Vice President, Finance Strategy & Operations

An Overview of This Role

GitLab is seeking a VP of Finance Strategy & Operations to lead the strategic and operational evolution of our Finance function while serving as the CFO's chief operating partner as we scale as a public company. Reporting directly to the CFO, you will provide the operational framework and strategic rigor to help our Finance organization scale effectively. This means ensuring we have the right practices in place to prioritize, plan, and monitor the execution of our strategic objectives.

At its core, this role is Finance-led and Finance-owned. You will build and lead the Finance Strategy & Operations function, serving as a strategic advisor and sounding board to the Finance Leadership Team while driving GitLab's most consequential cross-functional initiatives. These include Lead-to-Cash optimization, our transition to a consumption-based business model, and global expansion strategy. You will partner closely with the CRO, CPO, CIO, and executive leadership team to ensure these programs are well-structured, well-governed, and deliver measurable business outcomes. Finance will set the agenda and hold the accountability.

You are a Finance-native leader who brings operational rigor, strategic clarity, and the ability to translate complex ideas into disciplined execution. You are equally comfortable influencing a Board-level strategy conversation and rolling up your sleeves to drive delivery in a fully distributed, async-first environment.

What You'll Do

• Finance Organization & Strategy Leadership Act as the CFO's day-to-day operating partner on Finance org operations and strategic change agenda. Review and stress-test processes and operating models, implementing better ways of working. Develop and execute Finance's multi-year transformation roadmap aligned with GitLab's growth and public company requirements.
• Enterprise Transformation Program Ownership Lead Finance's role in GitLab's most consequential cross-functional initiatives: Lead-to-Cash optimization, consumption-based model transition, and global expansion strategy. Finance owns business requirements, program architecture, and outcome accountability across these programs. Establish governance frameworks with executive-level reporting on progress, outcomes, and business value.
• Process & Operational Excellence Redesign core Finance processes to drive efficiency, accuracy, and scalability in a remote-first environment. Identify and eliminate friction points through process reengineering. Operationalize key ideas into consistent systems and processes that enable coherent nimbleness and responsiveness at scale.
• Finance Systems & Technology Partnership Partner with the CIO organization to define Finance's technology priorities and business requirements. Serve as Finance's primary requirements owner and business sponsor for finance system implementations, not the systems implementer. Ensure successful integration of finance systems following M&A activity.
• AI & Intelligent Automation Identify high-impact use cases for AI and intelligent automation within the Finance function. Partner with IT to evaluate and implement solutions, with Finance defining business outcomes and owning adoption and process change management.
• Controls & Compliance Integration Partner with Chief Accounting Officer and VP of Internal Audit to maintain and enhance control frameworks while enabling efficiency gains. Design scalable processes that support SOX compliance and audit requirements as Finance transforms.
• Executive Partnership & Cross-Functional Influence Serve as trusted advisor to CFO, executive leadership team, and Board on transformation strategy. Build organizational capability through training and change management programs. Act as the "voice" of Finance across key company-wide priorities, translating business requirements into scalable solutions and driving consensus.

What You'll Bring

• Extensive progressive experience in strategic finance, Finance business operations, or FP&A leadership at public technology companies. 
• Proven track record leading complex, enterprise-wide transformation programs including revenue model transitions, global expansion, and revenue cycle optimization, with measurable business impact in high-growth SaaS environments.
• Deep expertise in Lead-to-Cash processes from the Finance perspective, with firsthand experience with consumption or usage-based business model transitions, including billing architecture, revenue recognition frameworks, and operational infrastructure requirements.
• Experience driving cross-functional alignment across Sales, Revenue Operations, Finance, and IT on complex, multi-workstream initiatives from concept to delivery.
• Strong understanding of public company financial reporting requirements, internal controls, and SOX compliance frameworks.
• Demonstrated ability to build credibility and influence at all organizational levels, including C-suite executives and Board members, without direct authority. Comfortable operating in remote-first or distributed work environments.
• MBA or equivalent advanced degree preferred. CPA, CFA, or similar certification is a plus.
• Outstanding communication skills with the ability to translate complex concepts into clear, actionable insights for diverse audiences and translate business requirements into scalable solutions.