Chief Financial Officer

GENERAL STATEMENT OF DUTIES

Directs, organizes, and plans all aspects of financial management activities for the County including financial leadership, financial communication, general financial operations, and supervision of financial staff while also serving as the County’s statutorily designated Finance Officer.

DISTINGUISHING FEATURES OF THE CLASS

Leads efforts aimed at the efficient and effective management of the County's fiscal resources through sound policies and procedures, appropriate internal controls, compliance with federal and state regulations, and debt and risk management best practices. Ensures accurate reporting of the County's financial condition. Collaborates with all levels of the organization to identify, develop and implement activities that ensure fiscal stewardship in support of service delivery. Champions the use of best practices, process re-engineering, data analysis, and the use of technology in all financial and accounting activities. Oversees the streamlined operations of the Finance Department to ensure that they align with the business objectives of the organization.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Essential duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Financial Leadership 

• Works closely with the County leadership to define and accomplish mission, strategic goals and objectives and to design and execute successful business strategies. Provides advice and counsel to County leadership and key managers on critical proposals.
• Works with County leadership to establish and maintain financial policies that describe the financial stewardship standards of the County.
• Leads the County through long-term financial planning.
• Champions the execution of financial policies and strategies.
• Supports and encourages discussion of policies and practices with the public and employees.
• Educates stakeholders including County leadership, elected officials, and residents about governmental finance to help raise their financial acumen in order for them to more fully understand the ramifications of issues and to make better decisions.
• Prepares and presents various fiscal and operating reports and evaluations to County Commissioners, County leadership, and the public. This includes maintenance of a financial “scorecard” or “dashboard” system.
• Actively participates in professional associations such as the Government Finance Officers Association and other national, state, and local professional organizations in order to keep the government abreast of leading financial management practices.

Accessible Communication of Financial Information 

• Works with County leadership and County Commissioners to understand what financial information may be important to them as they carry out their responsibility to be good stewards of community assets.
• Works with County leadership to identify and understand information needed to manage to strategic objectives and to run efficient and effective day-to-day operations.
• Based on understanding of County Commissioners’ and County leadership’s information needs, develops key operational and fiscal indicators, dashboards, scorecards, and other easily accessible means for communicating vital financial information.
• Suggests operational and fiscal indicators and information that may be of value to County Commissioners and County leadership, based on a deep understanding of their governance and management needs.
• Provides prospective information on operational and financial performance as well as more traditional retrospective information.
• Acts as an internal consultant to departments by helping them make sense of cues provided by operational and financial information, and providing advice on how to achieve effective, financially sustainable operations.
• Develops strategies and tools for communicating financial position and strategy to constituents and address constituents or media questions/concerns about financial information.
• Provides financial information and responds to queries in areas such as budgeting, accounting, purchasing, payroll, and other financial support services. This may involve researching problems and helping to develop a solution to the problem.

Financial Operations 

• Maintains with the department a shared County financial calendar detailing daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly tasks critical to meeting the operational and statutory obligations of the County and informing County leadership on the status of those important tasks.
• Establishes overall goals, objectives, and service standards for the department and its functions. Communicates these standards and is accountable for managing change required to achieve them.
• Develops and implements policies and procedures pertaining to financial operations and activities; develops and implements internal control systems and procedures to reduce potential of errors, omissions, and fraud; works with management and staff across the organization to develop, update and implement administrative policies, and develops and implements investment policies.
• Interprets, applies, and ensures compliance with established policies/procedures, governmental accounting standards, and all other applicable laws, codes, statutes, rules, regulations, and standards; initiates any actions necessary to correct deviations or violations.
• Provides vision and leadership while directing overall activities of programs in the Finance Department. Activities directed include: 
  1. Accounts Receivable. Oversees collection of occupational license fees, issuance of occupational licenses, and license renewals.
  2. Accounts Payable. Oversees accounts payable, reviews vendor payouts for accuracy, approves major changes to vendor files, ensures proper procedures are in place to approve payment to vendors based on satisfactory delivery of goods and services, oversees the review and distribution of 1099’s.
  3. Payroll. Oversees payroll administration; reviews all payroll for accuracy and approves for payment, oversees the review of quarterly and yearly reports.
  4. Audit and Year-End Reporting. Oversees and coordinates annual audit and prepares a Comprehensive Annual Financial Report in conformance with guidelines of GFOA Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting.
  5. Investments & Cash Management. Oversees investment activities and makes all investment decisions in accordance with adopted investment policies; prepares and distributes investment reports to communicate status/results of investment activities; interacts with financial advisors as appropriate.
  6. Debt Management. Monitors compliance with bond covenants; recommends structure of County bond issues; monitors markets for opportunities to reduce the costs of financing (e.g., refunding’s, etc.)
• Oversees maintenance of detailed supporting financial records for the organization’s assets.
• Prepares or completes various forms, reports, correspondence, journal entries, budget documents, financial reports, investment reports, requests for proposal, performance reviews, spreadsheets, or other documents.

Financial Staff Supervision 

• Hires the right staff for the right job to get the best results from the financial management team. Includes conducting interviews and making hiring recommendations.
• Acts as a transformational leader for the finance organization, inspiring and motivating staff to achieve the organization’s goals and objectives.
• Coaches staff by asking questions to engage staff and get them to think about issues and come to successful decisions and outcomes on their own.
• Mentors staff by passing along professional expertise and institutional knowledge to staff and showing and telling the history and the why behind policy, actions, processes, and procedures.
• Develops staff so that they can actively support the strategic financial management of the County.
• Encourages staff to participate in professional organizations and to network with peers in other organizations.
• Coordinates training activities and coaches and evaluates staff with the objective of developing a workforce committed to administering and enforcing the financial operations policies and procedures developed for the County.
• Supervises and directs assigned staff, resolves employee concerns and problems, coordinates work, counsels, disciplines, and completes employee performance appraisals.
• Coordinates daily work activities; organizes, prioritizes, and assigns work; monitors status of work in progress and inspects completed work; consults with assigned staff, assists with complex/problem situations, and provides technical expertise.
• Responsible for the efficient organization of the department, including appropriate supervisory levels and internal controls.

RECRUITMENT STANDARDS

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Developing long-term revenue and expenditure forecasts
• Balancing long-term and short-term concerns in decision-making
• Leading cross-departmental teams to make organization-wide decisions/recommendations
• Identifying/developing data sources (or collecting data) to help inform financial decision-making
• Developing and implementing financial policies
• Developing systems to monitor budget performance and/or other financial activity
• Increasing the public’s trust in local government
• Communicating technical/financial information in a non-technical manner
• Coordinating diverse stakeholders to establish/develop long-term plans
• Conflict resolution
• Engaging the public
• Building trust
• Promoting collaboration
• Developing and utilizing transparent processes for allocating resources
• Extensive knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles and auditing procedures.
• Extensive knowledge of the organizational and functional structure of the County Government.
• Extensive knowledge of the fiscal policies and statutory requirements governing County funds.
• Extensive knowledge of leases, contracts, banking procedures and general business practices pertaining to obtaining and paying for goods and services.
• Working knowledge of the money market and short-term investment procedures.
• Working knowledge of data processing language and procedures.
• Ability to supervise and direct the work of professional and support personnel.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment in analyzing situations and making decisions involving a variety of fiscal and business management areas.
• Ability to successfully establish and maintain effective relationships with financial institution personnel, County employees, and officials, employees of other governmental units, and the public.

Minimum Qualifications

Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Accounting, or Finance major and at least 5 years of professional accounting experience, and 3 years of supervisory experience and a CPA certificate. Experience in local government finance and/or government audit experience in a medium to large CPA firm is preferred.

May Require Driving 

This position may require driving for this position whether driving a County owned or personal vehicle to conduct county business such as but not limited to attending conferences, meetings, or any other county related functions.   Motor Vehicle Reports may be verified for valid driver’s license and that the driving record is compatible with the county’s driving criteria.

If a personal vehicle is operated for county business proper insurance is maintained as per Guilford County’s vehicle use policy.

Special Note: This generic class description gives an overview of the job class, its essential job functions, and recommended job requirements.  However, for each individual position assigned to this class, there is available a completed job description with a physical abilities checklist which can give further details about that one specific position.  Those documents should be reviewed before initiating a selection process.  They can provide additional detailed information on which to base various personnel actions and can assist management in making legal defensible personnel decisions.