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David Chen

Director of Finance

Seeking VP Finance / CFO-track roles at growth-stage companies.

Professional Summary

Finance leader and CPA with 14 years spanning FP&A, controllership, and corporate finance at high-growth and public companies. Specialized in building the financial infrastructure that lets companies scale — a clean close, reliable forecasts, and board-ready reporting. Known for being the operator finance partner the CEO calls first.
Chicago, IL david@davidchencpa.com in/davidchencpa

Brands I've Worked With

Deloitte Stripe Coupa NetSuite KPMG

Academic & Professional Credentials

Foundational Knowledge & Continuous Learning

University Degree

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

B.S. in Accountancy

Class of 2010 Chicago, IL Summa Cum Laude

Certifications & Badges

Verify on Credly Verify on LinkedIn

Certified Public Accountant (CPA)

Illinois Board · 2012

Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)

CFA Institute · 2017

FP&A Certification

AFP · 2019

Experience

Director of Finance

Faire

· Wholesale marketplace

Mar 2021 – Present
Chicago, IL
  • Built FP&A: Stood up the FP&A function from scratch, delivering the first board-ready operating model and a forecast that has landed within 4% of actuals for eight straight quarters.
  • Faster close: Cut the monthly close from 12 days to 5 by re-architecting the chart of accounts and automating reconciliations.
  • Capital strategy: Led financial diligence and modeling for a $260M funding round and the company’s first debt facility.
NetSuite Adaptive Looker Excel
Verified Expertise

Controller

Cameo

· Creator marketplace

Mar 2014 – Feb 2021
Chicago, IL
  • First clean audit: Owned the full accounting close and built the controls that took the company through its first clean external audit.
  • ASC 606: Implemented NetSuite and a new revenue-recognition process compliant with ASC 606 ahead of a Series C.
NetSuite Bill.com

Senior Auditor

Deloitte
Sep 2010 – Feb 2014
  • Led engagements: Led audit engagements for public and pre-IPO technology clients, managing teams of up to six across complex revenue and equity reviews.

Client Impact

30 Second Case Studies

Your biggest wins for your most notable clients.

Built finance for hypergrowth

Director of Finance

Active Results
±4%
Forecast Accuracy
+8
Clean Quarters
$260M
Round Raised
-58%
Close Time

The Client

Faire was scaling revenue faster than its finance function could keep up — forecasts were unreliable and the monthly close was slow and manual.

The Pivot

× Broken State

No driver-based model, a 12-day close, and reconciliations done by hand. The board lacked a single source of truth on the numbers.

✓ Fixed State

Built a driver-based operating model, re-architected the chart of accounts, and automated the close end-to-end.

The Strategy

I built the FP&A function from the ground up. A driver-based model tied revenue, headcount, and spend to operational metrics, giving the board a real planning tool. I re-architected the chart of accounts, automated reconciliations, and instituted a disciplined monthly close that dropped from 12 days to 5. Forecast accuracy has held within 4% for eight straight quarters, and the model anchored a $260M raise.

Tech Stack & Platforms

NetSuite Adaptive Planning Looker Excel

Technical Skills

Finance

FP&A Forecasting Modeling Budgeting Board Reporting

Accounting

GAAP ASC 606 Controls Audit

Strategy

Fundraising M&A Diligence Capital Planning

Systems

NetSuite Adaptive Looker Excel

Featured Project

Proprietary / Side Project

The Operator's Model

An open-source SaaS financial model and board-deck template used by early-stage founders to plan and raise — driver-based, investor-ready, and genuinely usable. Downloaded by 4,000+ founders.

View Live GitHub
Live
4,000
Founders

Use the model to plan and raise

±4%x
Accuracy

Forecast accuracy within four percent

12→5K
Day Close

Achieved with the same playbook

How It Works

01

Driver-Based

Revenue and spend tie to real operating metrics.

02

Investor-Ready

Outputs map to the metrics investors actually ask for.

03

Board Deck

A reporting template that turns the model into a clean narrative.

Built With

Excel NetSuite Looker Adaptive Causal

What I'm Looking For

What the right next role looks like for me.

Location

Remote or Chicago, IL

Compensation

Competitive base + equity

Benefits

Full benefits + equity

Growth

Path to CFO