At Backbone, we live by the mantra that passion drives results. We partner with leading lifestyle brands to drive growth through integrated marketing and strategic communications. We work with brands we believe in and pair our teammates with brands matching their interests and expertise. When you join our team of smart, driven marketers, you’ll become part of an extended work family, drawn together by a passion for the outdoors and doing great work for great brands.
The Job
The Financial Analyst will serve as Backbone’s forward-looking financial engine, owning the planning, forecasting, and reporting infrastructure that keeps leadership informed and the business running efficiently.
Core responsibilities fall into two areas. Financial planning and analysis involves building and maintaining the cash flow forecasting, budgeting, and capacity planning systems that give ownership real-time visibility into the business. Process and automation involves identifying and implementing improvements that reduce manual burden across finance and operations, with a focus on data integrity and scalable systems.
This role reports to the VP of Operations and President and works closely with the Sr. Director of Finance.
The Work
• Build, maintain, and improve a rolling cash flow forecast updated on a consistent cadence
• Standardize workbooks and data inputs across the account management team to drive forecast accuracy
• Leverage NetSuite, Hyperion (aka EPM/NSPB), and Claude/AI tools to automate reporting workflows
• Own the annual budget cycle and maintain monthly actuals vs. plan reporting by department
• Build capacity models that translate headcount and revenue data into actionable hiring signals
• Modelinterest income, investment scenarios, and distribution forecasting to support ownership decisions
• Produce clear financial reporting for ownership including cash, margin, revenue vs. plan, capacity
• Translate financial data into narrative and visual formats
• Serve as a central cross-functional resource to support account managers and other non-finance staff who currently own data inputs
• Support ongoing NetSuite utilization and Hyperion implementation as a finance power user
The Essentials
• Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a related field; MBA preferred
• 5+ years of progressive experience in FP&A, corporate finance, or financial operations
Your Capabilities
• Strong Excel acumen, highly proficient in advanced formulas and pivot tables; proficiency with NetSuite and/or Hyperion preferred; comfortable leveraging Claude, AI tools, and automation to improve the speed and quality of financial workflows
• Detail-oriented, with strong critical-thinking and problem-solving skills
• Demonstrated ability to build financial models from scratch and maintain them in a real business environment
• Experience implementing new processes and collaborating to drive adoption across departments
• Strong understanding of cash flow mechanics, capacity planning, and budget-to-actual reporting
• Experience working across multiple financial systems; comfortable learning new platforms quickly
• High EQ and strong communication skills — you know how to move groups forward without friction
• Organized and self-directed — comfortable building structure where it doesn’t yet exist
• Ability to work independently and in a team environment that promotes collaboration
• Abilityto prioritize, multi-task, and work under pressure
The Extra Mile
• Experience in a professional services, agency, or media environment
• Experience with AI-assisted finance tools, conversational reporting, or prompt engineering in a professional context
• Background that combines strong accounting fundamentals with forward-looking finance
• Experience designing or working with AI-assisted finance tools or workflows
• Alignment with Backbone’s core values
• A love of the outdoors
• A sense of humor
Salary & Benefits
• Salary: $100,000–$120,000 annually
• Benefits: Health (including Employer 100% paid option), Dental, Vision, 401k match
• Perks: Flex time, powder days, wellness incentives, work from home/remote work options, office kegs, team hikes, floats, runs and playtime
Be you, on our team. We seek to build an inclusive team and culture that values diverse lived experiences, backgrounds and skill sets.
About Backbone Media: We are the country's leading active lifestyle media agency. For 30 years, Backbone has partnered with brands big and small to develop and execute effective, integrated media strategies. With offices in Carbondale and Denver, Colorado, Backbone has been consistently included on Outside Magazine’s “Best Places to Work” list.
Please no phone calls regarding job inquiries.
Backbone provides equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.
At Backbone, we are insiders of the outside world; we bring an expedition mindset and discipline specializations to hone, amplify, and stoke brands in the active lifestyle space and beyond. Backbone is an integrated marketing agency with capabilities in public relations, paid media, strategy, social media, influencer marketing, search marketing (SEO and SEM), analytics, affiliate marketing, and retail marketing.
From day one, Backbone was rooted in the idea that you could fuse passion for an outdoor, active lifestyle with a profession advocating for brands you believe in. Today, we’re a team of more than 100 hard-charging runners, skiers, climbers, cyclists, hikers, paddlers, hunters, anglers, dog lovers and travel enthusiasts. We align our employees’ passions with the brands they represent.
Our fast-paced offices in Denver and Carbondale have landed us on Outside’s “Best Places to Work” list more years than we can count. But we don’t just throw around buzzwords like teamwork, trust, and transparency. We live and breathe by our true north — from lunch runs, the Powder Clause and happy hours to trail work days and river clean-ups.
Check out our website to learn more about us and what we do.
