decisions.

Skills

FP&A leadership

Cross-functional partner

Financial modeling

Stakeholder management

Excel proficiency

Strategic planning

Long-range planning

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance or Accounting

CPA

MBA

15+ years FP&A experience

Tools

Adaptive Insights / Adaptive Planning (Workday)

Anaplan

Hyperion

NetSuite

Job description

Role

The Senior Director of R&D FP&A will be instrumental in building Tarsus's decision support capability to enable efficient operations and effective capital allocation across R&D and Operations functions at Tarsus. They will also contribute to the development of the Company's financial and corporate strategy, specifically as it relates to Research & Development and Operations (R&D and Ops). Core responsibilities for the role will include generation of the annual budget and short-range forecasts for the R&D and Operations function, assisting with the long-range plan (LRP) as it relates to programs, and monthly and quarterly close analysis and reporting. The Senior Director of FP&A will act as the Finance lead for the R&D and Operations functions at Tarsus.

Let's talk about some of the key responsibilities of the role:

• Build and maintain strong cross-functional business partnerships to budget/forecast and track activities by embedding finance into decision-making processes.
• Lead annual budget and quarterly forecasting processes for R&D & Operations, specifically with the Program Team Leads (PTLs).
• Develop and prepare monthly internal financial management reporting packages; spearhead monthly variance analysis of actuals to budget, investigate any major discrepancies, and articulate key business drivers.
• Drive strategic planning for the R&D and Operations part of the annual long-range plan (LRP) exercise to enable investment decisions across a portfolio of internal programs and opportunities.
• Provide financial direction to key stakeholders with proactive recommendations, supported by robust financial analysis and insightful delivery.
• Support clinical trial accruals, including review of Contract Research Organization (CRO) reports, patient costs, and site payments.
• Review clinical and supply chain contracts and amendments to analyze and determine various financial impacts.
• Support ad hoc analyses and special projects, providing timely and accurate financial insights to support organizational initiatives.
• Help drive process improvements and efficiencies in areas of financial planning, financial analysis, and production of reporting packages.
• Hire, coach, and mentor direct reports and adjacent team members, promoting a culture of high engagement, high performance, collaboration and continuous improvement that values learning and continuous improvement.
• Present analysis and strategic insights to the Executive Team to support effective financial decision making.

Factors for Success:

Required:

• Bachelor's degree in Finance or Accounting
• 12+ years of progressive financial planning and analysis experience, including significant time within publicly traded life sciences companies
• Hands-on experience with clinical trial forecasting, modeling, and the R&D forecast and accruals process, including late-stage (Phase 3) programs
• In-house experience owning budget and forecasting processes and partnering directly with the business
• Track record of collaboration, stakeholder relationship management, and influencing key decision-makers, including the confidence to challenge and advise VP- and C-level leaders

Desired:

• CPA or MBA
• 15+ years of FP&A experience
• Pharmaceutical industry experience with late stage clinical trial experience strongly preferred
• Working knowledge of GAAP
• Experience with Adaptive Insights / Adaptive Planning (Workday) or a comparable planning tool (e.g., Anaplan, Hyperion), and with NetSuite
• Experience scaling finance processes within a rapidly growing biotech company
• Global or international exposure

What You'll Bring:

• Well-developed analytical skills that demonstrate the ability to drive from data to analysis to insight.
• Self-motivated with the strong work ethic and sense of urgency required for success in a rapidly growing biotech company and an equally critical ability to solve problems in high pressure situations.
• Process-oriented thinker with experience in process design, implementation, and improvement.
• Strong financial modeling skills and proficiency in Excel.
• Exceptional communication and storytelling skills - ability to synthesize complex data to provide actionable insights to non-financial audiences, and to produce complex financial concepts in a digestible manner to stakeholders with varying degrees of financial experience.
• A self-starter - who thrives in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment and demonstrates a strong sense of ownership and accountability.
• Collaborative mindset - with a focus on teamwork and cross-functional partnership.
• Empowering Others - Fosters empowerment by aligning authority with accountability, developing leaders' decision-making capability, and creating systems that support performance and growth.
• Emotional Intelligence - Foster trust and psychological safety, navigating complex interpersonal dynamics with compassion and accountability, and adapting leadership style to support others while maintaining composure under pressure.

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