Finance Director

Climate & Land Use Alliance

8d•Remote

About The Position

The Climate and Land Use Alliance (CLUA) is a collaborative of foundations seeking to amplify the power of people and the potential of forests for a just and climate resilient world (the Alliance). The CLUA member foundations are the ClimateWorks Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Ford Foundation, Good Energies Foundation, and Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies also awards grants in alignment with the CLUA strategy. By bringing together our resources and diverse expertise, CLUA supports policies, practices, and partnerships that halt and reverse forest loss, advance sustainable land use and development, and secure the rights and livelihoods of Indigenous and forest communities. For more, please visit climateandlandusealliance.org. CLUA is also the host of Forest, People, Climate (FPC), a collaborative of philanthropic donors, civil society, and community-based organizations seeking to halt and reverse tropical deforestation while supporting, just, sustainable development. FPC focuses on equitable and enduring solutions that safeguard tropical forests and support those stewarding them, in particular, Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendants, and local communities in tropical forest countries. It works with experts, nongovernmental organizations, and donors to identify the strategic priorities that must be addressed to end and reverse deforestation, to mobilize the funding for those priorities, and to strengthen broad networks of partners. CLUA hosts FPC to accelerate progress toward shared goals of raising more support and moving more resources to organizations working to halt and reverse tropical deforestation. In this role, CLUA provides core operational support to FPC, including grants administration support, and seeks to support a diverse range of partners actively aligning to advance the success of FPC which includes those mobilizing new funding, developing strategies collaboratively with experts and organizations closest to the work, and equitably supporting the field with a focus on those historically excluded. Position Description The Finance Director will have overall financial management responsibility for CLUA and FPC. The Director will play an instrumental role in continuing to shape the finance & accounting department infrastructure, including the framework for financial policies, procedures, and systems. They will oversee budgeting, financial forecasting, cash flow and coordination of audit activities as well as accounts payable and receivable. The Director will oversee a small team which currently consists of a Senior Accounting Manager and an Accountant. This position reports directly to the Senior Director, Operations and is a strategic partner with the Executive Director (ED), Senior Director, Operations, Director of Development, Director of Human Resources, and Board Finance Committee. The Director will regularly collaborate with the Senior Management Team (SMT) and Program Leads. The Climate and Land Use Alliance, LLC a sole-member limited liability corporation, with ClimateWorks Foundation as its sole member. Currently CLUA shares ClimateWorks’ accounting and payment systems and is consolidated in ClimateWorks’ audited financial statements and U.S. federal tax returns. This arrangement may change as a result of CLUA’s ongoing restructuring activities. The Finance Director will need to have experience scoping and implementing changes related to financial systems as part of a structural reorganization. Location The ideal candidate will be based in a timezone between UTC -8 and UTC -3, inclusive. The position will require working remotely with a flexible work schedule that may include early and late calls and activities to support colleagues in multiple time zones in the Americas, Europe, Indonesia, and Africa.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, business administration or a related field and 7+ years of relevant combined education and experience in the nonprofit sector, i.e., finance and accounting, preferably in a grant-funded environment.
Excellent mathematical, analysis, auditing, and accounting skills.
Ability to lead departments and individuals.
Strong written and oral communication skills, including ability to create user friendly reports and present them to others.
Knowledge of financial accounting and general ledger software, with Intacct experience a plus.
Strong creative skills to develop new and innovative solutions.
Experience creating usable budgets at different levels of detail and maintaining shared cost allocations.
Strong organizational and project management skills and ability to work both independently and in a team format.
Flexibility, adaptability, curiosity, integrity.
Commitment to CLUA’s mission and focus on climate, nature, and justice.
Ability to travel domestically and internationally (up to 20%).

Nice To Haves

MBA or CPA a plus.
Experience working as part of an international team preferred
Experience with reorgs, new entity registration, and related activities.
Knowledge of financial accounting and general ledger software, with Intacct experience a plus.

Responsibilities

Provide strategic financial leadership during periods of organizational evolution, including assessing and strengthening financial structures, systems, and policies to ensure they remain fit for purpose as CLUA’s operating model, scale, and global footprint continue to develop.
Identify and implement changes needed to support resilience, compliance, and long-term sustainability across jurisdictions.
Lead in the development and maintenance of an organization-wide financial strategy and long-term financial planning.
Develop financial forecasts; lead a multi-year financial planning scenario and contingency planning process (i.e., FP&A).
Provide appropriate measures of financial health and resilience, and maintain effective policies to ensure appropriate management of financial risks.
Lead the annual operating budget development process in consultation with the Senior Director, Operations and SMT, and work with Senior Director, Operations to present the annual budget to the Finance Committee and Board.
Act as staff liaison to the Finance Committee under the direction of the ED and Senior Director of Operations.
Manage the organization’s finance and accounting department and staff, including playing a participatory role in all functions.
Recommending and, as needed, selecting and implementing finance systems. Managing system transitions, including risk mitigation, staff training, and data integrity
Coordinate with Development and Operations teams in the preparation of grant proposal budgets and allocations, as well as required budget modifications.
Prepare timely monthly financial close and internal financial reports as needed for the SMT, Board and Program Leads to ensure a shared understanding of the organization’s financial position and to support program management.
Oversee tracking and reporting on the use of grant and other funding resources, both internally and externally.
Coordinate with ClimateWorks Foundation (or lead, following a reorganization) on the annual audit process including financial statements, audit, and tax returns, meeting all appropriate deadlines.
Maintain up to date finance policy and procedure manuals and ensure adherence.