Senior Director, Strategic Finance

At Lyft, our purpose is to serve and connect. We aim to achieve this by cultivating a work environment where all team members belong and have the opportunity to thrive.

We are seeking an exceptional Senior Director, Strategic Finance to join our leadership team, reporting to the Head of FP&A. This leader will serve as the senior finance partner across several of Lyft's critical business lines: Ads, Lyft Business, and Marketing. This leader will be driving strategic financial decision-making through advanced analytics, consumer tech expertise, and proven ROI frameworks.

These three businesses span fundamentally different operating models: a high-margin advertising platform monetizing rider attention within the Lyft app; a B2B enterprise business, and a rider/driver acquisition and lifecycle engine that allocates tens of millions in marketing spend across performance channels, CRM, and incentive programs. The right candidate can context-switch fluently across all three

This role demands a finance leader with deep experience with lifecycle marketing & LTV who can be a self-starter and translate complex business dynamics into actionable insights and drive measurable performance.

Responsibilities:

Strategic Finance & Business Partnership

• Lead comprehensive financial planning, budgeting, and forecasting for Ads, Lyft Business, and Marketing, including revenue modeling, contract optimization, marketing investment planning, and scenario analysis.


• Partner directly with senior business leaders as their primary finance counterpart, shaping investment cases, challenging assumptions, and ensuring financial rigor in decision-making.


• Own the consolidated financial narrative for these growth businesses in earnings prep, board materials, and CFO/CEO reviews - translating early-stage business performance into a credible story for internal and external audiences.


• Drive forecast updates and quarterly business reviews with sophisticated analysis of business performance across all three LOBs, including WoW and MoM variance analysis, R&O framing, and forward-looking commentary.


• Lead long-term planning for these businesses, including capital allocation recommendations, headcount investment frameworks, and multi-year revenue build models.


• Invest in the development of the team members. Identifying areas for bigger impact through technical hands on coaching and mentoring

ROI Optimization

• Build and maintain advanced ROI frameworks tailored to the distinct economics of each business: CPM/sell-through and advertiser retention models for Ads; pipeline coverage, account ramp, and enterprise churn models for Lyft Business; and CAC/LTV, channel-level ROAS, and incrementality frameworks for Marketing.


• Develop and defend contribution margin waterfalls for businesses where the cost structure is still forming, translating early traction into long-term margin trajectory for CFO and investor narratives.


• Own the financial guardrails on marketing spend: set CAC targets by channel and market, monitor payback periods, and ensure growth investment protects marketplace balance (rider acquisition in line with driver supply capacity).


• Design and implement automated financial models and dashboards that provide real-time visibility into key business drivers, ad revenue pipeline and sell-through, Lyft Business bookings and account health, and marketing spend efficiency.


• Drive scenario planning and sensitivity analysis to support strategic decisions around new ad products, Lyft Business vertical expansion (e.g., NEMT, dealerships), and marketing channel mix optimization.

Team Leadership & Process Excellence

• Build, manage, and develop a high-performing Strategic Finance team. Coach and develop Finance talent - not just manage, but actively raise the analytical bar.


• Establish best-in-class financial processes across businesses at different maturity levels


• Foster a culture of analytical depth, intellectual honesty, and proactive business partnership. The team should surface insights before being asked and challenge the business when the numbers don't support the narrative.

Experience:

• 12+ years of progressive FP&A or strategic finance experience, with at least 8+ years in technology companies — preferably in marketplace, platform, advertising, or network-effect businesses.


• Direct experience supporting an advertising or media business. You understand CPM/CPC economics, ad inventory management, sell-through rates, advertiser pipeline dynamics, and the margin profile of a platform ad business. Experience at a company building an ads business on top of an existing consumer platform (e.g., retail media, rideshare/delivery media, streaming ads) is ideal.


• Deep experience with growth/performance marketing finance. You've built or managed CAC/LTV frameworks, set channel-level budget guardrails, evaluated incrementality, and partnered with growth teams on spend optimization. You understand that marketing dollars in a marketplace business have second-order effects on supply/demand balance.


• Extensive track record of building and leading high-performing FP&A teams in fast-growth environments, including hiring and developing finance talent.


• Strong executive presence with experience presenting to C-suite leadership. You can walk into a room with the CFO, defend a marketing investment case or challenge an overly optimistic revenue forecast, and be respected for both.


• Outstanding communication skills with the ability to translate complex financial concepts for diverse audiences, from business operators to the earnings prep team.

Strongly Preferred:

• Experience at a two-sided marketplace where you've had to account for supply/demand interdependencies in financial planning, where a rider acquisition investment changes driver utilization, ETAs, and pricing.


• Experience supporting businesses from start-up to scale. Big enough to matter to the P&L and the earnings narrative, but young enough that the forecasting models and financial infrastructure are still being built.


• Familiarity with revenue recognition nuances across business models: ad revenue (principal vs. agent), enterprise contracted revenue, and marketing spend classification.


• Comfort operating across geographically distributed teams.

Benefits:

• Great medical, dental, and vision insurance options with additional programs available when enrolled


• Mental health benefits


• Family building benefits


• Child care and pet benefits


• 401(k) plan to help save for your future


• In addition to 12 observed holidays, salaried team members have discretionary paid time off, hourly team members have 15 days paid time off


• 18 weeks of paid parental leave. Biological, adoptive, and foster parents are all eligible


• Subsidized commuter benefits


• Lyft Pink - Lyft team members get an exclusive opportunity to test new benefits of our Ridership Program

Lyft is an equal opportunity employer committed to an inclusive and diverse workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regards to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other basis prohibited by law. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with applicable federal, state and local law.

This role will be in-office on a hybrid schedule — Team Members will be expected to work in the Lyft San Francisco office 3 days per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Additionally, hybrid roles have the flexibility to work from anywhere for up to 4 weeks per year. #Hybrid

The expected base pay range for this position in the San Francisco Bay area is $232,000 - $290,000. In addition to the base pay, this role is eligible for competitive equity awards, bonuses, and benefits. You can read more about Lyft’s employee benefits here.

Total compensation is dependent on a variety of factors, including qualifications, experience, and geographic location. Your recruiter can share more information about the salary range specific to your working location and other factors during the hiring process.