Director of Finance and Administration

Founded in 1993, NECHAMA: Jewish Response to Disaster is the only national Jewish organization to offer sustained direct recovery services in the United States, responding to damage caused by hurricanes, tornados, floods, and other natural disasters. A member of National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) and many local VOADs, over the years NECHAMA has relied on thousands of volunteers to assist communities. Rooted and guided by Jewish values, NECHAMA has three priorities: humanizing Jews and representing Jewish ideals in communities shattered by disaster; providing a platform for volunteers of all faiths to explore their identities and purpose; and spreading comfort and hope to people and communities in desperate need of assistance. For more information about NECHAMA, please visit www.nechama.org.

Job Parameters: Full-time remote position. Work may be performed anywhere in the United States, although there is a slight preference for applicants who live in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, the home base for NECHAMA.

Accountability: Reports to Chief Executive Officer.

Job Description: NECHAMA is seeking a full-time Director of Finance and Administration to join our team and work with the CEO, the staff, the board, and volunteers. The Director will oversee NECHAMA’s finances and internal operations. NECHAMA is a small organization, currently with five FTE, but we are projecting significant future growth. Our staffing and budget model also expands exponentially during a significant natural disaster. Projected to last though March 2025, NECHAMA is conducting a major deployment to Asheville, NC for Hurricane Helene relief and temporary staff have been added to the team. The Director of Finance & Administration will contribute to the success of the day to day operations of NECHAMA as well as to the overall growth and development of the organization.

Finance Responsibilities:

• Develop and manage annual budgets.
• On a monthly and annual basis, reconcile actual revenues and expenses with budgets and monitor cash flow.
• Working with CEO, establish strategic financial goals, monitor NECHAMA’s performance against those goals, and recommend adjustments when necessary.
• Develop budgets for new projects, including working with NECHAMA’s Operations Director to help create budgets for new disaster deployments.
• Maintain separate revenue accounts for each major deployment and special projects and ensure that expenditures are made in compliance with donor intent; working with Development Director, process contributions to NECHAMA and ensure that appropriate acknowledgments are transmitted to donors.
• Oversee NECHAMA’s financial policies and procedures and recommend new policies to maintain best practices.
• Working with external auditor, board treasurer, and CEO, oversee the audit process and filing of annual IRS Form 990.
• Process invoices and payments to vendors; manage bi-weekly payroll through GUSTO; make bank deposits; enter all revenue and expenses in Quickbooks, Funraise and other software programs; and reconcile bank deposits and expenses.
• Oversee expense submissions and credit card purchases process through Expensify.
• Serve as liaison to the NECHAMA board’s finance committee.

Administration and Internal Operations Responsibilities:

• Manage NECHAMA’s overall human resources including by developing recruitment strategies and systems, establishing and implementing performance management and talent development processes, recruiting and onboarding new employees, periodically updating the employee handbook, and managing separations.
• Oversee NECHAMA’s relationship with GUSTO, the on-line human resources platform, and maintain internal compliance, and leave calculators.
• Working with NECHAMA’s CEO and other leadership, craft strategies to internally operationalize NECHAMA’s commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and to combat climate change.
• Oversee health insurance, retirement, workers comp and unemployment benefits, and other benefit programs, and serve as liaison with NECHAMA’s external benefit brokers.
• Direct and maintain policies and procedures to ensure NECHAMA’s compliance with federal and state employment/workers compensation laws for Minnesota and other states where employees are based.
• Liaison with NECHAMA’s external vendor and coordinate information and submissions for state licensing regulators overseeing charitable solicitations.
• Liaison with insurance broker and coordinate insurance and any OSHA issues for NECHAMA.
• Serve as the primary point of contact with the landlord/building management for NECHAMA’s. Minnesota-based office and warehouse facilities, and ensure that office is appropriately maintained.
• Working with Operations Coordinator, ensure that vehicles are appropriately registered and coordinate any new purchases of vehicles.
• Manage ongoing vendor relationships.
• With CEO, serve as liaison on legal matters with NECHAMA’s external legal counsel, including on human resources, 501(c)(3) restrictions, and legal risks.
• Ensure that remote work meets the needs of NECHAMA and team members and that challenges are prioritized.
• Working with Communications Director, manage email, software, and computer issues that arise; and oversee NECHAMA’s Google drive and institute a document nomenclature and retention system.
• Recognize and anticipate gaps, opportunities and challenges as they relate to internal operations, finance and administrative systems; generate ideas, and innovative solutions to problem solve.
• Other tasks and projects as they arise.

Qualifications:

While no one person will embody all the qualities below, the ideal candidate will possess most of the following professional and personal abilities, attributes and experiences:

• Passion for and commitment to NECHAMA’s mission.
• 5+ years of experience in the nonprofit social impact or mission-driven sector in a role advancing operations, finance, administration and/or human resources. Management experience in these areas is preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree required, preferably in a field like accounting, finance or organizational management.
• Experience working with budgets and bookkeeping required as is basic knowledge of accounting best practices/GAAP.
• Strong organizational and project management skills with the ability to multitask and meet deadlines.
• Detail and team-oriented with excellent communications, leadership, and problem-solving/analytical skills, and proven ability to innovate and seize opportunities to improve effectiveness and organizational outcomes.
• Knowledge of the organized Jewish community, preferred.
• Commitment to racial equity and ability to effectively collaborate across lines of race, class, and religion.
• Experience working in fully remote environments.
• High emotional intelligence, collaborative, energetic and ability to multi-task, inclusive and productive interpersonal skills, track record of working well with colleagues, external consultants/vendors, and others who contribute to the overall functioning of the organization.
• Honesty, confidentiality, transparency, discretion and personal trust in every fact of their work.
• Proficiency with Google Workspace, booking tools including Quickbooks, and client relationship management (CRM) required. Experience with GUSTO, the on-line human resources management tool, and EXPENSIFY, the internal expense calculation tool, preferred.
• While not needing to be a tech guru, successful candidate should have facility and comfort with technology and enthusiasm for learning new functions and products.

Eligible candidates must be currently authorized to work in the United States, will not now, or in the future, require sponsorship of a visa for employment authorization in the United States, and are willing to provide employment verification as required. Unless otherwise prohibited by federal, state, or local law, the successful candidate must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

NECHAMA is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, sex, age, gender identity or expression, or other status protected by applicable law. NECHAMA is committed to providing employees with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment.

Not sure you meet 100% of our qualification? Research shows that men apply for jobs when they meet an average of 60% of the criteria, while women and others who are systematically marginalized tend to only apply if they meet every requirement. If you believe that you could excel in this role, we encourage you to apply. Whether you are new to this field, returning to work after a gap in employment, looking to transition, or take the next step in your career path, we will be glad to have you on our radar.

Salary range: $60,000 - $75,000 depending on experience.

How to apply:

Email the following to jobs@nechama.org:

• cover letter addressing interest and qualifications
• resume
• 3 references
• salary expectations
• where you saw this job description

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until the position is filled.