Senior Manager, R&D FP&A

Klaviyo•Boston, MA

About The Position

We are seeking a Senior Manager of R&D Finance to partner closely with Engineering, Product, Design, and GTS leadership. This role will lead financial planning, investment analysis, and operational support for our R&D organization, ensuring we scale innovation responsibly and efficiently. You will play a critical role in aligning product strategy with financial rigor and long-term value creation. How you'll make a difference: Strategic Partnership with R&D business partners Serve as a key finance partner to Engineering, Product, and GTS leadership. Translate product strategy and roadmap decisions into clear financial implications. Provide insight into headcount planning, capitalized software, and long-term investment strategy. Support trade-off decisions between speed, cost, and innovation. Planning & Forecasting Lead annual planning and quarterly forecasting for R&D headcount and expenses. Develop detailed headcount models aligned with product roadmaps and hiring plans. Ensure accurate forecasting of compensation, infrastructure, tooling, and vendor spend. Drive discipline and transparency around R&D investments. Investment & Business Case Analysis Build business cases for major product initiatives and platform investments. Evaluate ROI of engineering investments and infrastructure decisions. Support build vs. buy decisions and strategic vendor evaluations. Analyze cloud spend efficiency and infrastructure cost optimization. Operational Excellence Improve financial visibility into engineering productivity and cost efficiency. Partner with Accounting on capitalization policies and compliance. Implement reporting frameworks that align financial and product performance metrics. Drive process improvements to enable scalable R&D operations. Team Development Lead, mentor, and develop finance team members supporting R&D. Strengthen cross-functional collaboration between Finance, Product, Engineering, and Accounting. Performs other related duties, as assigned.

Requirements

10+ years of experience in Finance roles, such as investment banking, venture capital including significant operational experience within FP&A or Finance at software companies with SaaS business model
At least 2+ years of experience being a people leader
A proactive finance leader who enjoys partnering with technical stakeholders.
Detail-oriented but able to think strategically about long-term investment tradeoffs.
Strong communicator who can translate financial concepts for non-financial audiences.
Comfortable working with ambiguity and influencing cross-functional leaders.
Passionate about innovation and scaling technology organizations.
Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite, Pigment, and Netsuite
You’ve already experimented with AI in work or personal projects, and you’re excited to dive in and learn fast.
You’re hungry to responsibly explore new AI tools and workflows, finding ways to make your work smarter and more efficient.

Responsibilities

Strategic Partnership with R&D business partners Serve as a key finance partner to Engineering, Product, and GTS leadership.
Translate product strategy and roadmap decisions into clear financial implications.
Provide insight into headcount planning, capitalized software, and long-term investment strategy.
Support trade-off decisions between speed, cost, and innovation.
Planning & Forecasting Lead annual planning and quarterly forecasting for R&D headcount and expenses.
Develop detailed headcount models aligned with product roadmaps and hiring plans.
Ensure accurate forecasting of compensation, infrastructure, tooling, and vendor spend.
Drive discipline and transparency around R&D investments.
Investment & Business Case Analysis Build business cases for major product initiatives and platform investments.
Evaluate ROI of engineering investments and infrastructure decisions.
Support build vs. buy decisions and strategic vendor evaluations.
Analyze cloud spend efficiency and infrastructure cost optimization.
Operational Excellence Improve financial visibility into engineering productivity and cost efficiency.
Partner with Accounting on capitalization policies and compliance.
Implement reporting frameworks that align financial and product performance metrics.
Drive process improvements to enable scalable R&D operations.
Team Development Lead, mentor, and develop finance team members supporting R&D.
Strengthen cross-functional collaboration between Finance, Product, Engineering, and Accounting.
Performs other related duties, as assigned.