Advertising Finance Business Partner – Kazakhstan
We are looking for an Advertising Finance Business Partner to own commercial finance for inDrive’s Ads business and drive cross-functional commercial growth analysis. Primary accountability (~70%): own budgeting, forecasting, performance tracking, and strategic finance partnership for the Ads vertical — driver-based revenue modeling, commercial challenge, inventory risk quantification, and revenue recognition oversight. Secondary (~30%): marketing ROI measurement, Loyalty program economics, and product-driven growth modeling. This role requires deep ads industry knowledge combined with strategic and commercial thinking to partner with the Ads leadership team as the business scales rapidly. You will build the financial infrastructure that does not exist today, validate growth plans, and ensure the business has credible forecasts and early warning systems.
Budgeting & Forecasting
Budgeting & Forecasting
- Own the annual Ads budget: revenue by format (Programmatic vs Direct Sales), by placement type, by market; sales team OPEX; ad tech infrastructure costs; marketing spend allocation
- Build multi-year Ads forecast: revenue growth trajectory, margin improvement path, sales team scaling plan, technology investment roadmap
- Own monthly Ads rolling forecasts in Workday with full driver assumptions documented
- Growth stress testing: model aggressive vs conservative scaling scenarios and their impact on headcount requirements, technology investment, and profitability
- Scenario modeling: quantify impact of sales hiring delays, product rollout timing shifts, fill rate improvement, and eCPM growth on revenue targets
- Own weekly and monthly Ads performance dashboards: actuals vs plan with variance commentary for Ads leadership and senior management
- Deep-dive variance analysis: when revenue is off-plan, identify whether it’s inventory constraints, fill rate issues, eCPM compression, sales pipeline gaps, or seasonal factors
- Track revenue per monthly active user by market and benchmark against industry standards
- Monthly plan-fact analysis: explain every material variance in impressions, fill rates, eCPM, and revenue with root cause analysis and actionable recommendations
- Build and maintain forward-looking performance indicators: sales pipeline visibility, advertiser churn signals, inventory utilization trends
- Build and own the Ads driver-based financial model: Active users → sessions → impressions → fill rate → eCPM → revenue, split by format and placement
- Understand the Ads strategy deeply: programmatic vs direct sales priorities, key advertiser segments, inventory monetization roadmap, technology platform evolution
- Validate multi-year growth plans: stress-test assumptions on inventory growth, fill rates, eCPM improvement, and sales team productivity – challenge aggressive targets when they lack operational foundation
- Quantify inventory allocation risk: model impact of expanding ad placements on user experience metrics and core product engagement
- Commercial challenge: if the plan assumes doubling revenue in 12 months, does the sales headcount, advertiser pipeline, inventory availability, and technology roadmap support it?
- Partner with financial controllers on revenue recognition policies for complex ad deals (barter arrangements, revenue share agreements, rebates, contra-revenue structures)
- Document finance guidelines for non-standard deals: recognition timing, fair value methodology, ASC 606 compliance considerations
- Establish standardized partner/reseller financial framework: assess proposed revenue share ranges, payment terms, and commercial structures from a market fairness and compliance perspective – this framework will serve as the reference standard for all existing and future partner/reseller/agency deal renewals and negotiations
- Validate monthly Ads actuals before consolidation: ensure reported revenue matches impression delivery, rate cards, and contractual terms
- Build financial frameworks for new deal structures: establish templates and governance for future complex arrangements
- Work with controllers to ensure Ads P&L accurately reflects business economics
- Model new ad product launches: build ROI templates for new placements, formats, and targeting capabilities
- Partnership due diligence: evaluate unit economics for potential ad network partnerships, demand-side platform integrations, or advertiser collaborations
- Business case development: quantify financial impact of strategic initiatives including new advertiser verticals, geographic expansion, and technology platform upgrades
- Work with central finance to setup efficient payment setup and collection processes for new and existing partners
- Build marketing ROI measurement framework: link marketing spend to user acquisition, engagement, and cross-sell into Ads inventory
- Track cross-vertical performance: measure how user engagement across ride-hailing, groceries, and couriers impacts available ad inventory and monetization
- Product-driven growth modeling: quantify revenue impact of in-app features and the upcoming loyalty program that drive engagement and ad impressions
- Automate all Ads forecasting and reporting into Workday; build Tableau dashboards for Ads leadership and Growth Businesses executive team
- Prepare monthly Ads P&L narrative: growth drivers, risks, opportunities, and strategic recommendations for senior management review
- Support investor and board materials: Ads growth story, margin improvement roadmap, competitive positioning
- Translate complex ad tech metrics (fill rates, eCPM, CPM vs CPC, viewability, completion rates) into language non-technical executives understand
- 4–5 years experience in FP&A, commercial finance, or finance business partnering, ideally in digital advertising, marketplace monetization, or ad tech businesses
- Ads industry background strongly preferred: you should understand how digital advertising works operationally, not just financially – programmatic vs direct sales mechanics, ad serving technology, advertiser buying behavior, inventory management
- Strong business partnering capability: proven ability to build trusted relationships with cross-functional business teams (product, sales, operations, technology). You will be embedded within the core Ads team and need to operate as their finance partner – this requires curiosity about the business, proactive engagement, and the credibility to be consulted on strategic decisions
- Strategic and commercial mindset: you think beyond variance reporting to understand what drives advertiser demand, how to scale efficiently, and where the biggest opportunities and risks lie as the business grows rapidly
- Proven experience owning annual budgets and multi-year forecasts – you should be comfortable building growth models from first principles
- Strong driver-based financial modeling skills
- Experience with digital advertising economics (impressions, fill rates, eCPM, CPM, CPC, programmatic vs direct sales, ad tech platforms) is essential
- Familiarity with marketing ROI measurement and attribution concepts
- Proven ability to work independently and build financial infrastructure where none exists – this is a greenfield role with significant autonomy
- Comfortable challenging senior stakeholders with data: the business expects financial pushback on aggressive targets when operational reality doesn’t support them
- Strong communication skills: ability to translate ad tech jargon into clear business language for non-technical audiences and present to senior leadership
- Experience with Workday, Tableau, or similar BI/planning tools is preferred but not required
- Self-starter who can operate with ambiguity in a fast-scaling business vertical
- Fluent English required. Additional languages are a plus given our operating markets
- Help us challenge injustice by creating fair choices for millions of people across 1100+ cities in 48 countries.
- Develop your professional skills with access to mentoring, career consulting, and learning programs.
- Collaborate with teams around the world and gain international experience through our Global Talent Exchange Program.
- Engage in company-wide challenges, awards, sports activities, employee-led social impact and volunteering projects.
- Work alongside people who take initiative, speak openly, and challenge themselves to grow.
- Improve your language skills through co-financed courses and internal speaking clubs.
