Development and Construction Finance Director

Job description

**About Valar Atomics** At Valar Atomics, we're redefining what's possible in energy. Our mission is to make clean, high-temperature nuclear power scalable—unlocking abundant energy for industry, hydrogen, and next-generation manufacturing. We are a team of builders, engineers, and operators who believe nuclear energy should be fast to deploy, factory-made, and built for the real world. Our first pilot plant in Orangeville, Utah will demonstrate how advanced nuclear systems and fuel fabrication can power the future. Joining Valar Atomics means becoming part of a company where autonomy, ownership, and impact exist at every level. **The Team** As part of the Business organization, Finance provides the financial planning, analysis, and strategic insights that support informed business decisions and long-term growth. The team partners across the company to allocate resources, manage budgets, and ensure financial discipline as Valar scales. **The Role** We're looking for an experienced Development and Construction Finance Director to lead the financial planning, reporting, and cost management that supports Valar's construction programs. You'll partner closely with project managers, engineering, procurement, and field teams to ensure project budgets, cash flow, and financial performance stay aligned as we build. The right person combines deep expertise in construction finance with strong analytical and communication skills, thrives in a fast-paced environment, and is energized by building the financial processes, controls, and insights that enable complex infrastructure projects to execute on time, on budget, and at scale. **Key Responsibilities** - Serve as the primary finance partner to construction and project teams in the field, aligning financial plans with operational realities. - Own construction cost tracking, forecasting, and reporting across active projects, including budget-versus-actual and variance analysis. - Manage project cash-flow planning and ensure capital is available to meet construction milestones and payment obligations. - Review and reconcile contractor and vendor invoices, change orders, and progress billings against approved budgets and work completed. - Partner with project controls to connect cost, schedule, and earned value into clear financial reporting. - Produce monthly construction cost reports with variance commentary, key drivers, risks, and recommended actions for leadership. - Help maintain the project cost-coding structure, including the work breakdown structure and cost breakdown structure inputs. - Support capital budgeting and funding plans for construction phases, working with finance leadership to keep projects funded and on plan. - Monitor commitments, contingencies, and exposure across projects, flagging risks before they lead to overruns. - Partner with procurement and legal to align contract terms, payment schedules, and financial controls. - Help build and improve the financial processes, controls, and tools that will scale across multiple construction sites. **You Will Be Successful in This Role If** - You are comfortable working closely with field and construction teams and translating on-the-ground activity into clear financial analysis. - You bring strong cost management, forecasting, and cash-flow discipline to a fast-moving construction environment. - You build reporting that is accurate, easy to follow, and useful for both finance leaders and project teams. - You can work with incomplete information and still produce a practical answer that improves over time. - You can explain financial outputs clearly to both financial and non-financial audiences, including contractors and engineers. - You bring strong ownership and can manage recurring reporting deadlines without needing heavy oversight. - You are interested in helping build the financial systems that support large-scale energy infrastructure. **Basic Qualifications** - Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Construction Management, Engineering, or a related field. - 5+ years of experience in construction finance, project finance, project controls, cost management, or a related role on capital projects. - Strong experience with construction cost tracking, forecasting, cash-flow management, and variance analysis. - Familiarity with contractor billings, change orders, progress payments, and construction contract structures. - Strong financial modeling skills and proficiency in Microsoft Excel. - Ability to produce clear, executive-ready financial materials under tight deadlines. - Strong analytical skills, attention to detail, and the ability to work effectively with field teams. - Willingness to spend time on-site and travel to project locations as needed. **Preferred Skills and Experience** - Experience in energy, infrastructure, industrial, or large capital construction projects. - Experience with capital budgeting, funding plans, or project cost reporting on multi-phase projects. - Exposure to a startup, high-growth company, or similarly fast-paced environment. - Ability to grow into a broader construction finance leadership role as Valar scales. - Comfort working in ambiguous, rapidly changing environments with competing priorities. **What We Offer** - Competitive base salary - Equity ownership in a rapidly growing advanced energy company - Comprehensive medical benefits - Unlimited PTO - Free daily lunch provided on-site - Generous PPE stipend - High-impact startup environment with significant ownership and autonomy - Opportunities for rapid career growth and internal advancement - Direct collaboration with experienced operators, engineers, and industry leaders - The opportunity to help build and scale transformative energy technology from the ground up **Equal Employment Opportunity Statement** Valar Atomics is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable law. We are committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment and will provide reasonable accommodation as required by law. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States as a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (green card holder).