Director of Finance

Overview

Compensation: $140,000 - $160,000 / year

Department: G&A

Location: Washington, DC

Description

The Bulwark is an independent media company with a diversified business spanning podcasts, newsletters, subscriptions, advertising, and events.

As we continue to grow, we’re looking for a Director of Finance to build and lead a modern, disciplined finance function for a founder-led company that moves quickly and does things differently.

The Director of Finance is responsible for all core finance activities—including FP&A, accounting oversight, reporting, and cash management—and serves as a key strategic partner to the COO and CEO.

The Director of Finance will personally handle day-to-day financial work while building a small finance and accounting team, implementing scalable systems and processes, and supporting strategic decision-making as The Bulwark grows. The ideal candidate is a builder who is comfortable operating at both the tactical and strategic levels.

Financial Operations & Accounting

• Oversee and actively manage day-to-day accounting activities, including general ledger, revenue recognition, A/R, A/P, and payroll.
• Own the monthly, quarterly, and annual close process and ensure accurate, timely financial statements in accordance with GAAP.
• Establish and maintain appropriate internal controls, policies, and documentation, including coordination around tax, sales/use tax, and 1099 reporting.

Budgeting, Forecasting & Reporting

• Lead the annual budgeting process and develop rolling forecasts across revenue, margin, headcount, and cash.
• Build and maintain financial models to support decisions around new products, pricing, hiring plans, and content investments, including scenario and sensitivity analysis to identify risks and opportunities.
• Develop and own dashboards and KPI reporting across subscriptions, advertising, content, and events, delivering clear, actionable insights to leadership.

Strategic Finance & Planning

• Partner with the COO and CEO on strategic planning, long-range financial modeling, and scenario analysis as the business grows.
• Evaluate and model new initiatives, partnerships, and growth opportunities, including ROI and payback analysis.
• Support potential equity or debt financing efforts, as needed, in partnership with leadership and external advisors.

Cash Management, Risk & Compliance

• Own cash flow forecasting, working capital management, and banking relationships.
• Recommend policies related to reserves, capital allocation, and financial risk.
• Ensure compliance with applicable financial and tax requirements, coordinating with external advisors as needed.

Business Partnership & Leadership

• Serve as a day-to-day financial partner to the COO and CEO, providing insight on hiring, compensation, pricing, and growth investments.
• Prepare and present monthly and quarterly financial reporting to leadership and, as applicable, to external stakeholders.
• Work closely with revenue, content, operations, and marketing leaders to align financial plans with business goals.

Team Building & Systems

• Build and lead a small accounting and finance team over time (e.g., senior accountant/controller and analyst), including hiring, mentoring, and performance management.
• Own the finance systems stack (general ledger, payroll, billing, forecasting tools) and drive process improvement and automation.
• Continuously improve workflows and reporting to support scale, accuracy, and speed.

• 8-12+ years of progressive experience in finance roles such as FP&A, strategic finance, or controllership; prior experience as a director or head of finance is preferred.
• CPA or equivalent accounting background, with a strong command of GAAP, financial reporting, and internal controls; experience managing external audit and tax relationships is a plus.
• Clear owner of budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, and cash management for a $10-100M business.
• Experience in digital media, subscription, SaaS, or consumer internet businesses, with familiarity across both recurring revenue and advertising-driven models.
• Comfort operating both strategically and hands-on—able to build models, dig into the numbers, and also…