Strategic Finance Lead

Afresh, the AI platform for grocery, began by tackling the most complex problem in the industry: fresh, and has evolved into the core AI platform for grocers. By leveraging proprietary AI designed for high-volatility environments, we empower partners like Albertsons, Meijer, and Wakefern to drive smarter decisions across their entire enterprise. Following record-breaking 70% revenue growth in 2025, we have scaled to 6 enterprise-grade solutions, with solutions live in over 10% of the U.S. grocery market. Our platform now orchestrates billions of decisions from the store floor to the distribution center and prevented over 200 million pounds of food waste last year alone. If you're looking for a role where your work directly translates into massive scale and social good, and you want to be part of the team that defines how the world eats, there is no better time to join us. About the Role We're looking for a sharp, proactive Strategic Finance Lead to be the beating heart of financial planning and analysis on our Strategy & Finance team. This is a rare build-it role: you'll be our sole dedicated FP&A partner, owning the models, forecasts, and insights that guide decision-making across the company — and reporting directly to the VP of Strategy & Finance. What makes this seat different is how we expect the work to get done. We're not looking for someone to rebuild the same static spreadsheets faster. We want a finance operator who treats AI as a core part of their toolkit — using it to sharpen forecasts, pressure-test assumptions, automate the manual, and surface the insights that move the business. If you're energized by the idea of shaping both the numbers and the way modern finance gets done, this is your role. You'll join a fast-paced, mission-driven Series B environment where your analysis directly informs how leadership allocates capital, sets targets, and places bets. You'll partner across every function, develop a deep understanding of the business, and see your work reflected in the decisions that shape our trajectory. What You'll Do - Own forecasting, budgeting, and long-range planning — build and maintain the financial models that drive the annual budget, quarterly and monthly forecasts, and multi-year strategic plans. - Run the planning cycles end to end — partner with department heads to build plans that are both realistic and ambitious, and hold the process together as the single owner of FP&A. - Turn results into insight — analyze actuals against budget and forecast, explain the variances, and translate what happened into what we should do next. - Define and track the metrics that matter — develop KPIs and build clear, trustworthy dashboards and reporting that tell leadership the truth about performance quickly. - Be a true business partner — embed with Sales, Marketing, Product, Engineering, and Operations to support strategic initiatives with financial analysis and a point of view. - Inform the big decisions — prepare board-quality analysis and presentations for the executive team on financial performance, unit economics, and key business drivers. - Support strategic and ad-hoc work — model scenarios for fundraising, new product launches, pricing, and market expansion, and stand up analysis on whatever question is most important that week. - Raise the bar on how finance operates — drive process improvements across the FP&A function to make it faster, more accurate, and more scalable as the company grows. How You'll Use AI in This Role We believe AI is reshaping what a lean finance team can accomplish, and we want someone who is already leaning into it — or hungry to. This isn't a buzzword on the JD; it's a real expectation of how you'll work day to day. In this role, you'll: - Sharpen forecasting and modeling with AI — use AI tools and techniques to improve forecast accuracy, test assumptions, run scenarios faster, and stress-test the models behind key decisions. - Automate the manual — apply AI to streamline data gathering, reconciliation, reporting, and the repetitive parts of the close and planning cycles, so your time goes to analysis instead of assembly. - Generate insight, not just outputs — use AI to interrogate large and messy datasets, surface patterns and anomalies, and pull out the business insights that drive decisions. - Help set the standard — experiment with new AI-enabled finance tools and workflows, and help establish how our finance function uses AI responsibly and effectively as we scale. You don't need to be an engineer. You do need to be genuinely curious about these tools, comfortable putting them to work, and thoughtful about where AI adds rigor versus where human judgment has to lead. What You'll Bring - 5+ years of progressive FP&A or strategic finance experience, ideally at a high-growth startup or technology company. (We care more about the caliber of your work than the exact number of years.) - Exceptional financial modeling skills — you build complex, elegant, and genuinely usable models, and you're a wizard with the tools of the trade. - Demonstrated use of AI in your work — you've already applied AI tools to forecasting, analysis, automation, or reporting, or you have a clear track record of adopting new technology to work smarter. - A strong grasp of GAAP, the three financial statements, and how they connect. - Proven ability to analyze financial data, find the signal, and communicate it clearly to both finance and non-finance audiences. - Excellent communication and presentation skills, and the judgment to tailor the message to the audience — from an analyst to the CEO. - Experience with financial planning and reporting software; comfort with SQL or BI tools is a plus. - A proactive, ownership-driven mindset — you're comfortable being the one person accountable for FP&A and you thrive without a playbook. - The ability to move fast, manage competing priorities, and stay accurate under pressure. - A collaborative spirit and a knack for building trust across the organization. - Bonus: experience in enterprise SaaS, supply chain, or the grocery/retail space. Why This Role - Real ownership from day one — you'll own FP&A outright, with direct exposure to the VP of Strategy & Finance and the executive team. - High-leverage impact — your analysis directly shapes how the company plans, invests, and grows through a pivotal stage. - Build the future of finance — a genuine mandate to bring AI into how a modern finance function operates, not just permission to tinker at the edges. - Remote-first and flexible — work from anywhere in the U.S., with a team that cares about outcomes over hours. This position is not eligible for company sponsorship. Salary Band in U.S.: $160,000-$220,000 + meaningful early-stage equity + benefits Why You’ll Love Working at Afresh At Afresh, our mission to eliminate food waste starts with investing in our people. We provide a comprehensive support system designed to help you do your best work while maintaining a healthy, balanced life. - Comprehensive Health & Wellness: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage for you and your family, with the majority of premiums covered by Afresh. We also provide dedicated mental health support and counseling services. - Invested in Your Future: Competitive base salary, meaningful equity (U.S. employees), and a 401(k) program with a generous company match. - Flexible & Modern Workspace: Whether you work from home or a local office, we support your setup with a home office stipend and "Coworking Wallets" for flexible workspace access. - Growth-Obsessed Culture: We believe in continuous learning. Every employee receives an annual professional development budget to master new skills and grow their career at Afresh. - Holistic Monthly Stipends: Beyond your paycheck, we provide monthly stipends for "Betterment" (wellness/lifestyle) and telecommunications to ensure you have what you need to thrive. - Time to Recharge: Flexible paid time off to take the time you need to recharge. *Full-time U.S. employees are eligible for these benefits About Afresh Founded in 2017, Afresh is using AI to tackle the #1 solution to curb climate change: reducing food waste. By building AI specifically for the intricacies of grocery—from the fresh perimeter to the center store—we help grocers minimize waste and maximize sales. Afresh sits at an incredible intersection of positive social impact, rocket ship financial growth, and cutting-edge technology. Our best-in-class AI research has been published in top journals, including ICML, and our investors include Al Gore’s Just Climate, former Whole Foods Market CEO Walter Robb, and Eric Schmidt's Innovation Endeavors. Grocery is the past, present, and future of our food system – the waste we create today will impact our planet for years to come. Join us as we continue to build a vibrant, diverse, and inclusive team that embodies our company’s values of proactivity, kindness, candor, and humility. Afresh provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, genetics, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, marital status, pregnancy or related condition, or any other basis protected by law. Here at Afresh, many of our employees work remotely provided that they reside in one of the following states: AL, AR, CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, KY, MA, MI, MT, MO, NV, NJ, NY, NC, OR, PA, TX, WA, UT, VA, WI.