Chief Finance Officer-Available 07/01/2024

Resume Required.

Title: Chief Finance Officer - Finance

Reports to: Superintendent

Terms of Employment: 12 Months

Salary: Pay Grade - School Adminstrator NCDPI

GENERAL STATEMENT OF JOB

Under limited supervision, performs highly responsible supervisory, administrative and fiscal control work for the School system. Work involves planning, coordinating, and directing all aspects of Schools’ financial management and administration. Employee is responsible for planning and directing the receipt, disbursement and accounting of Schools' revenues and expenditures, managing the investment of Schools’ funds, and assisting the Schools' Superintendent or his or her designee(s) in preparing the annual budget. Employee supervises a staff of professional, technical and clerical personnel.  Employee also works on various special projects as assigned by the Superintendent. Administrative responsibilities include financial/budget management, personnel administration and report preparation/maintenance. The employee conducts assigned areas of responsibility with a high degree of independence, receiving instruction only on matters involving significant departures from established policy.  Employee must be able to make independent decisions by frequently applying acquired knowledge of program activities, goals, objectives, and operating procedures.  Work is performed under general supervision and is reviewed for overall effectiveness, efficiency, and quality of assigned responsibilities.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

• Plans, organizes, directs and supervises operations of the Finance Division; directs and participates in the formulation and implementation of applicable finance policies, ensuring adherence to standard accepted accounting practices and principles, local and state fiscal regulations, and policies and procedures of the County Board of Education and State Department of Public Instruction; provides general advice, assistance and recommendations to the Schools' Superintendent, Board of Education and County Commissioners, and keeps them properly in­formed.
• Assigns, directs and supervises activities of subordinate professional and technical accounting personnel, ensuring adherence to established laws, policies, procedures and standards; assists and advises subordinates, as necessary, resolving problems as non-routine situations arise; ensures subordinates receive orientation and continuing education as necessary to perform assigned duties and responsibilities.
• Administers or makes recommendations for routine personnel matters affecting subordinates, including interviewing applicants, hiring, promoting, disciplining, evaluating, terminating, etc., preparing and submitting various reports and records as required by Schools' management; approves employee time sheets, and grants compensatory, sick or vacation leave.
• Supervises the maintenance, control, and analysis of the fiscal operations of the School system; maintains adequate accounting records to document compliance with local, state and federal laws and ordinances; safeguards assets of the Schools through implementation of adequate internal control mechanisms.
• Analyzes School programs and projects as outlined in budget, performing financial and programmatic reviews; assists in establishing measurable goals and objectives for appraisal standards in Schools' departments, programs, and projects.
• Supervises the posting and balancing of Schools' ledgers, preparing payroll and related records, and maintaining Schools' purchase records, financial statements, and other related reports either by data processing or manual methods.
• Assists in the preparation of the annual School budget; aids department heads in preparing budget estimates and in determining costs for new, expanded or reorganized programs; implements approved budget; prepares budgets amendments as necessary, making appropriate ledger adjustments and esti­mating available fund balance.
• Prepares periodic reports of departmental financial condition for review by the Schools' Superintendent, Board of Education and/or County Commissioners, indicating receipts, expenditures and encumbrances; attends meetings of Board of Education and provides information as requested.
• Invests idle funds to ensure adequate return on investment while maintaining funds' safety; prepares periodic reports on Schools' investments and securities for presentation to the Superintendent, Board of Education and/or County Commissioners.
• Oversees disbursement of School funds in accordance with officially established policies and procedures.
• Assists Schools' department heads with financial matters as necessary; answers inquiries and explains policies and procedures.
• Assists outside auditors in completion of annual Schools' audit.
• Oversees preparation of comprehensive annual financial report.
• Oversees maintenance of all accounting work on grants received by Schools, processing adequate records, reimbursements, code reviews, etc., to comply with applicable laws and ordinances.
• Attends seminars, conferences, workshops, classes, lectures, etc., as appropriate, to enhance and maintain knowledge of trends and developments in the field of accounting and auditing; reviews professional journals; attends association and professional meetings, and otherwise maintains contacts with professionals to facilitate exchange of information.
• Performs other related work as required.                            

ADDITIONAL JOB FUNCTIONS

Performs other related work as required 

MINIMUM TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE

• Master’s degree in Business Administration, Accounting or a related field. 6 to 9 years of experience with at least 3 years experience in a school or government setting. Considerable supervisory experience; or any equivalent combination of training and experience which provides the required knowledge, skills and abilities.
• Thorough knowledge of the principles and practices of accounting and auditing including modern School System financial administration.
• Thorough knowledge of Federal, State and local laws and policies concerning School System fiscal operations.
• Thorough knowledge of the procedures of the County Board of Education and the State Department of Public Instruction.
• Thorough knowledge of the operations of local government including taxation and other sources of revenue.
• Considerable knowledge of the ethical guidelines applicable to the position as outlined by professional organizations and/or federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations.
• Considerable knowledge of the current literature, trends, and developments in the field of accounting and auditing.
• Considerable knowledge of the principles of supervision, organization and administration.
• Ability to maintain standard accounting and control measures for the School System.
• Ability to effectively invest school funds.
• Ability to develop and administer budgets.
• Ability to plan, direct and coordinate the work of a technical and professional staff.
• Ability to prepare clear and concise reports and to compile and analyze financial statements and reports.
• Ability to operate standard office machines and popular computer-driven word processing, spreadsheet and file maintenance programs.
• Ability to develop and implement effective financial policies.
• Ability to effectively express ideas orally and in writing.
• Ability to exercise considerable independent judgment and initiative in planning and directing an extensive fiscal control system.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships as necessitated by work assignments.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

Must be able to perform the physical life functions of reaching, fingering, pushing pulling, grasping, talking, walking, hearing and repetitive motions.

Must be able to perform light work exerting up to 20 pounds of force occasionally; up to 10 pounds of force frequently and/or constantly.

Must possess visual acuity to produce and review written reports and records including mathematical calculations, operate a computer terminal, analyze data, and to read detail specification, comprehensive reports, schematic drawings and plans.

DISCLAIMER

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 questionnaire 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 and defensible personnel decisions.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Updated 05/30/2019