Principal Loyalty Budgeting & Forecasting

Alaska Airlines • WA-SeaTac, WA

16h

About The Position

Guided by our purpose, core values, and leadership principles, we are creating an airline people love. Our corporate teams set the strategies and operational plans to ensure the success of our company. Whether we use our expertise in accounting, human resources, finance, planning, legal, marketing, or any of our operational divisions, our shared passion for travel and our guests is what motivates us to achieve excellence each day. If you share our passion for creating an airline people love, we want to hear from you. The Principal Loyalty Budget & Forecasting is the sole subject matter expert for owning and improving end‑to-end financial planning cycles for the loyalty business (budgeting, long‑range plan, monthly outlooks), with a focus on points volumes issued, elite benefit costs, redemptions, partner settlement, and co‑brand economics. This role builds complex models, leads forecast updates with cross‑functional partners, drives variance analysis and insights, and translates loyalty program dynamics into actionable recommendations that optimize profitability and guest value.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Data Analytics or related field; or two (2) additional years of relevant experience in lieu of degree.
• 7+ years of progressive experience in FP&A, budgeting, forecasting, or financial modeling (preferably in consumer loyalty, payments, airline, travel, or card partnerships).
• Proficiency in Excel (advanced formulas, pivot tables, scenario modeling) and comfort with databases/BI tools; strong quantitative problem‑solving and attention to detail.
• Working knowledge of accounting/finance fundamentals, ideally in a loyalty program context.
• Strong verbal/written communication skills; ability to synthesize complex analysis into clear, actionable recommendations for leadership.
• High school diploma or equivalent is required.
• Minimum age of 18.
• Must be authorized to work in the U.S.

Nice To Haves

• Airline industry experience.
• Passion for loyalty programs and aviation.
• Experience modeling loyalty program KPIs and economics, co‑brand card P&L, and partner settlement.
• Exposure to airline industry dynamics and loyalty program design (award charts, status tiers, earning and redemption rules).
• Familiarity with SQL/Power BI/Tableau and financial planning tools.

Responsibilities

• Lead the budgeting and monthly forecasting processes for Atmos Rewards cost centers and P&L lines (points issuance/redemption volumes and co‑brand cash forecasts), including calendar ownership, driver-based modeling, and stakeholder alignment for a 12-18 month time horizon.
• Develop, maintain, and improve complex financial models (e.g. membership growth and benefits usage, redemption volumes and recognized revenue, co‑brand spend, account, and cash growth) that support tactical decisions and long-range planning, in partnership with Accounting, and FP&A.
• Own monthly close support for loyalty: prepare accruals, reconcile partner invoices, and collaborate closely with FP&A, Accounting, Loyalty Product Owners, Cobrand Growth team, Partnerships & Alliances and other stakeholders to provide variance commentary on drivers of any under or overperformance to budget.
• Produce executive-ready financial reporting (monthly performance decks, variance bridges, trend analysis, KPI dashboards for issuance, redemption, member growth, and co‑brand metrics), and present results to VP and C-suite executives.
• Identify drivers of performance and deliver insights that improve profitability and guest value — recommending actions on pricing/redemption policies, partner economics, promotional ROI, and cost controls – in partnership with loyalty product owners.
• Serve as the point of contact for Loyalty Product, Partnerships, Co‑brand, and Data/Analytics — supporting business cases, scenario modeling (e.g., award chart changes, elite benefit cost, credit card bonuses), and ad hoc financial analyses.
• Instrument and monitor key loyalty KPIs across Atmos Rewards (e.g., points earn rate, redemption propensity, elite benefit uptake, partner mix), connecting operational trends to financial outcomes.
• Continuously improve processes, driving automation and standardization to deliver faster, more reliable forecasts and reporting.

Benefits

• Free stand-by travel privileges on Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines & Horizon Air
• Comprehensive well-being programs including medical, dental and vision benefits
• Generous 401k match program
• Quarterly and annual bonus plans
• Generous holiday and paid time off

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees