How to apply for FP&A Manager

About Aurora Solar

Aurora Solar is a mission-driven, remote-first company whose AI-powered platform has designed millions of solar projects, directly accelerating the world's transition to clean energy. Recognized as a 'Best Remote Company' and Certified Green Business, it offers the rare chance to work at the intersection of climate impact and cutting-edge SaaS technology. The FP&A team here is small, high-performing, and has direct exposure to the VP of Finance and CEO, meaning your work will visibly shape the company's strategic direction.

About the role

As FP&A Manager, you will own the end-to-end annual and quarterly financial planning cycles, from budgeting and forecasting to delivering analyses that drive action, not just reports. You'll partner with leaders across the company to translate financial data into strategic decisions, directly influencing how Aurora scales its solar design platform. This is a hands-on, high-visibility role where you'll help steer the financial future of a company making a tangible environmental impact.

A typical day

You might start your day with a quick sync with the VP of Finance to align on forecast assumptions, then dive into updating the quarterly reforecast model using the latest actuals and department inputs. Later, you'll meet with a department head to review their budget variance and discuss reallocation options, then prepare a concise summary of findings for an upcoming executive review. In between, you'll refine a dashboard in Looker to give leaders real-time visibility into spend, all while collaborating via Slack and Zoom in a fully remote setup.

Who Aurora Solar is looking for

• 5–8+ years of progressive FP&A experience, ideally in a high-growth SaaS or technology company, with a proven track record of owning full planning cycles.
• Advanced financial modeling skills (Excel/Google Sheets) and experience with planning tools like Anaplan, Adaptive Insights, or similar; comfort working with large datasets and BI tools (e.g., Looker, Tableau).
• Strong business partnering abilities—you've supported department leaders, challenged assumptions constructively, and turned financial insights into operational action.
• Self-starter mindset suited to a remote, fast-paced environment; you can manage competing deadlines, communicate clearly in writing, and thrive with minimal supervision.
• A genuine interest in Aurora's mission to democratize solar adoption; prior experience in climate tech, energy, or mission-driven SaaS is a plus.

Tips for this application

• Highlight specific examples of how you've driven action from financial analysis—not just built models, but influenced decisions (e.g., reallocating budget, improving forecast accuracy, or identifying cost savings).
• Emphasize your experience owning end-to-end planning cycles (annual budget, quarterly forecasts) and quantify the scale (e.g., revenue size, number of departments supported).
• Mention any remote work experience and how you've successfully partnered with cross-functional leaders in a distributed environment, since Aurora is remote-first.
• Show your interest in Aurora's mission by referencing their AI-driven solar design platform or the broader solar adoption challenge in your application materials.
• If you have SaaS metrics experience (ARR, CAC, LTV, net dollar retention), explicitly connect it to how you'd forecast and analyze Aurora's business.

What to cover in your cover letter

Focus on: (1) your hands-on experience owning FP&A cycles and driving action from analysis, with concrete examples; (2) your ability to partner with senior leaders and communicate financial insights to non-finance stakeholders; (3) your proficiency with financial modeling and planning tools, and how you've used them to improve forecasting accuracy; (4) your motivation to apply your skills to a mission-driven climate tech company like Aurora Solar.

Research before applying

• Study Aurora Solar's product suite and recent announcements (e.g., new features, partnerships, funding) to understand their business model and growth drivers.
• Familiarize yourself with key SaaS financial metrics (ARR, CAC, LTV, magic number, net dollar retention) and how they apply to a platform like Aurora's.
• Research the solar industry landscape, including incentives, regulations, and competitors, to speak credibly about market dynamics.
• Look up Aurora's leadership team, especially the VP of Finance and CEO, and read any interviews or blog posts to understand their strategic priorities.

Likely interview topics

Based on the job description, expect questions about:

• Walk us through a time you owned an annual budgeting process end-to-end—how did you manage stakeholders and ensure deadlines were met?
• Describe a situation where your financial analysis led to a significant change in business strategy or resource allocation. What was the outcome?
• How would you approach building a quarterly forecast for a SaaS company like Aurora? What key metrics would you focus on?
• Tell us about a time you had to challenge a department leader's budget request. How did you handle the conversation?
• Why Aurora Solar, and how do you see FP&A contributing to our mission of accelerating solar adoption?

Common mistakes to avoid

• Submitting a generic resume that doesn't highlight ownership of full planning cycles or specific SaaS/tech industry experience—this role requires proven end-to-end FP&A ownership.
• Focusing only on technical modeling skills without demonstrating business partnering and communication abilities; Aurora emphasizes driving action, not just reporting numbers.
• Neglecting to mention remote work proficiency or cross-functional collaboration in a distributed setting, as Aurora is remote-first and values self-starters.