Senior / Staff Analytics Engineer

Position Summary

Fora Financial is hiring its first dedicated Analytics Engineer. You will own dbt, the modeling layer, and the semantic layer that defines how Fora measures its business in code. The foundation you build will make governed reporting and AI-native analytics possible at Fora.

This is a hands-on Senior or Staff IC role on a small, high-trust data team. You will partner closely with the VP of Data & AI, Data Engineering, and Risk & Analytics. You will inherit a dbt project built by an external partner, assess it, and own what it becomes next.

If you treat dbt as production software, enjoy writing Python as much as SQL, and want your modeling decisions to shape how a $4B+ originator understands its business, this role is for you.

**This role is not eligible for visa sponsorship. All applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the US.

Core Stack
Relevant tools include dbt, SQL, Python, Git, Tableau, Snowflake, and emerging semantic-layer and MCP tooling. Orchestration and semantic-layer choices are still evolving, so strong judgment matters more than checklist familiarity.

A Day in the Life of a Senior / Staff Analytics Engineer

• dbt at Fora: project structure, conventions, CI/CD, tests, contracts, documentation, and performance.
• Data models across bronze, silver, and gold layers.
• The semantic layer (dbt MetricFlow or equivalent): metric definitions, dimensions, governance, and adoption.
• Production operation of the transformation layer: jobs, dependencies, failures, retries, alerts, environments, and release hygiene.
• Python tooling for validation, dbt utilities, lightweight automation, and integrations.
• Data quality, test coverage, and observability for modeled tables.
• Partnership with Risk & Analytics to formalize business metrics currently spread across SQL, Tableau, and analyst knowledge.

What Success Looks Like

• In 6-12 months, you have stabilized and improved the inherited dbt project.
• You have established clear modeling conventions, release hygiene, and documentation standards.
• Core models are more trustworthy through stronger tests, observability, and data quality practices.
• High-value business metrics are defined in a governed semantic layer.
• BI users and AI-native analytics workflows can consume governed metrics with less ambiguity.

What You Have

• Deep dbt experience. You have shipped and operated dbt as production software, not just a SQL wrapper. You have opinions about structure, macros, packages, tests, contracts, and CI.
• Strong dimensional and event-based modeling fundamentals: star schemas, conformed dimensions, slowly changing dimensions, point-in-time logic, grain discipline, and event-based modeling.
• Semantic-layer experience. You have built or owned metric definitions as code using MetricFlow, LookML, Cube, AtScale, or similar.
• Python competence for production analytics: API pulls, validation scripts, data quality checks, dbt utilities, lightweight automation, and debugging. You do not need to be a platform engineer, but you cannot be SQL-only.
• Working knowledge of orchestration: DAGs, dependencies, retries, alerts, incremental processing, logs, SLAs, and deployment environments.
• Git fluency: branches, rebases, conflict resolution, and meaningful commit history.
• Clear stakeholder communication. You can explain trade-offs, say no diplomatically, and maintain standards while building trust.
• Strong writing. You write useful PRs, durable documentation, and decision records other people can follow.
• AI-native curiosity. You are actively learning how LLMs, MCP, and governed semantic layers change analytics workflows, and you want to apply that learning responsibly.
• 3+ years of analytics engineering experience for Senior; 6+ for Staff. Level is based on scope of ownership, technical judgment, and ability to set direction independently.

Nice To Have

• Lending or financial-services domain experience.
• Comfort using LLMs to accelerate SQL, tests, documentation, and boilerplate while applying strong judgment to grain, semantics, and governance.
• Hands-on experience with agentic analytics, Claude Code, MCP servers, dbt MCP, agent QA, or prompt engineering against governed metrics.
• Experience building a context layer, data dictionary, or MCP-addressable documentation.
• Snowflake performance tuning, Iceberg, or warehouse cost optimization experience.

Compensation and Logistics

• Senior Analytics Engineer: $140,000-$160,000
• Staff Analytics Engineer: $175,000-$200,000
• Final level is based on scope of past ownership, depth of technical judgment, and ability to set direction independently.
• Fully remote within the US; Eastern or Central time zones preferred.
• Reports to the VP of Data & AI.

The Benefits of Working for Fora Financial

• Company-subsidized medical, dental, and vision plans with leading insurance providers.
• 401(k) plan with company match.
• Life insurance at no cost to employees.
• Generous time off plan, including rollover vacation days.
• Health care and dependent care flexible spending accounts.
• Commuter benefits.
• Remote working model.

About Fora Financial

Fora Financial is a technology-enabled provider of flexible financing to small and medium-sized businesses. Since 2008, we have supported more than 55,000 merchants nationwide with over $4 billion in capital for operating expenses, cash-flow management, and growth.

Our proprietary technology helps deliver capital through a streamlined process that can be completed in as little as 24 hours, compared with the weeks or months often required for a traditional bank loan.

Over the past seventeen years, Fora has grown from two founders in a small Manhattan workspace to a company of nearly 200 employees. We work hard, move quickly, and value a collaborative, partner-centric culture.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Fora Financial is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace where all individuals are treated with respect and dignity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, veteran status, or any other legally protected status under local, state, or federal law. Fora Financial provides reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities. If you need assistance or accommodations due to a disability during the application process, please contact fora.recruiting@forafinancial.com.