Senior Director, Financial Planning & Analysis - Audience Measurement Investment

At Nielsen, we are passionate about our work to power a better media future for all people by providing powerful insights that drive client decisions and deliver extraordinary results. Our talented, global workforce is dedicated to capturing audience engagement with content - wherever and whenever it’s consumed. Together, we are proudly rooted in our deep legacy as we stand at the forefront of the media revolution. When you join Nielsen, you will join a dynamic team committed to excellence, perseverance, and the ambition to make an impact together. We champion you, because when you succeed, we do too. We enable your best to power our future.

Join our dynamic, fast paced, FP&A team to partner with the Executive leaders of Product, Commercial and Customer Success. This high-impact, strategic, role plays a pivotal role shaping the future of Audience Measurement. You will lead analysis across the Audience Measurement value chain, responsible for driving rigorous capital allocation, optimizing economics, and ensuring maximum Return on Investment (ROI) across the portfolio. You will oversee a team responsible for planning, forecasting and reporting for ~$400M cost base, in order to deliver a multi year strategic plan for the Business Unit. You will be instrumental in influencing senior leaders to make data-driven decisions that fuel top-line growth and enhance long-term valuation.

What You'll Do

Strategic Planning and Financial Execution 

• Serve as the trusted strategic advisor to Product leadership, establishing frameworks for CapEx/OpEx management and R&D investment prioritization. Prepare cases for the Nielsen Investment Committee approval and track execution.

• Collaborate with Product, Commercial, Customer Success to build and maintain robust financial models for all new product initiatives and/or product enhancements; building TAM, SAM, SOM, as well as driver based models that will be used to evaluate opportunities. 

• Drive the financial plan and execution for Product, Commercial and Customer Success, overseeing budgeting, forecasting, and insightful performance reporting.

• Support Commercial and Customer Success leaders to optimize salesforce effectiveness, gain alignment on marketing spend and effectiveness KPIs, and customer success efficiency, focusing on CLTV, CAC, and Net Retention Rate (NRR).

• Contribute to the Annual Operating Plan and long-range financial planning cycles, ensuring alignment with corporate strategic objectives and Sponsor expectations

• Drive ongoing interlock between Product, Sales, Customer Success to ensure alignment on targets, roadmaps, drivers 

• Proactively manage financial risks and opportunities across the P&L, developing and championing mitigation and acceleration strategies.

Transformation Program Financial Leadership

• Contribute to major cross-functional initiatives (e.g., M&A integration, global pricing shifts, go-to-market model changes)

• Develop, manage, and defend complex financial models and comprehensive business cases to assess and justify large-scale capital investments and enterprise-wide transformation programs.

• Conduct rigorous, objective financial analysis to assess the ROI and strategic impact of all major product and technology initiatives.

• Provide regular, executive-level financial governance and reporting on the performance of strategic programs versus planned targets.

Collaborate and Influence

• Partner cross-functionally to achieve business objectives and drive scalable growth.

• Effectively communicate, present, and influence financial and non-financial audiences at the highest levels, including preparing materials for Nielsen Sponsors and Board of Directors.

• Support the financial storytelling for the company's growth trajectory, ensuring the operational execution is accurately reflected in financial outcomes.

Champion Continuous Improvement

• Lead, mentor, and grow a high-performing FP&A team, establishing a culture of analytical rigor, business partnership, and accountability.

• Champion initiatives to enhance FP&A processes, driving adoption of enterprise solutions and business intelligence tools to drive forecast accuracy and operational efficiency.

About You

• Analytical and Strategic Thinker: A sharp analytical mind with the ability to challenge the status quo, identify opportunities, and mitigate risks.

• Strategic Growth Architect: A finance leader who thinks like a business operator, with a proven ability to link operational drivers directly to enterprise valuation and financial outcomes.

• Executive Presence: Exceptional communication, influencing, and storytelling skills, capable of presenting and defending complex financial strategies to C-level leadership and the Board.

• Domain Mastery: Deep expertise in the core financial models and decision-making processes governing Product/R&D investment, expert in the Media ecosystem

• Transformational Leader: Proven ability to lead and drive accountability for financial results in a high-growth, ambiguous, and rapidly changing business environment.

• Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a related quantitative field. MBA or relevant advanced degree is highly preferred.

• 12+ years of progressive experience in FP&A or Strategic Finance, with at least 3 years in a leadership role within a Media organization.

• Demonstrated expertise in managing the financial aspects of Product, Technology/R&D, Sales, and Customer Success, including the Product Development Lifecycle

• Proven expertise in financial modeling, CapEx management, investment analysis, and full P&L management.

• Exceptional project management and organizational skills, with a track record of driving complex cross-functional financial projects.

• Advanced proficiency with enterprise performance management (EPM) systems and data analytics tools.

Enabling your best to power a better media future. Our comprehensive benefits package (including health & wellness plans, 401(k) retirement coupled with a Nielsen match, a generous paid time off policy, company provided car for those who qualify, and if eligible, a discretionary incentive/bonus) is designed to be inclusive for all employees and families, and we take pride in ensuring that employees are rewarded holistically for the role they are doing and their performance.

A reasonable estimated salary range for a new employee has been provided. It would be adjusted based on each employee's geographic location. The position of each employee within a compensation range at Nielsen is dependent on several individual circumstances, such as experience, training, certifications and other business requirements/needs.

Nielsen makes hiring decisions without regard to disability status, protected veteran status, or membership in any other protected class.

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