Fractional FP&A / Finance Manager (DTC, E-commerce) - Contract to Hire
# Fractional FP&A / Finance Manager (DTC, E-commerce) ### Forecasting • MER / ROAS • Paid Media Spend Governance --- ## Overview We’re a **profitable DTC e-commerce brand** with meaningful monthly paid media spend (Meta, Google). Our accounting is clean (QuickBooks, accrual). We’re hiring a **Fractional FP&A / Finance Manager** to build a **simple, durable forecasting and spend-governance system** tied directly to the P&L (MER, contribution margin, net profit) and to run a **weekly operating cadence**. This is a **hands-on FP&A role**, not accounting or advisory-only CFO work. You will own the model, the weekly forecast, and the spend guardrails leadership uses to make real decisions. --- ## What You Will Do (Scope of Work) ### Core Deliverables (First 2–4 Weeks) • *1. Single Source of Truth Financial Model** Build a clean, operator-friendly model flowing: • *Revenue → Gross Profit → Paid Media → Fixed Opex → Net Profit** The model must reconcile to the P&L and be simple enough for leadership to use weekly. --- • *2. Paid Media Spend Guardrails** • Define **MER (Marketing Efficiency Ratio) ceilings** by month • Calculate **break-even blended ROAS / mROAS** based on actual contribution margin • Create clear **scale / hold / cut rules** using 7–14 day rolling windows --- • *3. Weekly Forecast + Cash View** • Month-end forecast updated weekly • Cash inflow / outflow, runway, and timing awareness • Account for lag, settlements (e.g. Amazon), refunds, and chargebacks --- • *4. Monthly Profit Bridge** • Explain *why* profit changed MoM: • Revenue • Gross margin • Paid media • Fixed opex --- ### Ongoing (Weekly) • Update forecast and spend guardrails • Flag when performance moves outside thresholds • Recommend specific actions (scale, pause, reallocate, cut) --- ## Tools & Data You Must Be Comfortable With • **QuickBooks** (accrual P&L exports) • **Google Sheets / Excel** (advanced formulas, modeling) • **Shopify** + paid media exports (Meta, Google Ads) • *Nice to Have:** Looker Studio or lightweight dashboards (not required) --- ## Required Experience (Please Read Carefully) • Proven **FP&A experience in DTC / e-commerce** (not generic corporate only) • Has built models for: • MER / blended ROAS • Contribution margin • Spend-to-profit forecasting • Strong understanding of: • Revenue and cash lag • Refunds / chargebacks • Promo distortion • Can explain numbers simply and make **clear, actionable recommendations** --- ## What “Good” Looks Like (Success Criteria) Every week, leadership can clearly answer: • **“If nothing changes, where does the month land on profit dollars and cash?”** • **“What is the maximum ad spend this week that still increases profit dollars?”** • **“What MER / blended ROAS floor are we enforcing this month?”** The model is **simple, durable, and actually used** — not a 40-tab spreadsheet. --- ## Engagement Structure • **Hours:** • 5–10 hrs/week (first month) • 2–5 hrs/week ongoing • **Timeline:** First working version within **10 business days** ### Budget • **Hourly:** • $75–$150/hr (FP&A operator) • $150–$250/hr (senior) • *OR** • **Fixed-price, milestone-based** • *Suggested Milestones** • Week 1: Baseline model + historical inputs • Week 2: MER ceilings + blended ROAS break-evens + spend rules • Week 3: Weekly forecast + cash view + profit bridge • Week 4: Operating cadence, documentation, handoff --- ## How to Apply (Important) To be considered, please include: 1. A brief summary of your **DTC FP&A experience** 2. Examples of **forecasting or spend-to-profit models** you’ve built 3. Whether you prefer **hourly or milestone-based** work ### References We **do check references**. Please include at least **one prior client, founder, or manager reference** in your resume or application. Short-listed candidates will be asked to confirm references before engagement. Apply tot his job