Innovation Analyst, Innovation Office

At Mariner, innovation isn’t just about new technology — it’s about unlocking new ways to serve clients, empower advisors, and transform the way we work. The Innovation Analyst plays a pivotal role in bringing this mission to life by delivering both financial insight and measurable impact across our innovation initiatives.

As part of the Innovation & AI Office, this role ensures that investments in AI, digital platforms, pilots, and the evolving workforce are not only financially sound, but also advancing Mariner’s long-term vision. The Innovation Analyst will collaborate across finance, operations, and innovation strategy to evaluate new ideas, manage the Innovation P&L, and track business, advisor, and client outcomes that demonstrate the real value of innovation.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Financial Planning & Analysis

• Develop and manage the Innovation Office P&L, encompassing headcount, R&D, pilots, technology investments, training, governance, and communications.

• Forecast and monitor spend against budgets, including a 20% contingency for new and emerging opportunities.

• Build and refine financial models to evaluate proofs of concept (POCs) and pilot investments, with clear scenario and ROI analyses.

Innovation Metrics & Impact Measurement

• Define, track, and report key non-financial metrics including:

  • Adoption – utilization of new tools across advisors and associates.

  • Client Impact – improvements in client experience, satisfaction, and engagement.

  • Productivity Gains – time savings and increased client-facing activity.

  • Risk Reduction – compliance, security, and error mitigation outcomes.

• Partner with Innovation Champions across business units to collect, validate, and interpret data.

• Maintain dashboards linking the Innovation Funnel (Idea → R&D → POC → Pilot → Production) with business and client impact metrics.

Strategic Decision Support

• Support the Innovation Council and leadership teams with integrated scorecards that blend financial and impact metrics.

• Benchmark Mariner’s innovation portfolio against industry standards and best practices (e.g., Kitces AdvisorTech studies).

• Provide strategic recommendations to scale, refine, or sunset pilots based on data-driven insights and business value.

Governance & Responsible AI

• Embed risk, compliance, and Responsible AI principles in all financial and impact analyses.

• Document learnings from pilot programs to inform future governance, investment, and strategy updates.

Required Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Economics, Business Analytics, or a related field (MBA, CFA, or CPA preferred).

• 3–5 years of experience in financial planning and analysis (FP&A), business analysis, or corporate strategy.

• Understanding of SaaS and technology metrics, including adoption curves, ARR, and ROI modeling.

Preferred Education and Experience

• Experience working in innovation, technology, or business transformation environments strongly preferred.

Skills

• Advanced analytical and financial modeling skills in Excel, with experience using Power BI, Tableau, or similar analytics platforms.

• Strong communication and storytelling skills — able to distill complex data into clear, compelling ins