The mining industry has steadily become worse at finding new ore deposits, requiring >10X more capital to make discoveries compared to 30 years ago. The easy-to-find, near-surface deposits have largely been found, and the industry has chronically under-invested in new exploration technology, relying on the manual techniques of yesteryear – even as demand accelerates for copper, lithium, and other metals to build electric vehicles, renewable energy, and data centers.
KoBold builds AI models for mineral exploration and deploys those models—alongside our novel sensors—to guide decisions on KoBold-owned-and-operated exploration programs. Since our founding in 2018, KoBold has become by far both the largest independent mineral exploration company and the largest exploration technology developer. Our data scientists and software engineers, who come from leading technology companies, jointly lead exploration programs with our renowned exploration geologists.
KoBold has proven its first discovery with materially less capital than the industry average and found one of the best copper deposits ever discovered: the copper is far more concentrated than the global average of copper mines, and this asset alone is expected to generate meaningful revenue for decades. KoBold has a portfolio of more than 80 other projects, each of which has the potential for another high-quality discovery.
KoBold is privately held; investors include institutional asset managers T. Rowe Price and Canada Pension Plan Investments; technology venture capitalists Andreessen Horowitz, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, BOND Capital, Durable Capital, StepStone, and Standard Investments; and natural resources companies Equinor, BHP, and Mitsubishi.
KoBold is hiring a Sr. Finance Manager to help grow our financial planning and analysis function.
The right candidate will combine deep FP&A expertise with strong strategic instincts, analytical rigor, and management experience. We are looking for someone who can make meaningful individual contributions, while also building on existing systems and processes, developing and growing the team, and creating a FP&A organization capable of supporting KoBold's next phase of growth.
Reporting to the VP of Finance, this role will lead a small team working across KoBold's global operations, including exploration programs, mine development, and corporate functions. You will be part of building durable systems that allow small, highly capable teams to support an ever increasing scope and eventually an IPO. We are looking for someone who approaches problems with creativity and optimism, who looks to process improvements, automation, AI-enabled workflows, and better systems.
The day-to-day environment at KoBold is dynamic. Success requires a leader who brings structure to complexity, holds teams accountable, and maintains momentum amid change.
The best candidate will continuously learn about and deeply understand KoBold's technology and operations, designing financial processes that enable the business.
Responsibilities
Financial Planning and Analysis
- Own cash forecasting including quarterly and annual spend predictions, working with leaders across the company to build bottoms-up estimates and create a clear understanding of how actual cash spend is allocated across the business (e.g., exploration, R&D, resource development, G&A, etc.)
- Develop analytical models that help inform decision making and/or identify explicit or implicit cost improvement opportunities. Work closely with operations and technical teams to share these insights and implement change
- Produce clear, actionable reporting that translates financial data into usable information that helps leaders manage their spend
- Build and maintain a single source of truth for financial data, partnering with accounting and data teams to ensure integrity across systems
- Lead the business justification process across the business and ensure that KoBold is being as efficient and effective as possible in allocating capital across its programs and teams
Operational Engagement and Cost Discipline
- Develop a deep understanding of KoBold's technical operations — how exploration programs are run, what mine development looks like, and what drives cost — and use that understanding to improve team effectiveness and challenge or inform cost assumptions
- Build strong working relationships with operational leaders across the company and serve as a finance partner who understands their work
- Help create the right performance metrics and create the reporting and processes required to drive accountability
- Conduct detailed variance analysis and help teams understand their spend and course correct as necessary
Systems and Automation
- Assess, select, and design of FP&A systems and tools—both third-party and in-house, custom-built tools—to support a rapidly growing, global business with complex operations
- Drive automation and implement AI-enabled workflows that reduce manual work, improve forecast accuracy, and keeps the team lean
- Build scalable processes and reporting infrastructure, fostering a culture that treats process improvement as essential work key to future success
Leadership, Culture, and Business Partnership
- Continue to develop a small, high-performing FP&A team, setting high standards and building capability
- Communicate financial insights clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences, from field operators to the executive leadership team
- Support IPO readiness efforts by building FP&A capabilities appropriate for a public company
Qualifications
A great candidate:
- 8+ years of FP&A or corporate finance experience, ideally including time in a capital-intensive, operationally complex business (mining, manufacturing, aerospace, energy, or similar)
- Has experience managing small efficient teams in dynamic, high-growth environments with a high degree of accountability and execution quality
- Brings strong cross-functional communication and ability to align finance with commercial and operational needs
- Has demonstrated experience evaluating and deploying finance technology platforms, and is excited about applying AI to FP&A workflows
- Is curious to learn about all aspects of our business, including travel to exploration field operations and mine development operations
- Deeply engages on technical matters with technical colleagues; is uninhibited about asking probing questions of experts outside their domain
- Demonstrates integrity, strong judgment, and comfort operating with urgency and precision
- Brings advanced Excel financial modeling skills and direct experience working with ERP systems; SQL or Python comfort a strong plus
- Strong communication with ability to build well synthesized narratives that help leaders across all disciplines better understand their work
- A high degree of independence and the ability to work effectively with limited supervision
- Is a creative problem solver who works hard, holds high standards, and treats people with respect and care
- Feels energized by KoBold's mission, bringing optimism that lifts the team and builds belief
What to Expect
Joining KoBold means getting the opportunity for hands-on exposure to our exploration projects around the world. All employees are expected to travel to project sites, with a minimum of one week per year. Field-facing and technical roles spend significantly more time in the field.
KoBold Metals is an equal opportunity workplace and an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity for people of any race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, age, citizenship, disability, or veteran status.
The US based salary range for this role is $175,000 - $210,000 + equity + 401k match.
Location: KoBold is a remote-first workplace. All candidates must be legally authorized to work in one of the following countries: United States or Canada.
