Chief Financial Officer

The Role

Location: HIAS Headquarters (“HQ”) - Silver Spring, Maryland, United States (hybrid)

Reports to: President & CEO

Travel: International travel to places of HIAS’ operations a minimum of 10% of the time.

Position Summary

Reporting directly to the President & CEO, the Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) is a pivotal member of HIAS’ leadership team and responsible for directing and overseeing all HQ Finance functions and leading financial excellence globally in strict alignment with HIAS’ mission, core values, and strategic goals. The CFO will join HIAS after a transformational period of growth in size and scope over recent years. Working closely with relevant senior leaders, and the Board of Directors, the CFO spearheads the development and execution of global financial strategies and budgetary frameworks, offering expert financial guidance and support to the organization's senior leadership on financial plans, development and fundraising, and economic modeling, and will be responsible for overseeing all fiscal fiduciary responsibilities and risk management for the organization, in conjunction with the Board of Directors, particularly the Board’s Finance Committee and Audit & Risk Committee.

An exceptional leader, the CFO will ensure there are clear standards in place globally, providing full support to HQ, Regional and Country Offices around the world, to ensure that organizational finances and financial systems are consistently managed in a professional, clear, compliant, and efficient way

Key Responsibilities

Leadership

• Serves as a strategic partner to the President & CEO, working closely with the Board and relevant senior leaders and contributing to the overall leadership and direction of the agency’s financial planning and economic modeling.
• Leads and mentors a diverse team of finance professionals, fostering a culture of excellence, learning, and accountability.

Financial Management, Budgeting & Planning

• Guides, prepares and submits an annual operational plan and budget in line with the strategic plan, ensuring that organizational activities are managed within the parameters and reporting accurately on progress and challenges on a quarterly basis.
• Ensures that the finance team is resourced and structured to underpin and enable achievement of organizational strategic goals.
• Drives the agency’s financial and operational sustainability, ensuring robust responsive and compliant financial systems and processes across HIAS’ global network, including at headquarters, regional, and country offices, and affiliate agencies.
• Assesses and controls organizational performance on an ongoing basis against both the annual budget and HIAS’ strategic plan.
• Ensures financial systems are in place to support and drive HIAS’ strategic priorities, including but not limited to emergency response and localization.
• Provides insightful and actionable financial and operational information, analyses and modelling to the President & CEO and Board, on major investment and financing decisions, influencing both strategy and operational decisions (for example relating to geographic scope).
• Champions effective and efficient budgetary planning, forecasting and cost management processes in line with sector best practices and agency goals.
• Leads global ERP systems integration, ensuring the ERP meets agency needs with appropriate controls and user training.
• Ensures the requisite data management systems are in place to manage the demands of HIAS’ complex operations including its diverse donor base with the need for multiple currency management.
• Provides support and expert guidance on financial management to the HIAS Foundation Executive Director and Board.
• Ensures professional and compliant financial management in support of HIAS-branded entities (e.g., HIAS Europe) in fulfillment of agreements with those entities.
• Supports the Finance team, in collaboration with Human Resources, to oversee and manage the employee pension plan and ensure that payroll processes and salary payments are managed professionally and in line with legislation in the country of operation.
• Ensures that staff across all division and country offices receive the financial management resources and training they need to succeed in their positions.

Accounting, Audit & Governance

• Oversees all financial aspects of the organization, including investments, audit activities, accounts, ledgers and reporting systems, ensuring adherence to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, regulatory requirements, federal statutory audit requirements and Office of Management & Budget audit requirements.
• Collaborates with Programs and other relevant departments to ensure effective communication with donors and partners relating to funding and funding opportunities.
• Manages and oversees relationships with external audit and accounting firms.
• Contributes to the agency’s overall governance, risk management and control framework and fosters a collaborative partnership with Internal Audit & Control (IAC) to enhance financial systems, processes and controls, ensuring improved internal control and compliance.
• Actively engages with the Board and its committees on financial matters, trends and foresight and leads the relationship with the Finance Committee.
• Identifies, proposes and implements operational strategies and performance metrics (for example organizational yearly objectives) needed to manage financial challenges and opportunities.
• Actively supports the selection and engagement of outside consultants (audits, investment advisors, etc.) and coordinates audit activities, maintaining robust financial internal controls and safeguards.

The Person

Qualifications & Requirements

• Proven success as a CFO, in a similarly sized, complex, global organization with a budget of at least $200,000,000 annually.
• 10+ years’ experience at the C-level leading and managing large finance teams.
• Exceptional leadership skills within a global organization are essential; not limited to the humanitarian or other nonprofit industry but a strong awareness of the unique challenges within this industry is essential.
• An advanced degree (MBA or MPA) in Finance, Accounting and/or Management, strongly preferred
• CPA preferred.
• Deep knowledge and understanding relating to the application of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
• Flawless technical skills and with strong judgement and integrity managing complex financial matters.
• Strong knowledge of data analysis, forecasting & financial modelling, investments, financial reporting, budgeting, audit, tax, strategic planning, internal controls and risk management.
• Extensive experience in design and implementation of global finance systems within a complex organization.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to problem-solve, with the ability to make pragmatic commercial financial decisions.
• Experience of long-range planning and budgeting with a diversified donor base and multiple currency environment.

Key Attributes

• Excellent change leadership skills.
• Transformational leader with exceptional communication and relationship skills, and the ability to lead and influence within a matrix structure, building strong collaborative partnerships across cultures.
• Strategic and visionary leader with proven ability to lead, develop, and mentor team members to meet organizational goals as finance leaders through organizational change.
• Knowledge of and/or passion for HIAS’ mission and issues related to immigration and refugee protection.
• A proven capacity to effectively manage pressure and challenging situations.

Compensation

• We offer competitive salaries, excellent benefits, and a collaborative and engaging work environment.
• Salary is based on a nonprofit scale and commensurate with skills and experience.
• For this position, the base salary range is $300,000 to $325,000.
• Internal equity considerations and the average salary of the peer range will be reviewed before making a final offer