Budget & Expense Analyst - Accounting

Budget and Expense Analyst, Accounting - Visualization Analytics

Fulltime/Hybrid, Boston of Springfield

The Opportunity

As Budget and Expense Analyst you will work in a fast paced, innovative, and collaborative environment to manage a complex budget including expense management, reconciliation and forecasting and automating financial data through the utilization of visualization dashboards for the Brand, Product and Affiliated Distribution organization. In addition, you will lead the creation and execution of Variable Incentive Compensation Plans for the MM Funds Group within BP&AD. This will include reporting to executive and senior leadership that summarizes and interprets data in a manner that “tells a story”. In this role, as well as all roles within MassMutual, you will demonstrate accountability, agility, a dedication to being inclusive, having strong business acumen, and will show courage, even in the most difficult situations. We also highly value strong communication skills, intellectual curiosity, proactivity, resilience and self-awareness.

The Team

As part of Brand, Product and Affiliated Distribution, the Distribution Platforms and Readiness team is responsible for driving strategy and execution related to technology, reporting, readiness and change management to support MassMutual’s product, marketing and career distribution organizations. Within Distribution Platforms and Readiness, we place a premium on our creating a diverse and inclusive team, aligning priorities with key markets and distribution channels, while nurturing partnerships with key stakeholders based in transparency and accountability.

The Impact:

As Budget and Expense Analyst you’ll have an opportunity to use your analytical skills to educate and support our leaders on the financial and expense components of how our business works. You will act as a subject matter expert on Variable Incentive programs, leveraging research to provide guidance and support. You will be asked to develop recommendations to solve problems in support of business operations. Finally, you will be responsible for performing complex research and analysis to support the business, as well as developing reports for senior leaders with an eye on proactively monitoring financial goals.

The Key Responsibilities include:

• Drive continuous improvement in process through increased leverage of technology to optimize and automate financial data including visualization dashboards.

• Responsible for data consolidation and interpretation of Brand, Product and Affiliated Distribution cost centers for all budget-related tasks including expenses and FTE tracking.

• Serve as liaison to Strategic Finance Business Partners department regarding forecasting and budget management for the full Brand, Product and Affiliated Distribution.

• Understand the current business strategy in order to provide analysis and prepare reports on progress of the Brand, Product and Affiliated Distribution budget and P&L.

• Work closely across the organization to develop and produce analysis related to expense and FTE trends; proactively identify any gaps in data or expenses.

• Develop a deep, micro-level understanding of the budget in order to provide recommendations for leadership on budget allocation and improvements.

• Compile monthly and quarterly budget and planning review processes including coordinating agendas, documenting changes, and archiving current plans

• Use multiple tracking systems or databases to monitor the budget

• Prepare timely high-quality, clear and succinct materials for regular business meetings, including senior or executive-level presentations, reports and communications from a budget, expense and FTE perspective 

• Take the lead on the creation and execution of Variable Incentive Compensation Plans for the MM Funds Group within BP&AD. Working with Business Leaders and HR Compensation partners to develop plans that incentivize employees to meet deliver Business Strategies in an appropriate fiscal manner.

• Lead the development and implementation of an FTE tracking/reconciliation system that reconciles the HR and Financial systems in an efficient manner. This will include seeking out appropriate technical tools and working with corporate partners to deliver appropriate reporting.

• Prepare monthly/quarterly Variable Incentive compensation payout for all BP&AD plans per the Plan document for payroll processing. 

• Complete necessary employee statements monthly/quarterly following payment processing

• Work with team members to develop deeper understanding of business areas and Plan design in order to consult/advise management of appropriate incentives that will drive results

• Provide support for developing new expense models and processes

• Application of basic project management skills, tools and techniques to project deliverables, processes, communications and presentations in order to meet or exceed stakeholder needs and expectations.

The Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree

• 7+ years of work experience, including budgeting, forecasting and accruals, including hands on experience using visualization tools such as Tableau, MicroStrategy , etc.

• 3+ years of strong Microsoft Suite expertise, with special emphasis on Excel

The Ideal Qualifications

• Proficient with data query and analysis tools and retrieval of data from core databases.

• 10+ years of work experience budgeting, forecasting and accruals, including hands on experience using visualization tools such as Tableau, MicroStrategy, etc.

• 8 years of work experience in the financial services or insurance industry experience

• Familiarity with sales incentive compensation program

• The professional in this role must be highly organized with exceptional attention to detail

• Ability to communicate effectively, both in writing and interpersonally

• Strong knowledge of finance processes

What to Expect as Part of MassMutual and the Team

• Regular meetings with the Distribution Platforms and Readiness team

• Focused one-on-one meetings with your manager

• Daily meetings with immediate team members

• Access to mentorship opportunities

• Networking opportunities including access to Asian, Hispanic/Latinx, African American, women, LGBTQ, veteran and disability-focused Business Resource Groups

• Access to learning content on Degreed and other informational platforms

• Your ethics and integrity will be valued by a company with a strong and stable ethical business with industry leading pay and benefits

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MassMutual is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer Minority/Female/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity/Individual with Disability/Protected Veteran. We welcome all persons to apply. Note: Veterans are welcome to apply, regardless of their discharge status.

If you need an accommodation to complete the application process, please contact us and share the specifics of the assistance you need.