Christopher Hipolito

About Christopher Hipolito

SummaryWith more than 20 years of experience as a Senior Financial Leader, I have a proven background within the technology industry, focusing on continuous process improvement, data analysis, training and development. I have leveraged expertise in global, cross-functional, and executive collaboration. As an expert in expense management, I am highly skilled in developing and launching a yearly planning framework to streamline and prioritize incentive funds. It is my passion to achieve top organizational performance driving robust revenue increases across the organization. Key Achievements Include: Responsible for the management of a team of 3 and ~$500M annual operating expenses, leveraging expertise to forecast and project out $6B-$8B revenue, the top line of the P&L Managed a team of 7 employees and oversaw the expense management of the $800M annual budget, developing and launching a yearly planning framework to streamline and prioritize ~$1B in Go-To-Marketing incentive funds, generating a 6% increase in channel revenue Collaborated with the Procurement team to define and unpack solutions to overcome the trade dispute between China and the US, successfully avoiding over $100M in Section 301 Tariffs Developed an innovative process to remove the impact of capital equipment international transfer price mark-up from Assembly/Test Manufacturing and Fabrication/SortManufacturing unit costs, generating a ~$500M reduction of cost of sales over the 5-year planning horizon, resulting in increasing product margin for all of the organizationalbusiness unitsContact me through this profile if you wish to connect.

Experience

1. Finance Director, Manufacturing and Operations

   Firefly Aerospace

   Jun 2024 — Present · Austin, TX, US

   Built an integrated 3-statement financial model incorporating rocket and spacecraft cost structures, launch cadence, and growth assumptions to support pre-IPO valuation, IPO readiness, and post-IPO public company forecasting• Designed a scalable costing and forecasting model for rocket manufacturing, providing leadership with 5-year forward visibility into burn rate, margin expansion, and capital requirements during early-stage growth• Designed and led a structured budgeting process covering CapEx, OpEx, and revenue, introducing forecasting cadence, cross-functional accountability, and financial controls to support scalable growth• Developed strategic lender relationships and secured $MM+ in equipment financing, optimizing capital structure and preserving cash to extend runway and fund growth initiatives

Education

• The University of Texas at Austin

  Master of Business Administration - MBA, Organizational Leadership

  2011 — 2014

• Texas State University

  Masters, Accounting

  2006 — 2010

• Stanford University

  LEAD (Learn, Educate, Accelerate, Disrupt), Executive Leadership

  2021 — 2022

• The University of Texas at Austin

  BBA, Corporate Finance

  2003 — 2006

Skills

• Essbase
• P&L Analysis
• Hyperion Planning
• Variance Analysis
• Project Management
• Financial Statement Analysis
• Expense Budget Management
• Gross Profit Analysis
• Corporate Finance
• Financial Analysis
• Cash Flow Forecasting
• Investments
• Equity Research
• Hyperion
• Finance
• Cash Flow Statements
• Semiconductors
• Leadership
• Sarbanes-Oxley Act
• P&L Management
• Back Office
• Hyperion Enterprise
• Interest Rate Risk Management
• Foreign Currency Translation
• P&L Modeling
• Analytical Skills
• Financial Modeling
• Cash Management
• Product Costing
• Sap
• Capital Markets
• Management
• Commodity Markets
• Forecasting
• Analysis
• Semiconductor Industry
• Commission Analysis
• Cost Model Development