Financial Analyst

FINANCIAL ANALYST

We have been retained by a prestigious law firm in Los Angeles seeking to add a Financial Analyst to their team. This person will report directly to the Finance Manager and will work across all levels of the Firm. The Financial Analyst will play a key role in helping attorneys develop budgets and forecasts. The Financial Analyst will also assist attorneys in managing alternative fee arrangements by providing reporting on activity and for performing day-to-day monitoring of matters. In addition, the Financial Analyst will create models for future use.

JOB FUNCTIONS:

• Work closely with attorneys to respond to client requests for budgets
• Define scope and develop task based budgets and forecasts
• Assist in the development of alternate pricing proposals
• Provide attorneys with relevant data to help them manage client expectations on legal spend and with business development efforts
• Create and publish budget to actual reports and packages
• Create ad hoc reports as requested by attorneys and update departmental dashboards
• Assist in defining a pricing framework for specific litigation tasks or phases
• Analyze and interpret comparable matter data and correct for anomalies
• Increase the number of exemplars for future use Determine causes of data quality problems
• Other responsibilities, as assigned
• Approve AFA related bills and audit responses

COMPETENCIES:

• Teamwork and Cooperation – Treats others with respect; works well with others; asks for help when necessary; willing to share credit; avoids pointing fingers or assigning blame; volunteers to help others when available to do so; empathetic to others.
• Communication – Communicates clearly and appropriately with adequate frequency and tools; understands the need for regular, timely and high quality communication; listens actively and asks appropriate questions; understands the message.
• Flexibility – Adapts to changing conditions; willing to do something new/different; open to change; accepting of differences.
• Problem Solving – Seeks solutions to problems; proposes creative and effective solutions to problems; examines underlying cause of problems when seeking a solution.
• Service Focus – Desires to help or serve those requesting service to meet their needs, responsive and available when needed, proactively anticipates needs and expectations and acts accordingly to support the success of the Firm.
• Self-Development – Uses constructive feedback to improve; learns from mistakes; shows eagerness and capacity to learn; attends available training; shows interest in improving self; proactively looks for opportunities to gain experience in a range of responsibilities.
• Organization and Time Management – Orderly in approach to work; able to plan and execute work effectively and accurately; tracks and follows through on requests; maintains a well-organized and clean work area; prioritizes and understands urgency; able to be punctual and prepared; manages multiple tasks simultaneously.
• Composure – Understands what triggers emotions and uses that knowledge to maintain a professional presence.
• Analytical Thinking – Works systematically and logically to analyze information, identify causation and anticipate results. Investigates issues by drawing on own experience and knowledge and calls on other resources as necessary
• Integrity – Deals with ethical issues appropriately. Acts in a way that is consistent with Firm values.

TOOLS:

• MS Office Suite – Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Access SQL

MINIMUM JOB QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• 1 to 3 years of financial planning and analysis (FP&A) experience or related experience involving data analysis and substantial quantitative modeling and forecasting.
• Ability to communicate effectively with internal and external clients including attorneys, management, other staff, clients of the firm and, at times, vendors.
• Excellent customer service skills that allow you interact with internal and external clients in a professional manner that represents the firm well.
• The ability to organize and prioritize multiple assignments, using judgment and initiative to accomplish results. Produce accurate work while meeting time-sensitive deadlines.
• The ability to work independently.
• Proficient in MS Excel, MS Access, SQL, Word and PowerPoint.
• Experience working with a financial or budgeting system a plus.
• Prior law firm experience is helpful, but not required.