Chief Financial Officer

Overview

Carroll School is an independent day school that serves 455 students with language-based learning differences, such as dyslexia. Carroll School empowers children to become academically skilled students who are strong self-advocates and confident lifelong learners prepared to enter other academic settings.


Located across three campuses in Waltham (lower school), Lincoln (middle school), and Wayland (upper school), Massachusetts, Carroll is an inclusive community committed to embracing diverse strengths, identities, and lived experiences in order to give each child what they most need to thrive.


Diversity is essential at Carroll. Creating a diverse workforce and an inclusive workplace is an important part of our mission that fosters greater creativity, innovation, and connection to the communities we serve. That mission starts here by building a robust, diverse talent pool. No matter what makes you uniquely different - size, color, culture, gender identity and expression, beliefs, religion, age, race - know that you are welcome here. Your difference makes Carroll stronger.

Research shows that people from underrepresented groups apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. Carroll School encourages you to break that statistic and apply as it's rare to find applicants who meet all the qualifications. We look forward to receiving your application.


The Opportunity

Our team is seeking an experienced, visionary financial leader, with a strong systems and operations orientation. Following a decade of significant growth where enrollment doubled, the school is entering a new stage of evolution. The CFO will be a true strategic partner to the Head of School and the Board of Trustees. This is an opportunity to expand your impact as an organizational leader, ensuring that the school's endowment and multi-campus infrastructure are operationalized in a way that empowers students, and differentiates our educational outcomes.

The Position

As a senior leader, the CFO is responsible for the financial health, physical environment, and technological infrastructure of the school. The CFO supports the strategy around safety and sustainability, and serves as a crucial thought partner on the overall direction of the Carroll School experience, for staff, teachers and students. This role requires a leader who can build deep relationships, anticipate complex organizational needs, develop data-informed creative solutions and execute collaboratively across the organization to advance the school's mission.

The successful candidate will report to the Head of School and lead a four person direct report team that includes the Controller, Payroll, Director of Technology and Director of Facilities. They will serve as a key member of the Senior Leadership Team and be in close communication at all times with the Head of School and the Board.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Financial Stewardship & Board Partnership

• Fiduciary Leadership: In conjunction with the Head of School, prepare and monitor long and short-term operating and capital budgets, ensuring the school's long-term financial health is a top institutional priority.
• Endowment & Investment: Oversee the school's $60 million endowment and work closely with the Finance and Investment Committees of the Board of Trustees to review benchmark analyses and guide recommendations.
• Business Operations: Manage all financial reporting and admin systems; incorporate best practices to ensure robust oversight.

Facilities, Risk Management, & Campus Planning

• Asset Preservation: Guide the Director of Facilities and the Board's Facilities & Campus Planning Committees to ensure the preservation and improvement of the school's physical assets across the school's three distinct campuses.
• Risk & Safety: Identify and mitigate institutional health and safety risks, serving as a primary lead for risk management and legal matters.
• Capital Projects: Along with the Head of School, serve as the liaison to any capital projects, tracking progress and managing external relationships.

Strategic Technology Infrastructure

• IT Strategy: Guide the Director of Technology, to develop and implement best practices for the acquisition and deployment of technology across all academic and business functions to expand effectiveness and efficacy.
• Resource Allocation: Ensure that technology spending is strategically planned to support the school's unique program design and innovation efforts.

Institutional Leadership & Community Collaboration

• Strategic Realization: Serve as a partner to the Head of School and as a Senior Leadership Team member; collaborating to realize the school's strategic priorities.
• Cross-Functional Partnership: Work collaboratively with high impact across boundaries with leaders in Enrollment, Advancement, and Academics to deliver positive institutional outcomes and help others succeed in their work.
• Commitment to Equity: Lead by example in our ongoing equity, inclusion and belonging work, model a growth and learning mindset for the entire community.

Requirements

• 10-15 years of progressive financial leadership in roles with operational impact; the ideal candidate will have at least 5 years at the direction setting, organization leadership level with initiatives that create a year over year impact.
• Experience with complex financial planning, establishing relationships with banking institutions and managing debt over a strategic plan horizon.
• Experience working with tuition based models and school experience is highly desirable; if not directly experienced, possess a strong learning orientation.
• Demonstrated systems thinking with a track record of process improvements & cost efficiencies leveraging data and technology; leads beyond the function.
• Ability to synthesize complex situations, creating and communicating strategic options that differentiate the organization and advance our mission.
• An undergraduate degree with exposure to strategy and finance or an MBA or equivalent graduate business education is a plus.
• A calm demeanor, unflappable and able to work well under pressure, maintains a sense of humor and constructively adds to a positive, result oriented culture.
• Demonstrated ability to attract, retain and engage great talent, a team builder.

Salary

Carroll School is an equal opportunity employer that offers competitive salaries and benefits, including comprehensive professional development opportunities.


Salary Description


$175000-$200000 per year