Senior Vice President, CFO Advisory

Stout•Chicago, IL

About The Position

At Stout, we’re dedicated to exceeding expectations in all we do – we call it Relentless Excellence ® . Both our client service and culture are second to none, stemming from our firmwide embrace of our core values: Positive and Team-Oriented, Accountable, Committed, Relationship-Focused, Super-Responsive, and being Great communicators. Sound like a place you can grow and succeed? Read on to learn more about an exciting opportunity to join our team. Stout's Accounting & Reporting Advisory practice is growing its Strategic Finance & FP&A team within its CFO Services group. This is a market-facing role for a senior professional who will develop client relationships, lead engagements, and work cross-functionally across Stout's broader finance transformation and transaction advisory platform. This role is well-suited for a professional services individual with industry FP&A experience that is eager to bring that operating experience into a consulting environment. Exposure to private equity-backed businesses, transaction diligence, and post-close integration are strongly preferred. Impact You'll Make: Lead strategic FP&A engagements spanning budgeting and forecasting process design, driver-based financial modeling, long-range planning, and management reporting frameworks — with an emphasis on actionable decision support for CFOs and PE sponsors. Develop and deliver performance visibility solutions for clients, including KPI/metric selection, management reporting design, and dashboard-based visualization tools. Collaborate with broader finance transformation teams, advising clients across core business processes: Order-to-Cash (OTC), Procure-to-Pay (PTP), and Record-to-Report (RTR). Support transaction-oriented engagements, including buy-side and sell-side financial due diligence, quality of earnings analysis, and pre-close FP&A readiness assessments. Lead post-acquisition integration workstreams related to the finance function, including Day 1/Day 100 planning, IMO support, standalone reporting buildout, and FP&A process harmonization. Lead or support carve-out engagements, including separation of FP&A functions, reporting structures, and shared services from parent entities. Advise clients on interim FP&A leadership, providing hands-on support to fill capability gaps during periods of transition, transformation, or rapid growth. Identify and implement data automation and analytics solutions that improve the speed and quality of financial reporting and forecasting processes. Drive business development through client relationship management, proposal development, and thought leadership in strategic finance and the Office of the CFO.

Requirements

Professional Services experience (audit, advisory, or transaction services) combined with meaningful in-house FP&A or finance leadership experience.
Deep functional expertise in financial planning and analysis, including budgeting, forecasting, long-range planning, management reporting, and business partnering.
Demonstrated experience with private equity-backed businesses, including an understanding of sponsor priorities, reporting expectations, and value creation dynamics.
Working knowledge of core corporate finance processes: Order-to-Cash (OTC), Procure-to-Pay (PTP), and Record-to-Report (RTR), in addition to FP&A.
Familiarity with finance-focused ERP systems (NetSuite, SAP, Oracle, Sage Intacct) and CPM/EPM planning tools.
Proficiency or working knowledge of data / workflow automation (e.g., Alteryx, PowerQuery, PowerAutomate) and visualization platforms (e.g., PowerBI, Tableau) to support scalable financial reporting and analytics solutions.
Strong financial modeling skills with the ability to build and review driver-based models, scenario analysis, and management reporting frameworks.
Ability to communicate complex financial concepts clearly to C-suite stakeholders and private equity sponsors.
Entrepreneurial mindset with a track record of building relationships and developing business in a professional services or advisory environment.
Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple client engagements simultaneously.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills; comfort presenting at the board, C-suite, and sponsor level.
Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field required
10+ years of relevant professional experience, including a combination of public accounting/advisory and industry FP&A or finance leadership.
3+ years of finance process transformation and/or post-transaction integration experience.
Demonstrated expertise in at least one or two industry verticals (e.g., healthcare, technology, industrials, consumer products, business services).

Nice To Haves

Exposure to M&A transactions — buy-side or sell-side due diligence, post-acquisition integration, or carve-out experience strongly preferred.
A mix of consulting/advisory and industry operating experience is strongly preferred.
CPA, CFA, or MBA designation preferred.
MBA or Master's in Finance preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead strategic FP&A engagements spanning budgeting and forecasting process design, driver-based financial modeling, long-range planning, and management reporting frameworks
Develop and deliver performance visibility solutions for clients, including KPI/metric selection, management reporting design, and dashboard-based visualization tools.
Collaborate with broader finance transformation teams, advising clients across core business processes: Order-to-Cash (OTC), Procure-to-Pay (PTP), and Record-to-Report (RTR).
Support transaction-oriented engagements, including buy-side and sell-side financial due diligence, quality of earnings analysis, and pre-close FP&A readiness assessments.
Lead post-acquisition integration workstreams related to the finance function, including Day 1/Day 100 planning, IMO support, standalone reporting buildout, and FP&A process harmonization.
Lead or support carve-out engagements, including separation of FP&A functions, reporting structures, and shared services from parent entities.
Advise clients on interim FP&A leadership, providing hands-on support to fill capability gaps during periods of transition, transformation, or rapid growth.
Identify and implement data automation and analytics solutions that improve the speed and quality of financial reporting and forecasting processes.
Drive business development through client relationship management, proposal development, and thought leadership in strategic finance and the Office of the CFO.
Design and optimize end-to-end budgeting, forecasting, and long-range planning processes for middle-market and PE-backed clients.
Build and review driver-based financial models, cash flow forecasts, ROI models, pricing and profitability analysis, and scenario/sensitivity frameworks.
Develop management reporting packages and KPI dashboards that translate financial results into business insights for CFOs, boards, and sponsors.
Provide point-in-time decision support including 13-week cash flow models, working capital analysis, and organizational design recommendations.
Support clients in an interim FP&A leadership capacity as needed.
Lead assessments and transformation initiatives across core finance processes: Order-to-Cash (OTC), Procure-to-Pay (PTP), Record-to-Report (RTR), and FP&A.
Identify operational inefficiencies and design scalable, technology-enabled process improvements across the back-office finance function.
Collaborate with Stout's broader ARA and integration teams to deliver holistic finance transformation recommendations arising from transaction and integration work.
Advise clients on shared services design, finance operating model optimization, and technology-aligned process standardization.
Support buy-side and sell-side due diligence, including financial diligence, FP&A readiness assessments, and management reporting quality reviews.
Lead post-acquisition integration planning and execution across the finance function, establishing Integration Management Office (IMO) practices and playbooks.
Assist clients with pre-close readiness, including Day 1 and Day 100 planning, standalone reporting buildout, and finance function separation from parent entities.
Translate transaction findings into actionable operational recommendations, bridging diligence insights with post-close execution and value creation initiatives.
Interact with and advise clients on finance-focused ERPs including NetSuite, Sage Intacct, SAP, and Oracle in the context of FP&A design and reporting optimization.
Leverage data/workflow automation and visualization tools to build scalable, repeatable financial reporting and forecasting solutions.
Identify and recommend CPM/EPM planning technologies appropriate to client scale and complexity.
Train, mentor, and develop junior team members, fostering a culture of analytical rigor and client-service excellence.
Contribute to the development of FP&A service offerings, intellectual property, toolkits, and thought leadership.
Participate actively in business development, including proposals, presentations, and market-facing relationship cultivation with private equity sponsors, CFOs, and intermediaries.

Benefits

At Stout, we offer a comprehensive Total Rewards program with competitive compensation, benefits, and wellness options tailored to support employees at every stage of life.
We foster a culture of inclusion and respect, embracing diverse perspectives and experiences to drive innovation and success.
Our leadership is committed to inclusion and belonging across the organization and in the communities we serve.
We invest in professional growth through ongoing training, mentorship, employee resource groups, and clear performance feedback, ensuring our employees are supported in achieving their career goals.
Stout provides flexible work schedules and a discretionary time off policy to promote work-life balance and help employees lead fulfilling lives.

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