Finance & Operations Director

About Action Council

The Action Council of Monterey County (ACMC) was created in 1994 to address unmet needs of low-income residents due to welfare reform. It has since evolved into a hub for social innovation, incubation, and cross-sector collaboration. Action’s mission is to empower people to transform their communities by incubating leaders, ideas, organizations, and collaborative action. This role presupposes a strong commitment to work with funders, policy makers and the community to facilitate change on critical issues. It has incubated Building Healthy Communities (BHC), Mujeres en Acción, and other grassroots organizations.

Building Healthy Communities Monterey County (BHCMC) engages and develops community leadership to achieve equitable outcomes in health, education, and economic opportunity. Coordinated through Action Teams, BHCMC works towards policy and systems change grounded in a healing-informed racial justice framework. The values of the organization include: resident centered / Resident voice, Power-building, Equity, Compassion, Healing, Dignity, Authenticity, Love, Unity, Solidarity, Justice, Affirmation, Inclusion, and People matter and are valued.

Position Overview

The Finance and Operations Director (FOD) will be a strategic thought-partner, reporting to the Executive Director (ED). The successful candidate will be a hands-on and participative manager, and will lead an internal team to support the following areas: finance, planning and budgeting, human resources, administration, facilities, contracts and technology systems.

The FOD will play a critical role in partnering with the senior leadership team in strategic decision making and operations as ACMC continues to enhance its quality programming and build capacity. This is a tremendous opportunity for a finance and operations leader to maximize and strengthen the internal capacity of a well-respected, high-impact organization.

The FOD is responsible for establishing and maintaining financial policies, procedures, internal controls, and reporting systems. This position ensures legal and regulatory compliance for all accounting and financial reporting functions. The FOD also oversees cost and general accounting, accounts, receivable/collection, payroll and staffing.

Primary Job Functions

• Guides financial decisions, in collaboration with the ED, by monitoring and enforcing the financial policies of the organization and its procedures.
• Protects assets by establishing, monitoring, and enforcing internal controls.
• Guided by the organization’s investment policies, maximizes return and limits risk on cash by minimizing cash balances and processing investments.
• Provides status of financial condition of the organization by collecting, interpreting, and reporting key financial data to management and the Board of Directors.
• Ensures compliance with monthly billing and invoicing.
• Ensures compliance with federal, state, and local legal requirements by researching existing and new legislation, consulting with outside advisors, and filing financial reports. Advises management of actions and potential risks.
• Arranges for and provides support for internal or external audits as required and appropriate.
• Provides financial grant reporting support as needed.
• Hires, trains, develops, and appraises direct reports effectively. Takes corrective action as necessary on a timely basis and in accordance with the organization’s policy. Consults with Human Resources as appropriate.
• Oversees planning, implementation, and maintenance of the organization's technology systems and infrastructure.
• Keeps up-to-date on information and technology affecting functional area(s) to increase innovation and ensure compliance.

Specific Responsibilities of the Job

Financial Management

• Analyze and present financial reports in an accurate and timely manner; clearly communicate monthly and annual financial statements; collate financial reporting materials for all donor segments, and oversee all financial, project/program and grants accounting.
• Coordinate and lead the annual audit process, liaise with external auditors and the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors; assess any changes necessary.
• Oversee and lead annual budgeting and planning process in conjunction with the ED; administer and review all financial plans and budgets; monitor progress and changes; and keep senior leadership team abreast of the organization’s financial status.
• Manage organizational cash flow and forecasting.
• Implement a robust contracts management and financial management/reporting system; ensure that the contract billing and collection schedule is adhered to and that financial data and cash flow are steady and support operational requirements.
• Update and implement all necessary business policies and accounting practices; improve the finance department’s overall policy and procedure manual, and ensure it is up to date at all times.
• Effectively communicate and present the critical financial matters to the Board of Directors.

Technology

• Work closely with external technology partners to oversee and recommend technology strategies, policies, and procedures
• Plan and coordinate the development of long-term goals and operational policies for the use of technology
• Prepare and monitor the budget for technology resources in the organization
• Oversee day-to-day technology operations
• Provide support and training for hardware, software, and other systems
• Ensure the reliability and security of technology systems
• Coordinate the purchase of hardware and software
• Communicate technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders

Human Resources

• Overseeing ACMC’s human resources and administration, enhancing professional development, compensation and benefits, performance evaluation, training, and recruiting.
• Ensure that recruiting processes are consistent and streamlined.
• Establish and manage a comprehensive training program to educate employees regarding staff tools, policies, and procedures.
• Commitment to training programs that maximize individual and organization goals across the organization including best practices in human resources activities

Facilities

• Work closely with all external partners including property-owners, third-party vendors, and consultants to ensure that the facilities are secure and properly maintained.
• Ensure the work environment is safe, operational, and conducive to quality work.
• Oversees security and emergency preparedness procedures are implemented properly.

Qualifications

• Minimum of a BA, ideally with an MBA/CPA or related degree
• At least seven to 10 years of overall professional experience; ideally six-plus years of broad financial and operations management experience

The ideal candidate has:

• Experience of final responsibility for the quality and content of all financial data, reporting and audit coordination for either a division or significant program area, and has previously overseen a human resources function
• Ability to translate financial concepts to, and to effectively collaborate with, programmatic and fundraising colleagues who do not necessarily have finance backgrounds
• A track record in grants management
• Experience and high comfort level with technology, including selecting and overseeing software installations and managing relationships with software vendors
• Knowledgeable of and proficiency with accounting and reporting software
• A successful track record in setting priorities; keen analytic, organization, and problem-solving skills which support and enable sound decision making
• Excellent communication and relationship building skills with an ability to prioritize, negotiate, and work with a variety of internal and external stakeholders
• Ability to address multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment
• Personal qualities of integrity, credibility, and dedication to the mission of ACMC
• Ability to understand, communicate with, and effectively interact with people across race and cultures.

Supervisory Responsibility

This position is responsible for daily supervision of accounting, facilities, technology, and human resource staff.

Work Environment

This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets and fax machines.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work

This is a full-time position, and hours of work and days are typically Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required as job duties demand.

Travel

The position may require occasional overnight travel to conferences that support professional development, but will be notified in advance. There may be occasional meetings in the Salinas/Peninsula area.

Physical Demands

• The employee should be able to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit, talk and hear, use hands, handle, feel or operate objects, tools, or controls; and reach with hands and arms. The employee is occasionally required to walk.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus.

This full job description can be found on www.actioncouncil.org/careers.