Lead GTM Finance Analyst (R5361)

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai https://shield.ai/. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/shield-ai, X https://x.com/shieldaitech, Instagram https://www.instagram.com/shield_ai, and YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@Shield_AI. JOB DESCRIPTION: We are building advanced autonomous systems that redefine the future of defense and national security. Scaling a mission-driven company at this pace requires financial precision, rapid insight, and a data backbone built for speed and accuracy. We are hiring a GTM Finance business partner to support Sales, Business Development, Marketing, and Customer Success. This is a hybrid role across finance, data engineering, and operational strategy — ideal for someone who moves confidently between modeling, systems, and decision-making. You will own the end-to-end GTM cost structure: OpEx budgets, headcount planning, spend analytics, and the data pipelines and reporting frameworks that power GTM intelligence. You’ll also set the SOPs and data quality standards that shift finance from reactive reporting to proactive leadership. If you thrive in high-stakes environments and believe finance should steer the business — not just record it — you’ll excel here. What you'll do: - Headcount & Spend Management - Build and maintain GTM headcount, spend forecasting, tracking, and capacity model - Provide full visibility into GTM Opex, identifying cost drivers and resource optimization opportunities - Monitor actuals vs. plan and forecast; drive accountability with cost center owners - Partner with Data Engineering and system owners to automate headcount reconciliations across HR, Finance, and GTM systems — including unit economics Data Engineering & Analytics Infrastructure - Partner with Data Engineering and BI to define data architecture, KPIs, and source-of-truth models - Build automated reporting workflows and capacity models in partnership with Data Engineering or Anaplan teams - Write and maintain SQL for ETL workflows across the data lake / Databricks environment - Build and manage scalable, reliable data pipelines powering GTM finance reporting - Create semantic data models and curated reporting tables for consistent cross-team metrics - Build dashboards in Databricks, Power BI, or similar tools for real-time GTM visibility Data Quality, Governance & SOPs - Establish and enforce data quality monitoring, validation rules, and anomaly detection - Write SOPs for key GTM finance processes: close, headcount reconciliation, budget loading, variance reporting - Drive consistent KPI and metric definitions across GTM, Finance, and Data - Implement data governance practices to protect reporting integrity - Identify data or process gaps and propose scalable solutions Cross-Functional Collaboration & Process Improvement - Partner with Revenue Ops, HR, Recruiting, Accounting, and Data to ensure financial plans match operational reality - Collaborate with Revenue Operations on quotas, pipeline forecasting, and GTM capacity - Continuously streamline tools, reporting, and processes with an automation-first mindset - Lead special projects and strategic analyses for finance leadership Required qualifications: - - Bachelor’s degree in finance, Accounting, Economics, Business, CS, or related field - Experience in aerospace, defense, semiconductor, robotics, automotive, or another heavy manufacturing or hardware-driven environment - 3–6 years of experience in FP&A, GTM Finance, Sales Finance, RevOps, or equivalent analytical roles - Proficiency with AI tools to improve analysis speed, accuracy, and productivity - Experience with cloud data platforms (Databricks, Snowflake, Redshift, etc.) and ETL/pipeline concepts - Demonstrated ability to build headcount models and GTM or corporate OpEx budgets - Advanced financial modeling skills in Excel; strong driver-based forecasting experience - Excellent communication skills with both technical and non-technical stakeholders - Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy - Ability to operate independently in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment - Must be authorized to work in the United States Preferred qualifications: - - Experience in defense tech, aerospace, or dual-use hardware/software - Exposure to U.S. government contracting or milestone-based revenue models - Proficiency with AI tools to improve analysis speed, accuracy, and productivity - Experience with Anaplan or similar planning tools; ERP/CRM experience (Oracle, NetSuite, Salesforce) - Strong SQL skills, including the ability to write, optimize, and troubleshoot queries on large datasets Who you are: - - Growth mindset — you actively seek feedback, learn quickly, and continuously raise your own bar - First principles thinker — you dig into the “why” to design smarter, simpler, more scalable solutions - Data and AI first operator — you automate, streamline, and systematize every process you touch - Highly collaborative — you build trust across Sales, Ops, Engineering, and Data - Operationally sharp — you turn messy input into fast, high quality decisions - Mission driven — motivated by work with real stakes and real impact - High ownership — you drive projects from ambiguity to execution without waiting to be asked - Rigorous yet pragmatic — you balance precision with speed and know when each matter Why this role matters: - The GTM Finance business partner is the connective tissue between our growth ambitions and financial reality. Every headcount plan, marketin