Chief Financial Officer

About the Position

Making Waves Foundation is looking for a Chief Financial Officer to oversee our Finance and IT functions and to partner with the CEO to operationalize our new strategic direction.

Our Chief Financial Officer (CFO) will be deeply committed to our vision: a society in which all youth, regardless of race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status, have access to high-quality educational opportunities and the tools to achieve success. The CFO will be responsible for all aspects of the organization’s financial management. Reporting to the CEO, the CFO plays a critical role in developing and implementing the financial strategy for MWF. The CFO will also play an essential leadership role in ensuring we successfully operationalize our new strategic plan, serving as a strategic thought partner to the CEO and guiding the organization toward long-term sustainability and expansion.

The CFO will oversee both the Finance and Information Technology teams, managing an overall team of seven people. As the leader of these teams, the CFO has day-to-day responsibility for planning, implementing, managing and controlling all financial activities of the organization. This includes direct responsibility for accounting, finance, forecasting, compliance, and revenue and expense planning. In addition, the CFO manages and supports the Information Technology team to set and execute the organization’s IT strategy.

The CFO will be a member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT), playing a key role in shaping organizational strategy, culture, and performance. The CFO regularly engages with the Board of Directors and Executive Committee, and serves as management liaison to the Audit, Finance, and Endowment Committees.

Responsibilities

Provide organizational leadership to advance Making Waves Foundation

• Set the tone for MWF’s financial sustainability by being the primary voice and advocate of strong organizational stewardship of resources.
• Set the tone for MWF's culture by being an advocate for our mission and strategy, coaching and developing others, and listening deeply to the full team.
• Advance organizational priorities as a core part of the Senior Leadership Team and by fostering deep partnerships with colleagues across the organization.
• Oversee annual/quarterly planning and goal setting for the organization, ensuring timely delivery of organizational goals.
• Serves as an internal consultant to the CEO on MWF financial matters, making recommendations and suggesting proactive strategies to keep MWF aligned with its financial targets, programmatic growth, and organizational strategic plans.
• Serve as a liaison to the Board of Directors and the Audit, Finance, and Endowment Committees.
• Provide monthly reports to the Finance Committee and lead at the Finance Committee meetings, which occur 4 times annually.
• Provide written reports for board meeting packets and handle any necessary financial presentations to the board.

Lead a high-performing team rooted in inclusion and continuous improvement

• Lead highly collaborative Finance and IT teams to meet their goals and advance our organizational strategy.
• Create strong team cultures rooted in our vision for diversity, equity, and inclusiveness.
• Foster a culture of innovation and continuous operations and systems improvements.
• Attract, develop, and retain the diverse and high-performing team that is needed to drive the team’s work forward.
• Ensure team members are maximizing their individual potential and receiving professional development to enhance their skills and performance in their role.
• Evaluate finance and IT operations in order to develop and continuously improve processes that will increase efficiency and effectiveness
• Manage the Finance/G&A and IT teams’ budgets.

Define and execute systems and processes that positions the organization for sustainability and expansion

• Lead and support the multi-year financial plan to advance MWF’s mission, programmatic impact, and financial sustainability.
• Lead all financial modeling and strategic analysis.
• Ensure all legal and regulatory responsibilities are met, includingcompletion of annual financial statements, tax preparation and compliance, the audit process, and all requirements related to private operating foundations.
• Build a deep understanding of Private Operating Foundation rules and requirements, and play the lead role in ensuring all internal and external stakeholders adhere to these rules.
• Oversee the organization’s Information Technology team, supporting the VP, IT to define and execute a strategy to support our new strategic plan, with a focus on analytics, automation, and systems integration.
• Oversee integration of software programs that support departments across the organization; utilize technology to optimize all reporting, budgeting, forecasting, and analytical functions.
• Collaborate with the VP, Property Management and Facilities to manage the organization’s long-term asset management plan of the foundation’s real estate assets.
• Provide oversight, from a financial standpoint, of property disposition strategy, including monitoring the property-owning LLCs over time.
• Lead the annual budget process.
• Lead annual insurance renewal process, and oversee all annual insurance policies, including liability, D&O, EPLI.

Oversee our treasury, investment strategy, and cash flow management

• Oversee treasury functions including cash management and investment management
• Oversee the Foundation’s banking relationships, our line of credit, and loan compliance.
• Partner with the Chief Advancement Officer to process all donations, grant proposals, and reporting requirements
• Manage the Vanguard relationship and work directly with the Endowment Committee to ensure strong long-term endowment performance.
• Forecast and manage cash flow, including both operating expenses and construction costs, to ensure that cash on hand is adequate to meet obligations and future needs
• Direct all aspects of the finance and accounting functions of the organization, including the oversight of all accounts, ledgers and reporting systems.

Candidate Requirements

Prior Experience

•  Undergraduate degree from an accredited college or university, MBA preferred
•  10+ years of senior financial leadership and management of high-performing teams in mission-driven organizations with budgets of $10M+ and complex operations.
• Extensive experience working with and/or developing complex accounting systems with multiple funders, multiple cost centers, and complex allocation models.
• Experience in accounting software programs such as Intacct, Adaptive Insights, Concur, and Kronos.
• Demonstrated belief in Making Waves Foundation’s mission, the need to expand educational opportunity, and the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion in this effort.
• Extensive experience overseeing financial operations, including budget development and scenario planning and analysis.

Skills

• Ability to set vision and direction for the financial sustainability and growth of nonprofits.
• Strong strategic and analytical skills, including financial planning, forecasting, modeling and data analysis.
• Ability to operationalize organizational strategy, support teams in annual goal-setting, and build cohesion and collaboration across teams.
• Ability to envision and project-manage the design and implementation of technology solutions that enhance organization productivity.
• Ability to build relationships and collaborate across teams, with senior leaders, and with board members.
• Ability to manage and collaborate across diverse teams and to take both a learning and action orientation to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal; ability to translate complex information and communicate it simply and effectively to both internal and external audiences with the rationale for decisions.
• Ability to reflect on successes and failures in order to drive continuous improvement.
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage individual and team execution to meet a range of deadlines.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment and make decisions based on accurate and timely analyses.

Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range

• Commensurate with experience

Current Benefits

https://making-waves.org/about-us/careers/why-join-us/

Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

We are committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion and encourage individuals of all backgrounds to apply for this position.

Making Waves Foundation is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all qualified individuals and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, national origin, neurodiversity/mental health, learning style, physical ability, age, veteran status, pregnancy, parental/family/caregiver status, socioeconomic status, genetic information or characteristics (or those of a family member) or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.

*This job description reflects Making Waves Foundation’s assignment of essential functions and qualifications of the role. Nothing in this herein restricts management's right to assign, reassign or eliminate duties and responsibilities to this role at any time.

Application Process

To apply, please submit a resume and cover letter in the same document and attach when you apply online: https://secure4.entertimeonline.com/ta/6165875.careers?CareersSearch

In your cover letter, please answer the following questions:

• Why are you interested in serving as the CFO of MWF?
• What are the top 3-5 things you have accomplished in your career that will set you up to thrive as MWF’s CFO?