Chief Financial Officer

Chief Financial Officer

Department: Finance

Location: London, UK or Washington DC – Candidates must have the right to work in the UK or US

Reporting to: CEO & President – also as a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) and has reporting requirements to the boards of directors, including the Finance and Audit & Risk Committees of the boards**

Direct reports: Finance Team (currently: Global Controller, European Controller, Senior Grants Financial Manager, Systems Director, Senior Director of Business Transformation and Operations plus dotted line from three Regional Finance Managers)

Budget responsibility: Oversee a global annual spending equivalent of $150 Million

Safeguarding Classification: This role is classified as requiring advanced pre-employment checks

ABOUT Relief International.

Relief International (RI) is a leading nonprofit organization working in 16 countries to relieve poverty, ensure well-being and advance dignity. We specialize in fragile settings, responding to natural disasters, humanitarian crises and chronic poverty.

Relief International combines humanitarian and development approaches to provide immediate services while laying the groundwork for long-term impact. Our signature approach — which we call the RI Way—emphasizes local participation, an integration of services, strategic partnerships and a focus on civic skills. In this way, we empower communities to find, design and implement the solutions that work best for them.

Relief International includes the four members of the RI Alliance in the USA, UK, France, and Belgium. Under our alliance agreement, we operate under a single, shared management structure with one CEO and a common set of members on each governing body.

About our Programs.

RI is active in 16 countries around the world, including some of the most fragile: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ghana, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Turkey, and Yemen. Often, RI is the only organization providing assistance to highly vulnerable communities.

RI employs 7,000+ staff and auxiliary workers

97% of staff are in-country nationals

We only have some 90 ex-pat staff out of 7,000+

RI spent $150 million in 2019 on our programs.

RI invests in four broad program sectors: Economic Opportunity, Education, Health, and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH). We design our programs to incorporate The RI Way: local participation, integrated programming, the development of civic skills, and partnerships including with local NGOs, governments, and the private sector.

RI supports solutions that reinforce and improve upon existing in-country systems. Where such systems do not exist or are chronically underperforming, RI’s crisis response lays the foundation for long-term, sustainable change.

Position Summary.

The CFO role is accountable for the strategic financial management and leadership across RI’s three legal entities, for driving efficiency, reducing costs and maximising unrestricted funds to ensure strong financial health to support the realization of our mission.

The CFO is a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) and plays a critical role in advising the Board (plus its Finance and Audit Committees), SMT and wider leadership team on all fiscal and fiduciary obligations of the organisation.

Responsibilities.

General

• Development and delivery of an effective financial strategy for RI
• Strong budgetary control for RI’s Global, Regional and Country based operations
• Strategic allocation of available resources across the three legal entities
• Financial management and reporting
• Overseeing Statutory reporting
• Management of year-end audits
• Asset, liability and cash flow management
• Oversee of effective financial controls and policies

Leadership

• Contribute to the strategic and operational decision making of the Senior Management Team and Board of RI
• Engage with the Board and its Finance and Audit & Risk Committees to ensure open and transparent discussions of financial matters such that they can meet their fiduciary accountabilities
• Work closely with the SMT and wider Leadership Team in the continued development of operational, corporate and strategic planning and reporting
• Foster a culture within Finance that drives increases in efficiency and effectiveness, reduces costs and supports RI to increase income and maintain continuous improvement
• Represent RI with external partners and stakeholders across the sector

Financial Accounting, Systems and Treasury

• Ensure the integrity of the financial records
• Apply the highest standards of financial reporting, complying with US and UK GAAP and IFRS
• Maintain strong financial controls and ensure the Finance Manual is kept up to date
• Ensure consistency of accounting approach in all Countries of operation
• Ensure indirect income is correctly recorded and take a lead role in the management of and accounting for the US NICRA rate
• Maintain and improve strong financial systems, developing them to support RI’s growth
• Oversee a strong Treasury function that minimizes exchange losses and maintains cashflow to support programs whilst minimizing funds in the Field

Budgeting and Financial Reporting

• Lead a comprehensive annual budgeting process that supports RI’s objectives and helps deliver the five-year strategy
• Maintain and improve monitoring and reporting tools that assess financial performance across programs and all expenditure categories and carry out ad hoc analysis as required
• Ensure that the SMT and Board are provided with relevant and up to date management information on a monthly basis in order to underpin good decision making
• Implement quarterly reforecasting so as to ensure that financial and operational targets remain flexible and relevant
• Ensure that donor reporting is consistent and timely across all Regions and Countries and meets donor requirements

Statutory reporting, Audits and Compliance

• Oversee the production of year end statutory accounts, trustee reports and year-end tax returns for all three legal entities
• Ensure financial operations meet legal and regulatory compliance in each country of operation
• Oversee the annual statutory audits in each legal entity and ensure that program and country audits are managed effectively

Safeguarding and conduct

• Uphold and promote RI’s commitment to ensuring the safeguarding and safety of the vulnerable communities we serve.
• Consistent with RI’s safeguarding and protection policies, as part of your role ensure all people who come into contact with Relief International are as safe as possible.
• Ensure that the entire the Finance team embody RI’s commitment to a positive and productive work environment which is free from harassment and bullying.

Equity and Diversity commitment

• Demonstrate sensitivity and understanding of systemic diversity and cultural differences and impact in relationships of power
• Ensure that gender equity is addressed in our program and financial practices

Role requirements.

You will bring the following skills and experience:

• CPA / UK Chartered status, MBA is a plus
• Progressive experience as a CFO or equivalent in an international non-profit organisation with a budget of $50-$200 million
• Experience in a senior financial management role working closely with executive staff and non-executives
• Significant experience of non-profit accounting including fund and grant budgeting, accounting, compliance and reporting
• Experience streamlining and automating financial process and managing accounting software – knowledge of NetSuite a plus
• Good understanding of US Office of Management & Budget Single Audit.
• Experience of working with international donors specifically USAID, UK FCDO, UN, EC and experience with rules and regulations of multilateral donors
• Strong ability to translate financial information and concepts for non-financial managers on SMT and the boards of directors
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Proven problem-solving skills. Ability to work under pressure in a highly complex and demanding environment
• Ability to lead and inspire teams, engaging effectively at all levels of the organisation
• Willingness and ability to travel to country operations across the globe

RI Values.

We uphold the Humanitarian Principles: humanity, neutrality, impartiality and operational independence. We affirmatively engage the most vulnerable communities.

We value:

Inclusiveness

Transparency and accountability

Agility and innovation

Collaboration

Sustainability

How to apply.

To apply for this post, click on the “Apply” button at the bottom of this page.

You will be asked to upload a CV and Cover Letter. The cover letter should be no more than 2 pages long and explain why you are interested in this post with Relief International and how your skills and experience make you a good fit.

Closing Date: 8 January 2021

First Round Interviews w/c 25 January 2021.

Final Panel Interviews w/c 22 February 2021.

*These dates may be subject to change and applicants will be advised in advance should this happen

Due to limited resources, only short-listed candidates will be contacted. Note to external agencies, we will not be accepting CVs from third parties.

Relief International is committed to protecting our staff and the communities we work with from abuse and harm including sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and sexual harassment.

All staff are expected to abide by our Code of Conduct.

Recruitment to all roles in Relief International include a criminal records self-declaration, references and other pre-employment checks, which may include police and qualifications checks.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Relief International is committed to diversity and gender equality, we strongly encourage applicants from the global south and female candidates to apply.