Wonderist Agency
Wonderist Agency is a full-service marketing agency that supports 1,000+ dentists around the country. We pride ourselves on ditching the old fashioned marketing model of stock photos and templated sites. We strive to tell our clients’ stories with bespoke brands, impactful photo and video shoots, and stunning website design (Here is a great example of our work: www.valordentaltx.com)
We’re a team of over 70+ passionate marketers nestled in sunny San Diego. We are walking distance from local hangouts, bars, and the famed Liberty Station. While many companies simply check the required boxes when it comes to culture, a well-balanced team and positive office culture has been the core of our success from the start. We are a social team at heart, and that is one constant that hasn’t changed with all the movement this economy and industry has seen. We have embraced a hybrid work model where local team members come in at least two days a week. This allows us to work from home and have flexibility, without altogether forgoing the excitement and moments of collaboration and inspiration you can only get from in-person time. Not to mention, we also genuinely enjoy spending time together and socializing.
We celebrate new ideas and prioritize a culture of trust and respect where team members can grow and take risks. Each quarter we host events under our four cultural pillars; health & wellness, personal & professional development, social good, and social. We are proud to have been named one of San Diego Business Journal’s Best Places to Work in 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2023, made the Inc 5000 Regionals Fastest Growing Companies 2021, 2022 and 2024, made the San Diego Business Journal’s Fastest Growing Private Companies list in 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2023, made the Inc Best Workplaces list in 2024 and made the Inc. 5000 for the last 6 years (2019-2025)!
If you work at Wonderist, you likely enjoy a challenge, appreciate autonomy, actually care about clients, and are looking for a team that you can enjoy being part of.
Job Description Wonderist Agency is seeking a strategic and results-driven Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to lead all financial planning, forecasting, reporting, profitability management, and financial operations across the company. If you are passionate about financial strategy, budgeting, variance analysis, reporting, KPI development, and building scalable financial systems, we want to hear from you!
Key Responsibilities
Oversee daily financial operations including cash flow, AP/AR, expense tracking, and spending approvals
Review weekly revenue pacing, margins, staffing ratios, labor efficiency, and churn indicators
Support department heads with financial insight and resource planning
Approve contracts, vendor agreements, and financial commitments
Manage team of 2-5 financial analysts and their growth and job duties.
Provide weekly updates on KPIs and financial performance to the CEO and leadership team
Monthly
Lead the month-end close process including reconciliations, journal entries, and financial accuracy checks
Produce monthly financial statements with variance analysis and insight-driven commentary
Update rolling 12-month forecasts for revenue, staffing, expenses, and cash flow
Deliver monthly dashboards for MRR, churn, departmental margins, and operational KPIs
Oversee payroll, commissions, and incentive compensation calculations
Lead quarterly forecasting, budgeting, and scenario planning
Present detailed financial reviews during QBRs with leadership
Re-evaluate pricing models, profitability, and cost structures each quarter
Support quarterly board or investor reporting as needed
Adjust KPIs and financial targets based on business performance
Essential Functions: What You’ll Do Financial Strategy & Leadership
Financial Strategy Development:
Create and maintain Wonderist’s long-term financial plan, aligning strategy with company goals and growth priorities.
P&L Management:
Oversees full profit and loss performance, ensuring financial targets are met through strategic budgeting, forecasting, and cost management.
Pricing & Profitability Leadership:
Evaluate pricing, margins, and labor efficiency. Recommend improvements across service lines to maintain strong profitability.
Revenue Forecasting:
Build and maintain detailed revenue forecasts incorporating client count projections, retention trends, churn risk, service line growth, and sales pipeline probability. Update revenue pacing weekly and create multiple scenarios for conservative, likely, and aggressive growth outcomes.
Cost Forecasting:
Develop forward-looking cost models covering labor, overhead, contractor usage, software tools, marketing spend, and capital needs. Ensure all expenses are aligned with company targets, budgets, and profitability goals.
Client Count Forecasting:
Track expected new clients, projected churn, expansion revenue potential, and seasonality. Partner with Sales and CSM to maintain an accurate client count forecast that drives revenue and hiring decisions.
Hiring Forecasts:
Build hiring plans tied to revenue forecasts, capacity models, utilization rates, and department load. Determine when and where additional staff is needed, and forecast the financial impact of new hires.
Bonus & Compensation Projections:
Build models for quarterly and annual bonus programs, including projected payouts based on KPIs, profitability targets, and individual/department performance. Ensure all compensation projections are tied into the master budget.
Scenario Modeling:
Create multi-scenario financial models assessing the impact of pricing changes, hiring adjustments, churn events, new service lines, and major expenses. Present best-case, worst-case, and most-likely outcomes.
Budget Leadership:
Lead the annual budgeting process and quarterly reforecasting cycles. Ensure department budgets reflect current business reality and future strategic goals.
Cross-Department Collaboration and Business Decision Support:
Work with Operations, Sales, CSM, Creative, SEO, and Web teams to gather inputs for forecasting, including hiring timelines, workload expectations, and client lifecycle trends.
Reporting & Performance Analysis
KPI Management:
Build, maintain, and monitor a comprehensive KPI framework that tracks the financial health of the company. This includes MRR, churn, client count, average revenue per client, gross margin by department, EBITDA, cash position, utilization, staffing ratios, labor efficiency, revenue pacing, and forecast accuracy. Identify trends early and proactively flag risks or opportunities to leadership.
Financial Reporting:
Produce accurate, timely monthly financial packages that include P&L, balance sheet, cash flow, budget-to-actual comparison, margin analysis, and departmental financial performance. Provide clear variance explanations and actionable insights so leaders understand what changed, why it changed, and what adjustments should be made.
Data Analysis:
Analyze historical financial performance, departmental trends, service-line profitability, and operational efficiency using spreadsheets, custom reporting, and internally developed dashboards. While the company does not currently have a BI platform, explore options for implementing a scalable BI tool and lead its future integration. In the meantime, consolidate data from QuickBooks, payroll systems, time-tracking, CRM, and internal reports to create a unified financial view.
Controls, Compliance & Financial Operations
Financial Controls:
Design, implement, and maintain strong internal controls that ensure accuracy, completeness, and reliability across all financial processes. Establish clear approval workflows, spending policies, and monthly reconciliation procedures. Ensure compliance with GAAP standards and maintain audit-ready documentation at all times. Oversee tax compliance, coordinate with external accountants or auditors, and ensure that all filings are timely, accurate, and aligned with regulatory requirements.
Cash Management:
Develop and manage a forward-looking cash flow strategy that ensures stability, operational readiness, and long-term health of the business. Monitor cash inflows and outflows daily, forecast future liquidity needs, and maintain appropriate reserve levels for risk mitigation. Manage banking relationships, negotiate favorable terms when applicable, and ensure the company’s cash position supports hiring plans, investments, bonuses, and other strategic initiatives.
Accounting Liaison and Bookkeeping Liaison:
Reviewing month-end numbers, reconciling issues, ensuring reporting integrity.
Cross-Functional Collaboration & Support
Departmental Partnership:
Serve as the primary financial resource for Operations, Sales, CSM, Creative, Web, and SEO teams. Provide each department with customized financial insights, including budget guidance, margin expectations, capacity modeling, and cost considerations. Help leaders understand the financial implications of staffing decisions, workload distribution, project timelines, and client retention trends. Build financial literacy across departments by translating data into clear, actionable direction.
Strategic Support:
Partner with leadership to guide high-impact decisions related to pricing, hiring plans, service expansion, compensation models, resource allocation, and new product development. Evaluate the financial viability of new initiatives and provide scenario analysis that outlines risks, ROI expectations, and long-term impact. Act as a strategic thought partner who brings financial clarity to creative and operational decisions.
Manage Team: Manage an outsourced team of analysts and bookkeepers. Create schedule for workflow, key document due dates and support them in their day to day growth and job duties.
CFO Hub Relationship Management:
Serve as the primary liaison between Wonderist and CFO Hub, ensuring alignment on month-end close accuracy, reporting timelines, reconciliation quality, and financial process improvements. Oversee deliverables, hold vendors accountable to agreed-upon standards, and ensure the partnership strengthens internal financial operations rather than merely supporting them. Provide clear direction, review outputs, and elevate issues to maintain a high level of performance.
CPA & Tax Strategy Collaboration:
Work closely with Wonderist’s external CPA firm to ensure proactive tax planning, compliance, and optimization. Coordinate tax filings, quarterly estimates, annual strategies, and long-term tax planning initiatives. Maintain open communication with the CPA team to identify opportunities for tax savings, evaluate entity structure implications, and support financial decisions with fully informed tax considerations.
Financial Vendor Oversight:
Manage relationships with all external financial partners—including payroll providers, benefits administrators, banking contacts, and potential BI or financial tooling vendors. Ensure each partnership adds measurable value, integrates smoothly into Wonderist’s financial workflows, and aligns with company goals. Participate in vendor evaluations, negotiate terms when needed, and ensure financial tools are selected and implemented strategically.
Core Competencies: What you’ll bring to the role Leadership & Initiative
Resourceful and Confident Self-Starter:
Able to take ownership of financial responsibilities, work independently, and consistently drive results without heavy oversight.
Trustworthy:
Operates with a high degree of confidentiality, integrity, and reliability while working closely with the executive team.
Thought Leadership:
Brings forward strong financial insight and long-term strategic thinking to support the company’s growth and direction.
Client Relationship Excellence (Internal)
Financial Support Partner:
Provides clear financial guidance to internal teams, supporting informed decision-making across departments.
Communication Expert:
Able to explain complex financial data in simple, actionable terms that are easy for non-financial teams to understand.
Relationship Builder:
Builds trust and credibility with cross-functional leaders by providing reliable, thoughtful, and collaborative financial support.
Problem-Solving & Adaptability
Solutions-Oriented:
Quickly diagnoses financial and operational issues, proposes clear solutions, and adapts to evolving business needs.
Strong Decision-Making:
Makes sound, timely decisions under pressure using data, judgment, and strategic insight.
Adaptable:
Comfortable navigating ambiguity in a fast-paced environment and adjusting priorities as needed.
Organization & Process Management
Process-Driven:
Creates, improves, and maintains financial processes that support clarity, accuracy, and operational efficiency.
Project Manager:
Capable of managing multiple financial initiatives simultaneously while meeting deadlines and maintaining high-quality outputs.
Analytical Strength:
Uses strong analytical skills to interpret financial data, evaluate trends, and support data-driven decisions.
Communication & People Skills
Clear Communicator:
Presents financial information in a professional, concise, and understandable way to stakeholders at all levels.
Empathetic Leader:
Connects authentically with team members and provides thoughtful guidance that supports growth and collaboration.
Alignment with Company Values
High Standards of Work:
Demonstrates accuracy, rigor, and pride in all financial outputs. Avoids sloppiness and holds a high bar for quality.
Cultural Fit:
Embodies Wonderist’s values of trust, creativity, continuous improvement, and positive collaboration.
Biggest Challenges For This Position Managing forecasting accuracy in a hybrid subscription + project-based agency model
Scaling financial systems for growth
Balancing profitability across multiple service lines with different cost structures
Performance Metrics The success of this role will be measured by:
Forecast accuracy
EBITDA and departmental margin performance
MRR stability and reduced churn risk
Budget adherence and cost optimization initiatives
Soft Skills
Integrity
Accountability
Team collaboration
Clear communication
Reliability
Commitment to high-quality work
This Role’s Requirements
Advanced financial modeling
Strategic thinking
Ability to simplify complexity
Strong analytical judgment
Hard Skills
Microsoft Excel & Google Sheets (Advanced)
Financial modeling and forecasting (Advanced)
Accounting and reporting Best Practices (Advanced)
Experience with QuickBooks
BI dashboard experience (Looker Studio, Tableau, or similar)
Minimum Qualifications:
7+ years in finance leadership roles
Expertise in budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting
Strong GAAP knowledge
Experience managing P&Ls in a service-based business
Familiarity with project management tools such as Monday.com
Bonus Points for Applicants With… (if you don’t have these but are organized and want to learn, we want to hear from you!)
Agency, SaaS, or dental industry experience
CPA, CFA, or MBA
M&A or investor reporting experience
Experience implementing financial systems or BI dashboards
#J-18808-Ljbffr
We’re a team of over 70+ passionate marketers nestled in sunny San Diego. We are walking distance from local hangouts, bars, and the famed Liberty Station. While many companies simply check the required boxes when it comes to culture, a well-balanced team and positive office culture has been the core of our success from the start. We are a social team at heart, and that is one constant that hasn’t changed with all the movement this economy and industry has seen. We have embraced a hybrid work model where local team members come in at least two days a week. This allows us to work from home and have flexibility, without altogether forgoing the excitement and moments of collaboration and inspiration you can only get from in-person time. Not to mention, we also genuinely enjoy spending time together and socializing.
We celebrate new ideas and prioritize a culture of trust and respect where team members can grow and take risks. Each quarter we host events under our four cultural pillars; health & wellness, personal & professional development, social good, and social. We are proud to have been named one of San Diego Business Journal’s Best Places to Work in 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2023, made the Inc 5000 Regionals Fastest Growing Companies 2021, 2022 and 2024, made the San Diego Business Journal’s Fastest Growing Private Companies list in 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2023, made the Inc Best Workplaces list in 2024 and made the Inc. 5000 for the last 6 years (2019-2025)!
If you work at Wonderist, you likely enjoy a challenge, appreciate autonomy, actually care about clients, and are looking for a team that you can enjoy being part of.
Job Description Wonderist Agency is seeking a strategic and results-driven Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to lead all financial planning, forecasting, reporting, profitability management, and financial operations across the company. If you are passionate about financial strategy, budgeting, variance analysis, reporting, KPI development, and building scalable financial systems, we want to hear from you!
Key Responsibilities
Oversee daily financial operations including cash flow, AP/AR, expense tracking, and spending approvals
Review weekly revenue pacing, margins, staffing ratios, labor efficiency, and churn indicators
Support department heads with financial insight and resource planning
Approve contracts, vendor agreements, and financial commitments
Manage team of 2-5 financial analysts and their growth and job duties.
Provide weekly updates on KPIs and financial performance to the CEO and leadership team
Monthly
Lead the month-end close process including reconciliations, journal entries, and financial accuracy checks
Produce monthly financial statements with variance analysis and insight-driven commentary
Update rolling 12-month forecasts for revenue, staffing, expenses, and cash flow
Deliver monthly dashboards for MRR, churn, departmental margins, and operational KPIs
Oversee payroll, commissions, and incentive compensation calculations
Lead quarterly forecasting, budgeting, and scenario planning
Present detailed financial reviews during QBRs with leadership
Re-evaluate pricing models, profitability, and cost structures each quarter
Support quarterly board or investor reporting as needed
Adjust KPIs and financial targets based on business performance
Essential Functions: What You’ll Do Financial Strategy & Leadership
Financial Strategy Development:
Create and maintain Wonderist’s long-term financial plan, aligning strategy with company goals and growth priorities.
P&L Management:
Oversees full profit and loss performance, ensuring financial targets are met through strategic budgeting, forecasting, and cost management.
Pricing & Profitability Leadership:
Evaluate pricing, margins, and labor efficiency. Recommend improvements across service lines to maintain strong profitability.
Revenue Forecasting:
Build and maintain detailed revenue forecasts incorporating client count projections, retention trends, churn risk, service line growth, and sales pipeline probability. Update revenue pacing weekly and create multiple scenarios for conservative, likely, and aggressive growth outcomes.
Cost Forecasting:
Develop forward-looking cost models covering labor, overhead, contractor usage, software tools, marketing spend, and capital needs. Ensure all expenses are aligned with company targets, budgets, and profitability goals.
Client Count Forecasting:
Track expected new clients, projected churn, expansion revenue potential, and seasonality. Partner with Sales and CSM to maintain an accurate client count forecast that drives revenue and hiring decisions.
Hiring Forecasts:
Build hiring plans tied to revenue forecasts, capacity models, utilization rates, and department load. Determine when and where additional staff is needed, and forecast the financial impact of new hires.
Bonus & Compensation Projections:
Build models for quarterly and annual bonus programs, including projected payouts based on KPIs, profitability targets, and individual/department performance. Ensure all compensation projections are tied into the master budget.
Scenario Modeling:
Create multi-scenario financial models assessing the impact of pricing changes, hiring adjustments, churn events, new service lines, and major expenses. Present best-case, worst-case, and most-likely outcomes.
Budget Leadership:
Lead the annual budgeting process and quarterly reforecasting cycles. Ensure department budgets reflect current business reality and future strategic goals.
Cross-Department Collaboration and Business Decision Support:
Work with Operations, Sales, CSM, Creative, SEO, and Web teams to gather inputs for forecasting, including hiring timelines, workload expectations, and client lifecycle trends.
Reporting & Performance Analysis
KPI Management:
Build, maintain, and monitor a comprehensive KPI framework that tracks the financial health of the company. This includes MRR, churn, client count, average revenue per client, gross margin by department, EBITDA, cash position, utilization, staffing ratios, labor efficiency, revenue pacing, and forecast accuracy. Identify trends early and proactively flag risks or opportunities to leadership.
Financial Reporting:
Produce accurate, timely monthly financial packages that include P&L, balance sheet, cash flow, budget-to-actual comparison, margin analysis, and departmental financial performance. Provide clear variance explanations and actionable insights so leaders understand what changed, why it changed, and what adjustments should be made.
Data Analysis:
Analyze historical financial performance, departmental trends, service-line profitability, and operational efficiency using spreadsheets, custom reporting, and internally developed dashboards. While the company does not currently have a BI platform, explore options for implementing a scalable BI tool and lead its future integration. In the meantime, consolidate data from QuickBooks, payroll systems, time-tracking, CRM, and internal reports to create a unified financial view.
Controls, Compliance & Financial Operations
Financial Controls:
Design, implement, and maintain strong internal controls that ensure accuracy, completeness, and reliability across all financial processes. Establish clear approval workflows, spending policies, and monthly reconciliation procedures. Ensure compliance with GAAP standards and maintain audit-ready documentation at all times. Oversee tax compliance, coordinate with external accountants or auditors, and ensure that all filings are timely, accurate, and aligned with regulatory requirements.
Cash Management:
Develop and manage a forward-looking cash flow strategy that ensures stability, operational readiness, and long-term health of the business. Monitor cash inflows and outflows daily, forecast future liquidity needs, and maintain appropriate reserve levels for risk mitigation. Manage banking relationships, negotiate favorable terms when applicable, and ensure the company’s cash position supports hiring plans, investments, bonuses, and other strategic initiatives.
Accounting Liaison and Bookkeeping Liaison:
Reviewing month-end numbers, reconciling issues, ensuring reporting integrity.
Cross-Functional Collaboration & Support
Departmental Partnership:
Serve as the primary financial resource for Operations, Sales, CSM, Creative, Web, and SEO teams. Provide each department with customized financial insights, including budget guidance, margin expectations, capacity modeling, and cost considerations. Help leaders understand the financial implications of staffing decisions, workload distribution, project timelines, and client retention trends. Build financial literacy across departments by translating data into clear, actionable direction.
Strategic Support:
Partner with leadership to guide high-impact decisions related to pricing, hiring plans, service expansion, compensation models, resource allocation, and new product development. Evaluate the financial viability of new initiatives and provide scenario analysis that outlines risks, ROI expectations, and long-term impact. Act as a strategic thought partner who brings financial clarity to creative and operational decisions.
Manage Team: Manage an outsourced team of analysts and bookkeepers. Create schedule for workflow, key document due dates and support them in their day to day growth and job duties.
CFO Hub Relationship Management:
Serve as the primary liaison between Wonderist and CFO Hub, ensuring alignment on month-end close accuracy, reporting timelines, reconciliation quality, and financial process improvements. Oversee deliverables, hold vendors accountable to agreed-upon standards, and ensure the partnership strengthens internal financial operations rather than merely supporting them. Provide clear direction, review outputs, and elevate issues to maintain a high level of performance.
CPA & Tax Strategy Collaboration:
Work closely with Wonderist’s external CPA firm to ensure proactive tax planning, compliance, and optimization. Coordinate tax filings, quarterly estimates, annual strategies, and long-term tax planning initiatives. Maintain open communication with the CPA team to identify opportunities for tax savings, evaluate entity structure implications, and support financial decisions with fully informed tax considerations.
Financial Vendor Oversight:
Manage relationships with all external financial partners—including payroll providers, benefits administrators, banking contacts, and potential BI or financial tooling vendors. Ensure each partnership adds measurable value, integrates smoothly into Wonderist’s financial workflows, and aligns with company goals. Participate in vendor evaluations, negotiate terms when needed, and ensure financial tools are selected and implemented strategically.
Core Competencies: What you’ll bring to the role Leadership & Initiative
Resourceful and Confident Self-Starter:
Able to take ownership of financial responsibilities, work independently, and consistently drive results without heavy oversight.
Trustworthy:
Operates with a high degree of confidentiality, integrity, and reliability while working closely with the executive team.
Thought Leadership:
Brings forward strong financial insight and long-term strategic thinking to support the company’s growth and direction.
Client Relationship Excellence (Internal)
Financial Support Partner:
Provides clear financial guidance to internal teams, supporting informed decision-making across departments.
Communication Expert:
Able to explain complex financial data in simple, actionable terms that are easy for non-financial teams to understand.
Relationship Builder:
Builds trust and credibility with cross-functional leaders by providing reliable, thoughtful, and collaborative financial support.
Problem-Solving & Adaptability
Solutions-Oriented:
Quickly diagnoses financial and operational issues, proposes clear solutions, and adapts to evolving business needs.
Strong Decision-Making:
Makes sound, timely decisions under pressure using data, judgment, and strategic insight.
Adaptable:
Comfortable navigating ambiguity in a fast-paced environment and adjusting priorities as needed.
Organization & Process Management
Process-Driven:
Creates, improves, and maintains financial processes that support clarity, accuracy, and operational efficiency.
Project Manager:
Capable of managing multiple financial initiatives simultaneously while meeting deadlines and maintaining high-quality outputs.
Analytical Strength:
Uses strong analytical skills to interpret financial data, evaluate trends, and support data-driven decisions.
Communication & People Skills
Clear Communicator:
Presents financial information in a professional, concise, and understandable way to stakeholders at all levels.
Empathetic Leader:
Connects authentically with team members and provides thoughtful guidance that supports growth and collaboration.
Alignment with Company Values
High Standards of Work:
Demonstrates accuracy, rigor, and pride in all financial outputs. Avoids sloppiness and holds a high bar for quality.
Cultural Fit:
Embodies Wonderist’s values of trust, creativity, continuous improvement, and positive collaboration.
Biggest Challenges For This Position Managing forecasting accuracy in a hybrid subscription + project-based agency model
Scaling financial systems for growth
Balancing profitability across multiple service lines with different cost structures
Performance Metrics The success of this role will be measured by:
Forecast accuracy
EBITDA and departmental margin performance
MRR stability and reduced churn risk
Budget adherence and cost optimization initiatives
Soft Skills
Integrity
Accountability
Team collaboration
Clear communication
Reliability
Commitment to high-quality work
This Role’s Requirements
Advanced financial modeling
Strategic thinking
Ability to simplify complexity
Strong analytical judgment
Hard Skills
Microsoft Excel & Google Sheets (Advanced)
Financial modeling and forecasting (Advanced)
Accounting and reporting Best Practices (Advanced)
Experience with QuickBooks
BI dashboard experience (Looker Studio, Tableau, or similar)
Minimum Qualifications:
7+ years in finance leadership roles
Expertise in budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting
Strong GAAP knowledge
Experience managing P&Ls in a service-based business
Familiarity with project management tools such as Monday.com
Bonus Points for Applicants With… (if you don’t have these but are organized and want to learn, we want to hear from you!)
Agency, SaaS, or dental industry experience
CPA, CFA, or MBA
M&A or investor reporting experience
Experience implementing financial systems or BI dashboards
#J-18808-Ljbffr