Financial Management Analyst, Public Sector

At Lazarus, we build foundation models to help people solve the world's toughest problems. Enterprise and government clients use our APIs to power products and workflows that keep humans focused on what we do best. We're a venture-backed team headquartered downtown Boston, MA and we share a passion for innovation, growth, and a commitment to the responsible use of AI. 

Job Overview

The Public Sector Financial Management Analyst serves as a principal financial expert and strategic advisor, providing comprehensive financial analysis, meticulous forecasting, and strategic oversight to ensure optimal resource allocation, strict adherence to fiscal compliance, and the promotion of data-driven decision-making. This role is critical for both ongoing operational continuity and future strategic initiatives, including workforce planning and team expansion efforts within a public sector environment. A CPA is required for this position. 

Security Clearance: This role requires eligibility for U.S. security clearance based on current or future interactions with domestic and foreign governments. Current and active Secret or Top Secret U.S. Security Clearance is highly desirable (but not required).

Responsibilities

Financial Tracking and Expenditure Oversight:

• Meticulously track all payments, obligations, and expenditures, including reconciling accounts and making necessary adjustments to ensure accurate transaction posting and timely resolution of discrepancies.
• Process and review diverse payment types (e.g., commercial, travel, interagency agreements) with a focus on quality assurance and control.
• Ensure strict adherence to public sector financial regulations, policies, and applicable laws, advising management on compliance matters and conducting internal audits.
• Continuously monitor organizational spending to ensure it remains within approved budgets and proactively inform program managers about fund status and availability.

Future Year Forecasting and Long-Term Financial Planning:

• Accurately estimate future financial needs and develop comprehensive projections of revenues, expenses, financial position, and external factors for all key funds and government operations.
• Analyze past budgets and research economic and financial developments impacting income and expenditures.
• Employ various forecasting methodologies, including extrapolation, regression/econometrics, and hybrid forecasting, to predict future financial behavior.
• Align long-term financial planning with the organization's strategic objectives, establishing clear financial goals and targets.
• Proactively diagnose potential financial risks and identify causes of fiscal distress to enable pre-emptive mitigation actions.

Operational Expenditure Estimation:

• Accurately track recurring and ongoing operational expenditures essential to daily operations, systematically identifying and analyzing cost factors such as materials and labor.
• Meticulously differentiate between recurring (e.g., salaries, utilities) and non-recurring expenditures (e.g., equipment purchases, restructuring costs) to ensure accurate budgeting and forecasting.
• Apply and adapt various public sector budgeting methods, including Operating Budget, Zero-Based Budgeting (ZBB), Incremental Budgeting, and Value Proposition Budgeting.
• Continuously monitor spending to ensure compliance with approved budgets and maintain accurate records of estimated and actual costs.

Financial Data Aggregation and Analysis:

• Perform comprehensive aggregation of financial data from various accounts and internal systems into a cohesive, comprehensive set.
• Conduct rigorous data cleaning to identify and remove inconsistencies, errors, and duplicates, transforming raw numbers into meaningful metrics.
• Utilize aggregated data to improve decision-making, increase operational efficiency, recognize patterns and trends, and gain a holistic picture of financial health.
• Support data-driven decision-making (DDDM) to enhance budget accuracy, forecasting, transparency, accountability, and fraud detection.
• Provide essential analytical services throughout the budget process, from formulation and justification to presentation and execution.

Personnel Funding Estimation and Forecasting:

• Accurately estimate and forecast funding requirements for maintaining the current workforce, considering factors such as start dates, hiring lag, attrition, frozen/eliminated positions, and funded vs. unfunded roles.
• Factor in the impact of inflation and cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) on payroll forecasting.
• Account for all associated personnel costs beyond base salaries, including employee benefits, statutory costs (e.g., payroll taxes, workers' compensation), and other compensation elements (e.g., overtime, shift differentials).
• Collaborate closely with human resources to align personnel funding forecasts with broader workforce planning and strategic objectives.

Financial Analysis for Team Expansion:

• Support financial analysis to forecast necessary funding for team expansion based on anticipated hiring requirements.
• Define expansion parameters (e.g., new locations, hiring timelines, job types) and build comprehensive baseline projections including salaries, benefits, statutory costs, training, and equipment for new hires.
• Account for all key cost categories associated with expansion, utilizing past labor expenses, local wage benchmarks, and legal requirements.
• Develop and test various financial scenarios (e.g., conservative, base, aggressive) to prepare for market changes, wage inflation, and economic shifts.
• Ensure new programs or initiatives are adequately resourced and determine precise staff, budget, and other resources needed for sustainability.

Requirements

• Certification: Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is required.
• Experience: Minimum of five (5) years of demonstrated experience in financial management analysis, preferably within the public sector.
• Deep understanding of financial principles, budgeting practices, and government regulations.
• In-depth knowledge of budget-related laws, policies, precedents, methods, and techniques specific to public administration.
• Familiarity with financial management policies and procedures, including internal controls and audit functions.
• Expertise in various forecasting methods and data analysis techniques.
• Proficiency with financial management systems for data extraction, analysis, and forecasting.
• Competence in data analytics platforms for large volumes of workforce and financial data.
• Familiarity with Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) software, and workforce management platforms.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience with international clients and partnerships and related financial analysis skill set such as transfer pricing and related topics for international business.

Benefits

• Comprehensive benefits package, including health insurance, dental insurance, and vision insurance, and access to a 401k
• Flexible working from home arrangements
• Opportunities for growth and professional development
• Access to cutting-edge technology and resources for research and development
• Compensation (commensurate with experience): $115,000 - $125,000 (base salary) + bonus + equity

Lazarus AI is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity and nondiscrimination for all employees and qualified applicants without regard to a person's race, color, gender, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation or any characteristic protected under applicable law. We do not tolerate discrimination or harassment of any kind. This applies to every aspect of employment at Lazarus, including, but not limited to, employment, training, promotion, demotion, transfer, leaves of absence and termination.