Chief Financial Officer

The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) will provide strategic, financial, and operational leadership across the museum, ensuring proper financial accounting, internal controls, safe and compliant facility operations, and successful customer service in the visitor experience. Reporting to the Executive Director, the CFO will serve as a thought leader and trusted partner and have under their purview the departments of finance, human resources, guest services, gift shop, information technology, physical plant, and operations. As a member of the Senior Leadership team, the CFO will support the Board of Trustees through various committees, including Finance, Investment, and Audit. 

 

The CFO will analyze long-range financials to project impact on future growth related to sales, compensation, and grants. They will establish organizational fiscal restraints while simultaneously supporting a level of risk tolerance to support the mission and vision of the Berkshire Museum. The CFO will seek strategic partnerships in the greater Massachusetts area and beyond to expand activities to build financial resilience for ongoing programs and operations. 

·        Facilitate and lead the creation of the annual budget, including departmental, capital projects, and annual building reserve budgets, overseeing monthly fiscal close and reporting process, restricted fund balances and releases, and annual audit process.

·        Present financial reports and documents regularly to the Board of Trustees in partnership with the Treasurer, and monitor performance against budgets, serving as advisor to the Board.

·        Direct business, human resources, administrative, legal, information technology, risk management, and financial affairs of the museum. 

·        Review and approve all contracts, including all third-party vendor relationships and requests for proposals to confirm favorable terms, reduce risk, and ensure compliance with internal and external policies. 

·        Draft, execute, and manage vendor and contractor agreements, working with external Intellectual Property counsel as necessary through the Facilities Committee’s Vendor Evaluation Survey and Score Card. 

·        Review and approve facility rental agreements and external partner program event agreements.

·        Provide financial guidance and input to support Executive Assistant and Capital Projects Program Manager with operations.

·        Orchestrate the development and implementation of a strategic plan in partnership with the Executive Director, Board of Trustees, staff, and community stakeholders to attain the vision to drive significant growth, financial success, and community partnership opportunities.

·        Embrace other financial and operational administration responsibilities, as needed.

With the support of the Director of Finance and Human Resources:

·        Oversee onboarding and offboarding of employees, the payroll process, personnel matters, the development of personnel policies, the Employee Manual, and the hiring and firing of personnel. 

·        Guide the performance management program, including the annual review process, professional development program, and employee recognition and rewards.

·        Administer employee benefits program and manage annual renewals and employment policy. 

·        Ensure Berkshire Museum is compliant with all state and federal employment laws and follows industry best practices, working with external employment counsel as necessary.

·        Supervise asset management (standards, purchasing, provision, and reclamation) and administration of internal technology, management of outsourced IT vendor and maintenance of software security protocols. 

·        Embrace other human resources and information technology responsibilities, as needed.

 

·        Guide front-of-house management to ensure excellent customer service and safety of staff and museum patrons.

·        Direct creation and management of Gift Shop budget and approve sales strategies and operational logistics.

·        Investigate and review shop profitability and retail policies in collaboration with the Director of Guest Services and the Gift Shop Manager.

·        Embrace other patron engagement and team management responsibilities, as needed. 

 

The CFO will be a strategic, collaborative, and forward-looking leader. As an agent of change, they will be focused on both short- and long-term organizational goals in how they approach challenges and problems. With attention to detail, the CFO will have the capacity to evaluate complex information, make sound and ethical decisions, and communicate those clearly and transparently with the team. A highly organized problem-solver, the CFO will have strong analytical skills and the capacity to maintain and create systems and procedures.

Other key competencies include:

·        Self-Starting and Problem Solving – The ability to take the initiative to launch assignments, identifying potential obstacles while analyzing, diagnosing, defining, and developing solutions that involve a variety of methods, constituents, and stakeholders. 

·        Time and Priority Management – The capacity to prioritize and complete tasks with competing priorities, and to oversee all resources and people to achieve desired results within allotted time frames.  

·        Project Management, Planning, and Organizing – The acuity to identify and oversee all processes, resources, tasks, systems, and people to establish courses of action to ensure that work is completed effectively.

·        Goal Orientation and Personal Accountability – The integrity to set and prioritize relevant, realistic, and attainable goals and objectives; to anticipate effects, outcomes, and risks while being answerable for personal actions.

 

A minimum of ten years of senior experience in the finance field, ideally with human resources and operations expertise, is required. A bachelor’s degree in finance, business, administration, or related field is required. Deep knowledge in the nonprofit sector is preferred, whether in an employment role or serving on a board. An MBA or CPA is highly desirable. Demonstrated experience and understanding of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Access, and Belonging (DEIAB) is crucial to the team and culture at the Berkshire Museum. While a background in museums and cultural institutions is desirable, it is not required. 

 

Berkshire Museum offers competitive compensation with an anticipated annual salary range estimated between $125,000 to $140,000. An exceptional benefits package includes paid vacation based on years of employment, a 403(b) retirement program with company match, parental leave benefit, and a professional development program. This position requires a full-time location in the Berkshires for the CFO to become fully immersed in the mission and overall objective of the museum and the dynamic community it serves.