Chief Financial Officer & Vice President, Administration

The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation is a private charitable foundation based in Flint, Michigan, with $3.5 billion in assets. The Foundation’s mission is to promote a just, equitable and sustainable society. It was established in 1926 in Flint, Michigan, by C.S. Mott, an automotive pioneer. It grants approximately $150 million per year, supporting nonprofit programs in its hometown of Flint as well as communities throughout the United States and around the world.

Since its inception, the Foundation has awarded grants totaling more than $4 billion to organizations in 75 countries. The Foundation makes grants through four programs:

• Civil Society, which focuses on strengthening civic space, enhancing community philanthropy and increasing access to justice.
• Education, which focuses on advancing afterschool, engaging youth, and helping young people to graduate high school ready for college or a career.
• Environment, which focuses on addressing the freshwater challenge, transforming development finance and advancing climate change solutions.
• Flint Area, which focuses on meeting evolving community needs, revitalizing the education continuum, enriching lives through arts and culture, and restoring community vitality.

Position summary

Reporting to the President and CEO, the Chief Financial Officer & Vice President of Administration (CFO) supports the mission and strategic objectives of the Foundation by leading, managing, and overseeing the Foundation’s operational and administrative areas, including Accounting and Finance, Facilities, Grants Administration and Information Technology. The CFO will oversee long-term budgetary planning and cost management in alignment with the Foundation’s strategic plan and provide financial leadership to the President and CEO, the Board and its committees, and the Foundation Leadership Team.

The CFO will also serve as the Resident Agent and as the Foundation’s primary liaison with outside legal counsel, the Internal Revenue Service, auditors, the state Attorney General’s Office, the Federal Reserve Board, and other governmental bodies and agencies.

This leader will serve as Secretary of the Board, attending all meetings of the Board of Trustees and acting as secretary of the meetings. They will act as compliance officer and will be responsible for assuring that grants and program related investments made by the Foundation conform to IRS rules and regulations. They will participate, upon request, in policy formulation and other administrative matters to be recommended to the Board of Trustees. They may chair committees, such as the personnel and retirement committees. As the Treasurer, this leader will be responsible for the custody of all funds and securities and will have other duties and powers as may be prescribed by the Board of Trustees.

Key role responsibilities

This position will provide leadership for financial operations as the organization advances into its second century. With a corpus of $3.5 billion and an annual budget of approximately $200 million, this role will serve as the strategic finance leader for the Mott Foundation and key advisor to the President and CEO on all finance matters. This role provides strategic financial oversight and risk management to ensure the fiduciary success of the Mott Foundation, working closely with the CEO, executive team, Board, and key external constituencies.

Responsibilities associated with this role also include, but are not limited to:

• In conjunction with the President and CEO, manage and develop the annual operating and capital budgets tracking the long-term plans of the organization.
• Oversee all financial statements and reports, financial forecasting, cash flow management and risk assessment to support informed decision-making.
• Serve as pension fund administrator.
• Ensure that revenue streams are budgeted, monitored, and tracked by creating and regularly reconciling annual business plans with primary revenue generators.
• Manage relationships and communications with financial institutions, banking organizations, external auditors, Foundation Counsel and other stakeholders. Oversee the production of financial statements, tax documents and other financial regulatory documents.
• Partner with the Foundation’s Chief Investment Officer on SEC, audit, personal trading, conflict of interest, legal and other compliance matters with investment policy.
• Provide leadership, guidance and strategic direction with regards to the management of the Foundation’s facilities, including managing property lease agreements, property acquisition and disposition, tenant improvements, and risk management.
• Inform staff, Trustees, occasionally grantees, and the general public as to the regulations affecting private foundations. Keep apprised of rulings and regulations affecting private foundations and maintain liaison with tax advisors and the IRS.
• Administer the Foundation’s insurance programs, including determination of coverage and placement with appropriate carriers, in consultation with the President and CEO.
• Identify, review and report to the CEO and Management Working Group areas of potential organizational risk. Responsible for all compliance matters. Establish and maintain effective internal controls to safeguard organizational assets and mitigate these financial risks (not including risk management within the investment portfolio). Ensure global financial controls are up-to-date and meet changing audit and/or regulatory requirements.
• Lead, attract, manage, motivate, develop, and retain high-performing Mott Foundation finance and administration teams to optimize performance and support organizational strategy.
• Create a work culture that values high levels of ethics, integrity, professionalism, collaboration and teamwork with all staff.
• Engage with colleagues at peer institutions through the Foundation Financial Officers Group and other networks.
• On occasion represent the Foundation at community events.

Professional experience

The ideal candidate has:

• Experience leading an enterprise-wide finance function or serving as a senior finance business leader/partner for a significant business unit. The candidate will have 10-15 years of progressive technical, operational and strategic financial management experience — including accounting/finance, tax, technology, grants administration, facilities and legal — at a comparable organization, and ideally at a foundation or public charity. International experience is desired but not required.
• Experience working closely with an organization’s leadership in identifying risks and developing strategy, best practices and policies.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills. The candidate will be confident and effective at communicating across all levels of the organization, as well as presenting to the Board, Committees and diverse external constituencies.
• Demonstrated balance of hands-on operational finance management and strategic financial leadership. The candidate will be able to stay close to the details while contributing at a broader level.
• Excellent attention to detail, as well as analytical, problem-solving and decision-making skills.
• Proven listening skills, empathy, and the ability to lead through influence and by example.
• Consistent track record of attracting, motivating, mentoring, developing, and retaining high performing talent at all levels, both on an individual and team basis.
• Demonstrated engagement and initiative with organizational diversity, equity and inclusion efforts — both internally and externally.
• The highest ethical and moral standards with a deep commitment to the overall mission of the Foundation. This will include a passion for strengthening Flint and communities around the world.

Education/Certifications

• Bachelor’s degree is required, ideally in accounting or finance or a related field. A master’s degree in business, finance or accounting is preferred. A CPA is required.

Compensation

• A competitive compensation package will be provided to attract outstanding candidates.

To Apply

• Candidates should click "Apply" below to email a cover letter along with their resume, which will be received  confidentially. 

The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We welcome diversity in our workforce and encourage all qualified applicants to apply.