Financial Controller

THE ORGANIZATION

The Charter School Growth Fund (CSGF) is a leading nonprofit venture philanthropy fund that identifies the nation’s best public charter schools, funds their expansion, and helps to increase their impact. The portfolio includes 150 charter school networks that operate over 1,000 schools and serve more than 500,000 students in 31 states. We are committed to expanding the impact of schools that are closing achievement and opportunity gaps. Our investment strategy is like that of a nonprofit venture capital firm for public charter schools. The diverse “portfolio” of schools and leaders that we support include single-site charter schools as well as established networks that operate schools in several states. Ultimately, we believe the portfolio networks can serve more than one million students nationwide and in doing so, show how public schools can help students achieve excellent outcomes at scale.

This is an exciting time to join the Charter School Growth Fund. We are launching our next philanthropic fund in 2021, building on our 15-year track record of success. CSGF’s new five-year “Fund IV” will be larger in size and scope than previous funds, with a goal to continue to fuel charter sector growth, accelerate innovation, and strengthen long-term outcomes for students, particularly students of color and those from low-income backgrounds. Our new fund will continue to prioritize investments in leaders of color as our current portfolio is led by more than 50% leaders of color and more than 50% female leaders. We believe it is vital for the networks we support to be proximate to the lived experiences of the students and communities they serve.

THE OPPORTUNITY

Role: CSGF is seeking a new Financial Controller to manage the day-to-day finance and accounting functions for our growing organization. We are looking for a finance and accounting professional who can keep pace with current growth and complexity supporting a variety of programmatic offerings for our growing portfolio of networks and schools. Our Financial Controller must have previous experience at a nonprofit or social impact organization and has experience with designing processes and internal controls, managing accounting staff, producing insightful internal and external financial reporting, managing budgeting and forecasting efforts, overseeing functions including audit and tax preparation, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, cash disbursement, and benefits administration. If you are an innovative problem-solver capable of switching seamlessly between strategic thinking and tactical execution in a fast-paced environment, you should apply for this role. The position reports directly to the Vice President of Finance and Accounting.

Team: CSGF’s Finance and Operations team (FOPS) manages the financial and operational systems necessary to plan and accurately account for CSGF’s philanthropic programs. We strive to optimize systems, processes, and infrastructure to allow the CSGF team to maximize the resources they devote to mission-critical tasks and priorities. CSGF’s FOPS team is responsible for finance and accounting, benefits administration, legal and compliance, and portfolio grant and loan administration.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead and help optimize all processes necessary to ensure the accurate accounting of CSGF operating activities in accordance with US GAAP nonprofit accounting standards
• Help develop and enforce internal controls, policies and procedures, and workflows to maximize protection of company assets
• Train, manage and develop accounting staff
• Lead the creation of accurate internal and external financial reporting to all stakeholders and decision makers
• Ensure that proper processes, systems, and staffing are in place to administer and account for a growing portfolio of program-related investment “PRI” loans (currently ~100+)
• Interface regularly with CSGF’s investment custodians and investment advisor as needed to ensure adequate liquidity and proper accounting for all financial investment activities
• Facilitate the annual budget process and quarterly forecast process and related reporting to ensure CSGF is operating within guidelines set by CSGF leadership and Board of Directors
• Lead CSGF’s annual financial statement audit and filing of the IRS Form 990 working with external auditors and tax preparation team to complete
• Lead the completion of all donor proposal budgets and related financial reporting within agreed upon deadlines in partnership with CSGF’s Investor Relations team
• Oversee the accounts payable, payroll, cash disbursement process to ensure CSGF satisfies all financial obligations timely
• Ensure the proper administration and filing of required reporting for payroll and employee benefits
• Help explore ways to leverage/optimize systems and team roles and responsibilities to improve efficiency in meeting both individual and team objectives

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Characteristics and Skills

• Demonstrated expertise with finance and accounting function for a nonprofit organization
• Strong strategic thinking, analytical, and creative problem solving skills
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, particularly the ability to build strong relationships with diverse groups of stakeholders
• Experience with payroll and benefits administration and related reporting requirements
• Demonstrated flexibility, resourcefulness, and comfort with ambiguity in a fast-paced environment
• Strong project management experience that drives efficiency and excellence in all aspects of work
• Ability to seamlessly integrate high-level strategic decisions into detail-oriented tactical work
• Deep commitment to CSGF’s mission, passion for K-12 education, and excitement around creating excellent education options for low-income students
• Advanced proficiency in Excel
• Familiarity with Intacct accounting system, Salesforce, Google Workspace, and/or loan administration systems a plus

Educational Background and Work Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in business, accounting, or related field
• Professional accounting certification (CPA or similar)
• 7+ years’ relevant accounting experience; 3+ years’ at grant-making or social impact organization preferred; 2+ years’ experience as a manager of accounting staff

WORKING AT CSGF

We are focused on hiring and developing great people and believe that building diverse perspectives across our team make us more effective in expanding our impact. (This is reflected in Our Commitment to Diversity Statement.) Our core values are:

• Results. We work relentlessly to create efficient, measurable, and sustainable results. We strive for excellence and pursue our mission tenaciously. Ideally, you thrive working in a self-directed manner in a fluid environment where flexibility and tenacity are required.
• Entrepreneurship. We embrace calculated risks and new approaches. We have an entrepreneurial spirit that welcomes innovation, diversity of ideas, and risk. We rely on you to question conventional wisdom and think independently.
• Integrity. We are truthful, fair, and trustworthy in all aspects of our work. We hold ourselves and our partners to the highest ethical standards. We trust you will too.
• Respect. We appreciate the challenges faced by education entrepreneurs and recognize the limits of our own knowledge. We understand that our ultimate success depends on that of our partners. Your humility will be key to building trusted and authentic relationships.
• Teamwork. We value each of our team members as individuals but believe that we achieve the best results by working together. We willingly sacrifice individual interests and recognition for greater collective impact. We hope having fun at work is important to you and that you are a team player.

COMPENSATION

Compensation is commensurate with experience and education. The target salary range for this role is $110K-$130K annually. CSGF offers a very competitive package of benefits, including: health, life, disability and dental insurance coverage; vacation/holidays and parental leave; and participation in CSGF’s 403(b) plan. Candidates must have permanent authorization to work in the US.

START DATE

CSGF seeks candidates who can start as soon as possible, with flexibility for the right candidate.