FP&A AI Summer Associate at Freshworks CRM in San Mateo, CA

companyDescription Organizations everywhere struggle under the crushing costs and complexities of “solutions” that promise to simplify their lives. To create a better experience for their customers and employees. To help them grow. Software is a choice that can make or break a business. Create better or worse experiences. Propel or throttle growth. Business software has become a blocker instead of ways to get work done. There’s another option. Freshworks. With a fresh vision for how the world works. At Freshworks, we build uncomplicated service software that delivers exceptional customer and employee experiences. Our enterprise-grade solutions are powerful, yet easy to use, and quick to deliver results. Our people-first approach to AI eliminates friction, making employees more effective and organizations more productive. Over 72,000 companies, including Bridgestone, New Balance, Nucor, S&P Global, and Sony Music, trust Freshworks’ customer experience (CX) and employee experience (EX) software to fuel customer loyalty and service efficiency. And, over 4,500 Freshworks employees make this possible, all around the world. Fresh vision. Real impact. Come build it with us. jobDescription Are you passionate about finance but equally obsessed with the power of Artificial Intelligence? We are seeking a highly motivated FP&A Summer Associate to join our team in San Mateo and spearhead our finance automation initiatives. In this role, you will have the opportunity to participate in impactful projects that help to drive and shape the way FP&A operates. You will not only crunch numbers and create reports, but you will also act as the bridge between finance and technology. You will partner with our FP&A managers to map out existing workflows across our primary financial systems (NetSuite, Workday HCM, and Workday Adaptive Planning) and design AI-driven solutions to automate repetitive tasks, enhance data accuracy, and generate predictive insights. Key Responsibilities: Process Mapping & System Optimization: Analyze and document current FP&A workflows within NetSuite, Workday, and Adaptive Planning to identify bottlenecks, manual data-entry points, and areas for automation. AI Integration & Automation: Research, test, and implement AI tools (e.g., LLMs, Microsoft Copilot, custom Python scripts, or RPA) to streamline data extraction and consolidation across our financial stack. Proof of Concept (PoC) Development: Build and present working prototypes of automated financial models or dashboards that reduce manual processing time for month-end reporting and variance analysis. Prompt Engineering & Data Querying: Develop optimized prompts and queries to extract actionable financial insights from large datasets pulled from our ERP and EPM systems using Generative AI tools. Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with FP&A, Investor Relations, Accounting, Data/IT, and other cross-functional teams to ensure automated solutions are secure, scalable, and compliant with financial controls. Strategic Support: Assist the FP&A and Investor Relations team with ad-hoc financial modeling, close activities, market benchmarking, competitive analysis and preparation of executive dashboards to understand the foundation of the process you are automating. qualifications Minimum Qualifications Currently enrolled in a Bachelor's or Master's program in Finance, Economics, Computer Science, Data Science, Data Analytics, or a closely related field. Strong foundational understanding of core finance concepts (budgeting, forecasting, variance analysis). Proficiency in Excel and/or Google Sheets and a strong willingness to push beyond traditional spreadsheets. A fundamental understanding of Generative AI, Machine Learning concepts, or robotic process automation (RPA). Preferred Qualifications Familiarity with enterprise financial systems, specifically NetSuite, Workday, or Workday Adaptive Planning, is a strong plus. Hands-on experience using APIs (e.g., OpenAI API) or building custom scripts to parse financial data from ERP/EPM systems. Curiosity and a "hacker" mindset. You love figuring out how to make software do the heavy lifting for you. Excellent communication skills with the ability to explain technical AI/ automation concepts to non-technical finance professionals. What You Will Gain: Real-World Impact: Your projects will directly reduce manual hours for the Freshworks finance team, and your solutions may be adopted permanently. Skill Development: Hands-on experience at the intersection of enterprise finance tools (NetSuite/Workday/Adaptive) and SaaS AI. Mentorship: Direct access to senior finance leadership and data science experts who will guide your professional development. additionalInformation Please note this is a paid, full-time (40 hours/week), fixed-term Associate internship running from June through September. This is a hybrid role with onsite expectations of 3x/week (Tuesday - Thursday) from our San Mateo, CA headquarters. The hourly pay for this position is $25/hour At Freshworks, we have fostered an environment that enables everyone to find their true potential, purpose, and passion, welcoming colleagues of all backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, religions, and ethnicities. We are committed to providing equal opportunity and believe that diversity in the workplace creates a more vibrant, richer environment that boosts the goals of our employees, communities, and business. Fresh vision. Real impact. Come build it with us.