Senior Advisor, Finance Management (P4)

Summary

Save the Children’s U.S. Programs (USP) division is committed to ensuring that all children in rural America have a healthy, strong foundation to thrive as learners and in life. Our goals are to increase kindergarten readiness and grade-level literacy and math proficiency for children in under-resourced rural communities. Save the Children does whatever it takes to help children and families recover in times of crisis and build resilience for years to come.

We are seeking a Senior Advisor, Finance Management to provide financial support for Save the Children’s U.S. Programs.  In this role, you will be responsible for ensuring financial and operational processes are running timely and efficiently. You will report to the Managing Director, Financial Management and will provide budget holder support, award management, and expense allocation guidance to the cost centers supported.  

What You’ll Be Doing (Essential Duties)

Financial Strategy and Planning (40%)

• Lead the development and implementation of the annual fiscal budget process for your region, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and objectives.
• Partner with senior leadership to develop and analyze financial projections and forecasts for the division, identifying and addressing financial risks.
• Use financial data and historical spending to provide direction to portfolio managers in the preparation of financial projections, ensuring spending plans are aligned with organizational objectives and risk tolerance.
• Coordinate with Program Design team to ensure cost models and equivalencies are up to date.
• Conduct regular budget reviews to ensure proper and efficient use of resources and advise portfolio managers and budget holders on techniques for maximizing funds.
• Proactively identify funding gaps and provide strategic guidance to fundraising teams to ensure funding aligns with our strategy.

Award Management (35%)

• Lead budget development for complex grant proposals by partnering with program directors to translate program needs into sound financial plans.
• Provide strategic guidance and support to direct reports on all aspects of the award management lifecycle with support from the Award Management Advisor.
• Conduct regular review of award portfolios, including oversight of life-of-award meetings, to identify and mitigate potential risks and coordinate with award staff to develop spend plans that align with scope of work and donor conditions.
• Review donor spending reports for direct reports to ensure data accuracy and compliance with donor and audit requirements.
• Advise Sr. Director on needed updates to the USP subaward management manual to ensure accuracy and alignment with SCUS policy, federal and state regulations, and donor requirements while striving for efficiency in procedures.
• Manage team compliance with subaward manual including closeout, risk assessment, and financial monitoring.

 Training & Development (10%):

• Lead the development of financial training materials and conduct regular trainings for USP finance and program staff on financial policies, procedures, and award compliance.
• Work with Managing Director and Senior Director to update USP financial policies and procedures and implement best practices across the USP Finance team.
• Manage the completion of needs assessments to identify staff training requirements, evaluate the effectiveness of training programs, and make improvements as needed.
• Develop and train both internal and external stakeholders on various financial topics including:
  • Budget holder guidance
  • USP financial policies and procedures
  • Donor compliance and reports
  • Federal regulations, i.e. 2 CFR 200, EDGAR, and others.
• Work with Sr. Director to update annual partner training and ensure training needs are being met for both internal and external stakeholders for cost centers in your portfolio. 

Staff Management (15%)

• Provide strategic direction, coaching, and performance management for a team of finance advisors responsible for cost center and award management, ensuring adherence to divisional financial policies and procedures.
• Delegate tasks effectively, ensuring timely completion and high-quality work.
• Provide coaching and mentorship to finance staff, fostering a positive and results-oriented team environment.
• Work with finance leadership to develop team goals and financial priorities.
• Acts as a backstop for other Sr. Advisors and backfills for your team as needed to ensure coverage during vacancies
• Meet with direct reports to