Strategic Finance Manager (San Diego / Hybrid)

Position Summary

The Manager, Strategic Finance delivers financial analysis to support Illumina's corporate and business development transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, partnerships, joint ventures, divestitures, licensing agreements, and structured investments. The role applies financial modeling and valuation expertise to assess transaction economics, compare alternatives, and identify financial risks.

Essential Functions

• Build, maintain, and stress-test transaction and business-case financial models, including multi-scenario P&L architectures, probability-weighted forecasts, discounted cash flow and returns analyses, capital structure models, and revenue and cost-share constructs.
• Execute analytical workstreams in support of mergers, acquisitions, partnerships, alliances, joint ventures, divestitures, licensing agreements, and new business formation.
• Support the structuring of non-standard commercial arrangements by modeling the economic and financial statement consequences of alternative structures and surfacing trade-offs.
• Conduct financial and market diligence on potential targets and partners, including analysis of historical financials, operating metrics, cost structures, contract economics, and integration considerations.
• Prepare executive-quality written materials, memos, and presentations, ensuring analytical accuracy, internal consistency, and clarity of recommendation.
• Maintain the analytical infrastructure of the active deal pipeline, including model version control, assumption libraries, source documentation, and post-close tracking.
• Support the routine assessment and reporting of previously completed transactions, including performance against underwriting assumptions.
• Collaborate across Corporate Development, Technical Accounting, Tax, Treasury, Legal, FP&A, and business unit finance teams to gather inputs, validate assumptions, and reconcile analytical differences.

Key Competencies

• Financial Modeling: Builds complex, auditable, assumption-driven models from a blank page rather than adapting existing templates.
• Corporate Finance and Valuation: Applies strong fundamentals in DCF, comparable company and precedent transaction analysis, accretion/dilution, returns analysis, and capital structure mechanics.
• Accounting Knowledge and Application: Applies working knowledge of GAAP to commercial and transaction structuring.
• Judgment and Decision Quality: Makes timely, well-supported decisions within assigned scope.
• Intellectual Curiosity and Learning Agility: Asks probing questions, tests assumptions, and quickly applies new knowledge.
• Attention to Detail and Analytical Rigor: Self-audits work product with exceptional attention to detail.
• Initiative and Resilience: Proactively advances assigned work and adapts constructively to setbacks.
• Financial Communication: Translates quantitative analysis into clear written and verbal narratives for a senior executive audience.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Communicates and collaborates effectively across finance, legal, accounting, tax, and commercial functions.
• Discretion and Confidentiality: Exercises sound judgment in handling highly confidential and market-sensitive information.

Minimum Qualifications

Typically requires a Bachelor's degree and a minimum of 8 years of relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Relevant experience includes investment banking, private equity, transaction advisory, management consulting, corporate development, or corporate strategic finance. Direct transaction experience is required.

Preferred Credentials

MBA, CPA, CFA, or advanced scientific degree preferred. Relevant knowledge of the Life Science Tools, Diagnostics, or Biopharma industries, including companies and technologies, is a plus.