Vice President, Financial Planning and Operations

KIPP • New York, NY

1d • $190,000 - $227,000 • Remote

About The Position

The KIPP Foundation seeks a Vice President, Financial Planning and Operations to lead the Foundation’s financial planning, budgeting, forecasting, and reporting, and to strengthen financial performance across KIPP’s national network of 279 schools. The role shapes how the organization plans, invests, and operates, helping ensure KIPP regions have the financial strength to sustain excellent schools for students.

Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer and serving on the Foundation’s senior leadership team, the Vice President leads a team of six, including four direct reports: two Senior Directors of Financial Planning and Support, a Director of Finance Systems and Reporting, and a Director of Finance Operations. The role partners with Foundation senior leaders and regional finance leaders to set expectations, identify risks, and direct support where it is most needed.

The position oversees the Foundation’s annual operating budget and long-term financial sustainability; leads budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, finance operations, systems, and internal controls; and provides financial oversight and advisory support across the KIPP network. It also leads and develops the Finance team and contributes to the direction of Finance at the KIPP Foundation. The ideal candidate has deep nonprofit finance expertise; education finance experience across more than one state is strongly preferred.

This is a full-time, exempt role with moderate travel of 10–15% (20–30 days per year). The role may be performed remotely full-time; working from a KIPP Foundation office in New York City or Chicago is preferred but not required. The stated salary range is $190,000–$227,000. The opening is immediate.

Requirements

• At least 10 years of progressive finance experience, including leadership across financial planning, operations, accounting, or auditing.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
• Nonprofit finance experience, including deep knowledge of nonprofit and fund accounting and federal funds and related compliance requirements.
• A track record of driving strong financial performance through budgeting, forecasting, and decision support for senior leaders and boards.
• Experience overseeing finance operations and internal control environments, including procurement, accounts payable and receivable, payroll, and compliance.
• Success building and leading high-performing teams, including managing managers and leading cross-functional projects.
• Ability to translate complex financial data into clear insights and actionable recommendations for leaders across functions.
• Ability to manage ambitious goals in complex or ambiguous environments; use data to set goals; prioritize and distribute work; and promote accountability and achievement.
• Ability to align team work with organizational goals, manage projects across functions, and establish sustainable, scalable processes and systems.
• Strong communication, change-management, collaboration, diplomatic, relationship-building, and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to coach and develop teammates, including managers of managers, and support succession and performance management.
• Passion and commitment to KIPP’s mission and ability to uphold its core values: Focus on Excellent Results, Collective Impact, and Courageous Action.

Nice To Haves

• MBA or another advanced degree.
• Education finance experience across more than one state.
• Experience supporting financial performance across multiple sites, regions, or affiliated organizations.

Responsibilities

• Own the Foundation’s annual operating budget and long-term financial sustainability in partnership with the Chief Financial Officer.
• Partner with fundraising and grants teams to project revenue and develop multi-year funding strategies aligned with investment priorities and organizational commitments.
• Build long-term financial models tied to the strategic plan, including the effects of growth into new regions, and connect them to the annual budget.
• Manage liquidity against a seven-month cash reserve target, produce monthly cash flow forecasts, and partner with the Chief Financial Officer on investment strategy.
• Lead the annual budget cycle, including staffing plans, multi-year projections, and scenario modeling, and deliver a Board-approved budget before the fiscal year begins.
• Lead rolling forecasts with functional leaders and hold budget owners accountable for targets by fund and in total.
• Partner with talent and program teams to align staffing and investment decisions with financial targets and recommend corrective actions to teams that are off track.
• Lead timely, accurate monthly financial reporting and analysis for budget owners, regional leaders, and senior leadership, including budget-to-actuals, key levers, tradeoffs, and long-term implications.
• Oversee core finance operations, including procurement, accounts payable and receivable, payroll, and corporate cards, with service standards for timeliness, accuracy, and responsiveness.
• Maintain internal controls, policy compliance, and audit readiness across financial processes.
• Improve efficiency through process improvement, automation, and system upgrades, including expense management and ERP strategy, prioritizing real-time budget-to-actuals reporting.
• Integrate operations, accounting, and planning systems to support accurate, real-time data and serve as a model for KIPP regions.
• Lead financial monitoring across the KIPP network in partnership with regional superintendents and regional CFOs while maintaining visibility across regions.
• Monitor regional financial health using quarterly data, budgets, and audits, and lead a tiered support model that matches assistance to regional needs.
• Set standards for regional financial performance, reporting, and internal controls, including pass-through funding requirements; diagnose challenges, support improvement plans, and focus team capacity on higher-risk regions.
• Coach regional CFOs and finance leaders through complex financial challenges, helping them weigh options and develop credible plans while recognizing that each region is independently governed by its own Board.
• Stay aligned with the Chief Financial Officer on regional engagements, raise risks early, and keep guidance consistent with KIPP Foundation positions.
• Lead the finance community of practice across regions and advise leadership on network-wide trends and long-term sustainability investments.
• Lead and develop a high-performing Finance team across Financial Planning and Support and Finance Operations, establishing clear ownership, systems, and automation.
• Align planning, operations, and accounting to deliver accurate and efficient financial management.
• Serve on the Finance Leadership Team, helping set the direction of Finance at the KIPP Foundation and build a culture of ownership, collaboration, and excellence.
• Set and achieve ambitious departmental goals using data, research, and analysis; allocate work effectively and foster a culture that celebrates achievement.
• Align team work with organizational goals, prioritize sustainable and scalable deliverables, and develop agile project plans and knowledge-management systems.
• Develop and codify processes that coordinate work efficiently across the Foundation and network, and identify opportunities for efficiency and resource sharing.
• Use data to shape team decisions and evaluate functions or initiatives, developing and assessing solutions for scalability and sustainability.
• Communicate the case for change clearly to varied audiences, translate vision into actionable plans, and champion organization- and network-wide change.
• Build collaboration with internal and external stakeholders and coach teammates, including managers of managers, through development, succession, and performance management.

Benefits

• 25 holidays and 18 additional flexible PTO days; flexible PTO increases to 23 days in years 3 and 4 and 28 days in years 5 and beyond.
• 100% paid parental leave.
• 100% coverage of the employee medical, dental, and vision plan premiums and 75% coverage for employee-plus-family premiums.
• Wellness benefits, including fitness reimbursements, discounted tickets to theme parks and attractions, backup care support for children and adults or elders, and an employee assistance program.
• 401(k) retirement plan with a 4% employer match.
• Employer-sponsored legal plans.
• Life and disability insurance.
• Flexible spending accounts.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive