Senior Director, Finance

Crooked believes that we need a better conversation about politics, culture, and the world around us—one that doesn’t just focus on what’s broken, but what we can do to fix it. We are a media network that showcases stories, voices, and opportunities for activism that inform, entertain, and inspire action, because it’s up to all of us to do our part to build a better world.

Crooked has adopted a hybrid work model for our entire staff. We believe that the best work is done in a hybrid capacity as it combines the flexibility of working from home with in-person collaboration. We are ideally looking for Los Angeles-based candidates, or candidates willing to relocate within the first 3 months of accepting an offer. In addition, Crooked requires all employees to provide proof of full vaccination and booster to combat the spread of Covid-19. 

How You’ll Spend Your Time:

Budget/Forecast

• Ownership of Budget including the following: 
  • Preparation of Budget Files, including:
    • Partnering with departmental stakeholders to determine annual spend
    • Work with Programming and Development departments on release schedule for upcoming year
    • Ensure monthly revenue numbers reflect appropriate seasonality
    • Monthly reporting and results tracking
• Ownership of Quarterly Forecast process, including updates based on Actuals to Date
  • Requires follow-up with Business Units to revise “to-go” estimates

Investor/Board Materials Prep

• Preparation and Distribution of Investor Reporting materials (monthly and quarterly)
• Assist in the preparation and consolidation of Board materials
• Respond to Investor/Board inquiries and information requests on an as needed basis

Monthly Close

• Ownership of Month-End Close process and review of Monthly Close Pack for submission to investors, including: 
  • Management of revenue recognition for distribution deal
  • Review of Talent RevShare statements and monthly sales reconciliation
  • Validation of P&L and Balance Sheet prepared by Countsy
  • Review of Variance Analysis against Budget and Forecast

Cash Management/Treasury

• Develop and maintain an ongoing annual and 13 week cash forecast
• Ensure proper controls and training and monitor compliance issues

Production Accounting

• Working with Production Accountant to ensure per show cost estimates are in-line with Budgeted/Forecasted Amounts, and to communicate any material deviations to CFO in a real-time manner

AR/AP

• Working with Ad-Ops to ensure their delivery and fulfillment tracking accurately reflects revenue to be recognized
  • Liaising between Ad Op/Accounting to drive prompt, accurate invoicing
  • Review of invoices being issued to ensure they are consistent with tracker, and reflect delivery
• Expense- tracking of per podcast (by episode) cost of production and talent fees
  • Review and communication of spend with Finance/Accounting to ensure expenses are recorded in the period they are incurred
    • This includes coordinating with Production Accountant to ensure those costs are accurately being captured
  • Review of monthly expense statements for talent rev share calculations in Bill.com to ensure their completeness and accuracy

Subscription

• Maintain and update working model for short-term and long-term strategic decisions
• Maintain reporting around Subscription Contribution, encompassing Subscription Revenue + VSA Service Contract Revenue

Merchandise

• Working closely with e-Commerce Manager to provide demand forecasting and cost estimates on new products 
• Communication of cost to ensure pricing achieves targeted margins
• Tracking of inventory levels, by product, by SKUs 
• Communication of inventory levels to store management in order to identify potential slow-moving inventory and/or potential stockouts

Special Projects

• Providing ad hoc analyses to be used in various transactional scenarios
• Managing the 409A Process
• Supporting COO and CFO on an as-needed basis

Leadership Standards:

The following characteristics are required of those in leadership positions (Director and above) at Crooked Media. Each leadership characteristic is part of the annual evaluation process and all are critical to effective leadership to advance our organization:

• A strong sense of ownership and excitement related to our mission
• A self-starter and leader who will guide the way of our programming initiatives
• A strong collaborator, who is eager to create a positive environment to work well with others and bring multiple stakeholders together to accomplish amazing things
• A strategic thinker and doer who maintains a strong balance between creative vision and project management skills, which many times will require one to actively roll up their sleeves to bring great ideas to life
• A facilitator of constructive conversations, who values diverse perspectives and promotes critical thinking to ensure compelling ideas are shared and valued.

What You’ll Bring To The Table:

• 7-10 years of progressive Accounting/Finance Experience
• Accounting or Finance Degrees, MBA a nice to have (not a requirement)
• CPA strongly preferred 
• Must be able to multi-task and work in a collaborative environment.
• Independent Worker + Independent Thinker
• Must live in and around LA Metro Area (when not in pandemic); No relocation will be provided.
• Proficient in use of MS Office, primarily Excel, Word, and PowerPoint
• Strong Modeling Skills, SQL a plus

Pay and Perks: 

At Crooked, we believe in paying employees at or above market rates that are informed by salary surveys and industry benchmarks. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer full-time employees excellent benefits including:

• Paid healthcare
• 401k match 
• Generous vacation
• 16 weeks of paid parental leave
• A discretionary year-end bonus
• Did we also mention our offices are closed at the end of the year? 

When we open up a position, we conduct a market analysis to ensure we have the most up-to-date data. Once we’re ready to extend an offer, we look at the individual’s years of relevant experience and other compensable factors to determine a competitive offer. And for this role, the starting salary range is $140,000 -$170,000.