Vp Of Finance (Scale Finance Function Of An Edtech Saas In Canada)

Acuity Insights is a Canadian EdTech product and research company in a growth position.
We have a clear vision and plan for the future, have a well-established product-market fit in healthcare education, invest time in product innovation, and are on a path to expansion in new vertical markets.
Right now, we seek a VP of Finance to build and evolve our finance function for growth & agility and to drive transformative change with insights, enabling us to scale our impact on higher education and future professionals.
In addition to owning the interpretation and implications of our numbers, focus areas are budgeting and forecasting, financial modelling, capital allocation, and optimizing performance metrics & measurement systems.
It's an opportunity best suited to a well-rounded SaaS finance leader with a disciplined approach who has helped build and witnessed the success of a finance operation and FP&A function in scaling tech companies.
Qualified candidates also have a knack for telling the story behind the numbers in a way that inspires confidence, trust, conversation & action and educates and aligns executive leaders, board members, investors, individual contributors and people leaders across an organization.
Opportunity & Impact
Joining Acuity Insights provides the opportunity to be part of our mission to create a world served by exceptional professionals. We help higher education institutions see the potential others miss, supporting them in getting exceptional outcomes with a sharper, holistic view of applicants, students and programs so that they can graduate more doctors, nurses, teachers, engineers, future business leaders and other professionals who bring social, emotional and cultural competency into their work.
As our VP of Finance, you’ll join a small, lean Finance team, leading the function and owning top-line financial KPIs. You get to build your team structure and bring on a team member to oversee and manage accounting operations. It’s a chance to establish Acuity Insight’s financial framework, be hands-on with evolving and optimizing current reporting systems like forecasting, budgeting, cash flow management, and metrics tracking, and establish processes where you find it’s lacking to create clearer visibility and control of cost, cash and revenue.
As a valued executive leadership team member, you’ll be a thought partner to other Execs and a collaborator whose viewpoints and ideas help shape company strategy. You’ll provide actionable insights, financial analysis & options that inform business decisions, like where to allocate capital and when to pivot if an investment is not yielding the desired outcome.
Leveraging your versatility, agility and broader strategic thinking, you’ll work alongside the CEO to help develop and execute fundraising and acquisition strategies. You’ll also partner with teams, functional leaders, and contributors at all levels, bringing your empathy and point of view to the conversations and collaborations and challenging us to be more effective. For example, you’ll work with the People team on compensation, Revenue on sales forecasting, Product on pricing, Strategy on emerging markets, and Operations on optimizing workflows.
Your success as our VP of Finance will strengthen our company’s financial health and position. Your work as part of the Executive team will lead to our sustainable, ethical, and responsible growth. Your lived experiences and strategic and empathetic leadership will help our company navigate the challenges of scale, growth and change, turning Finance into a growth driver that unlocks our business's potential.
The VP of Finance role is a full-time remote-first position requiring eligibility to work in Canada. It reports to our CEO, Rich Emrich.
To thrive in the role, you:

• Are an ethical financial and executive leader who understands the human side of business and finance, leads with transparency, and recognizes and values people at all levels.
• Come with an understanding of the economics and metrics that impact the potential of a scaling SaaS business so you can zero in on financial issues that stand in the way of growth.
• Have led the finance and related functions like operations for a scaleup stage company through rapid organic and inorganic growth, fundraising in growth capital, private equity, and/or public markets.
• Bring a broad range of financial skills & knowledge and professional history of effectively leading and managing financial matters in a SaaS company, covering FP&A, accounting principles, budgeting & forecasting, risk management, analyzing complex financial data, identifying trends, and providing insights that support decision-making and drive business growth.
• Have first-hand experience with the challenges of taking a SaaS company from startup to scaleup, like growing a team from 100 to 250 people, solving flat growth, raising capital and reaching profitability.

To thrive at Acuity Insights, you are:

• Someone with strong yet loosely held opinions.
• Purpose-led and mission-driven in your work.
• Curious by nature and open to possibilities. You like to explore, ask questions, experiment, and learn.
• Driven to problem-solve and biased towards action.
• Caring toward people. You show up, take time to listen and understand, encourage and support, and don’t shy away from providing feedback and mentoring and teaching others to help them grow.
• Adaptable and outcome-oriented with a preference for fluid and changing work environments where you get to build, make a visible impact and positively influence change and progress.

The Selection Process
Whether you apply or come to us as a referral, we believe in a fair process and giving you equal consideration for an interview based on your merits.
We believe diversity fuels innovation, fosters creativity, and drives better business outcomes, and welcome and encourage applications from women, individuals from ethnic minorities, and those with disabilities, as we strive to create a team that reflects the diverse communities we serve.
The Interview Process
Our interview process is designed to be a two-way discovery: we’ll have questions to help us get to know you and assess for mission, values, skills and experience alignment. Bring questions you want answers to, too!
Here are the general steps you can expect:

• Receive an Offer. If it’s determined you are a good match for the company, team and role, you’ll be invited to an offer conversation. The offer is contingent upon the completion of a reference check.
• Meet the Manager. Share your background & relevant experiences, and learn about the company’s current and future state with CEO and co-founder Rich Emrich.
• Present to the Team. Prepare and deliver a presentation to the Executive leadership and Board that showcases who you are and how you think as an executive and finance leader.
• Wait For a Final Decision. The Hiring Manager consolidates and evaluates feedback from the people you meet to make an informed decision.
• Selection. An actual human - not bots - reviews your application and assesses your experience and responses for alignment with hiring criteria.
• Intro Conversation. If selected, you are invited to tell your professional story and learn at a high level about the role & compensation, team & company.
• Meet Members of the Team. Spend some time getting to know folks you’ll work closest with and learn more about the day-to-day and life at Acuity Insights.
• Meet Members of the Board. Spend some time getting to know the Board, their perspective on the company and how you’ll partner with them in your work.

Some key benefits:

• Self-Directed Vacation. Rooted in trust, our approach lets you guide your own vacation time to fit your unique needs and circumstances.
• Access to Health Coverage from Day 1. Enroll yourself (and any dependents) in our comprehensive health, dental, and life benefits plan through Equitable Life of Canada.
• Stock Options. Options granted on your start date and vests 25% per year, so you can participate in and benefit from the growth you contribute to.
• Collective Time Off. Join the team in turning off work together on Acuity Days and for two weeks at the end of the year.
• Holistic Wellness Support. Personalized support for your physical, mental, social, financial, and nutritional well-being needs through a membership with Cyno.
• Flexible & Remote Work. Work from where you want within Canada, have autonomy with working hours so you can optimize your schedule for work-life balance.
• Parental Leave. Spend time with the newest addition to your family, whether you are a birthing parent, non-birthing parent, or growing your family through surrogacy or adoption.
• Thoughtful Compensation. A salary rooted in internal pay equity and that aligns with our business financials.

A Bit More About Us
Acuity Insights (formerly Altus Assessments) is a Canadian company established in 2014. We were founded on 15 years of research by co-founders Kelly Dore (Ph.D.) and Harold Reiter (M.D MEd), who invented our first product, Casper, a higher education admissions assessment, at McMaster University in Ontario.
In 2021 we acquired One45, a healthcare education software company, expanding our team and offerings beyond admissions assessments to program management and analytics products for higher education institutions.
Behind Acuity Insights, you’ll find a vibrant group of 130+ naturally caring, curious and driven people collaborating remotely (and occasionally in person) across Canada and some international locations where customers and markets are.
At Acuity Insights, we believe a team rich in diverse backgrounds, lived experiences, and opinions create a better workplace, builds better products, and achieves greater social impact and financial outcomes.
We foster a culture of transparency and respect, follow fair hiring practices and prioritize equity and inclusion in our policies, business decisions and day-to-day operations.
Thanks for considering Acuity Insights as your next workplace!