Every day, we work to support and build inclusive, powerful, and healthy communities characterized by racial equity and economically just systems. With this as our purpose, Health Forward Foundation is building the future of our region by grasping the issues that cause health injustice at their roots.

Health Forwards mission is to achieve health equity and secure a fair and just region through leadership, advocacy, and resources. We support direct services and systems change for healthy people, community power, and equitable and just places. We support and partner with community-based and cross-sector organizations to improve health on all fronts through our purpose plan. Our work includes supporting equitable health services; working to advance safe and affordable housing, pathways to home ownership and broadband access; amplifying the power that exists in our communities through civic engagement; and increasing the effectiveness of small community-based nonprofits. We also support organizations in their practice of race equity, changing narratives and amplifying personal experiences.

Health Forward was created in 2003 from the sale of Health Midwest, a nonprofit hospital system, to Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), a for-profit hospital management company. Health Forwards service area encompasses Kansas City, Missouri, and Jackson, Cass, and Lafayette counties in Missouri, and Johnson, Wyandotte, and Allen counties in Kansas. The foundation is governed by a 21-member board of directors and is managed by a professional staff of around 35 employees.

Health Forward is driven by the data evidencing health inequities and is committed to the process and the outcome of equity, inclusion, and anti-racism in its funding, policy and advocacy, community engagement, employment practices, talent management, investments, vendor selection, and governance.

Purpose of the Position

The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for the Health Forward Foundation is an adaptive, forward-thinking financial strategist and enterprise leader. The CFO uses deep finance and accounting skills with the ability to quickly gather and synthesize clear and accurate information and insights. They will serve as a teammate, leader and manager with Health Forward, the finance and administrative staff, executive leadership team and organization board to drive rigorous planning, forecasting and decision-making.

Key Responsibilities

The Chief Financial Officer provides partnership to the CEO and leadership team, proactively addressing issues and strategic opportunities and making recommendations supported by rigorous financial analysis and review, scenario modeling, and assessment of risk, and due diligence. They lead and manage a team of seven (three direct reports including administrative support) and are a leader in the organization, representing the organization at a senior level and embodying the mission, vision and values of Health Forward. They provide strategic advice and counsel around options for how the organization can diversify financial structures (e.g., LLCs, 501(c)(4)s) to navigate regulatory constraints and enable flexibility and long-term sustainability for the Foundation.

Strategic Business Leadership, Financial Leadership and Implementation

• Identify opportunities for innovation through continuous monitoring of shifts in the marketplace and philanthropy, assessing and adapting the Foundations models, systems, practices, and stewardship policy for best use of the organizational resources and maximum community impact.
• Develop and refresh new or updated policies and systems to support the strategic decisions of the organization including impact funding and investment portfolio engagement.
• Enable effective decision-making and accountability by delivering clear, accurate and timely information and insights to the CEO, leadership, and staff.
• Responsible for Board reporting including developing presentations to support strategic governance engagement and reviews on corporate modernization efforts of the organization.
• Strengthen the organizations internal capacity to operationalize strategic decisions including accounting systems and policies, assist with impact investing and diversified funding.
• In partnership with the CEO and executive leadership team, support strategic development resulting in actionable plans and operations that fulfil the organizations mission, vision and values.

Financial Function Oversight, Management, and Organizational Planning

• Develop and execute the financial strategy and operational plan for both the organization and department. Establish goals, objectives, policies and procedures in alignment with the purpose plan and vision for the organization.

• Drive financial modelling and forecasting, ensuring financial sustainability for major initiatives, impact, programs and investments.
• Collaborate with the leadership team to plan and implement diversification of financial structures and practices for long-term sustainability; Seeks to understand the impact goals and creates and clears financial pathways towards such goals.
• Steward the day-to-day operations, systems enhancement, and continuous improvement of the budgeting, finance, accounting and related functions.
• Oversight of the gifts and grants administration team (impact operations) responsible for efficient processes, communications and systems planning for funding distribution to community partners.
• Establish processes to streamline funding vehicles, ensuring compliance, transparency and sustainability.
• Provide strategic thought partnership with team on evolution of policies and procedures for accounts receivable and contracts.
• Ensure effective internal controls, internal and external audits, mechanisms to detect and mitigate risk and protect the organization from asset losses and internal and external fraud.
• Ensure regulatory compliance, manage financial risks and provide effective and responsive oversight of finances, audit, and impact operations/partner funding strategies.
• Oversee accounting control systems and internal audits, the accurate and timely production of accounting and impact funding information and financial reports.
• Ensure the capacity of internal teams to meet growing demands for innovative financial strategies to support complex investments, detailed impact funding, strategic advocacy and overall purpose plan alignment.
  

• Oversee the relationships and communication with the audit firm and external legal counsel, keenly surveying, assessing and mitigating significant risks to the organization.

Relationships:

The CFO reports to the President and CEO and partners closely with the board of directors, specifically the Finance & Investment Committee, the Audit Committee, and the executive leadership team. As the executive responsible for stewardship, reporting and controls of the financial resources of the organization, they will provide leadership, including direction to internal teams of financial, accounting and impact operations professionals. They will also collaborate with external partners, specifically the audit firm and legal counsel, to influence desired outcomes.

The successful candidate possesses a clear understanding of our ecosystem, purpose, and intended impacts and has a desire to serve as an organizational leader. They will provide leadership within the organization, embracing and modeling the organizations purpose and values. They will also leverage and share best and promising practices within the philanthropic financial officers community.

The Candidate

Experience and Professional Qualifications

• 15 years of significant financial management experience in related fields including at least 10 years of deep and progressive leadership and management experience
• Strong analytical skills and expertise translating a strategic vision into an operational model that aligns with financial goals, planning and analysis
• Ability to drive decisions in a quickly evolving, dynamic environment
• Demonstrated strong financial strategy, forecasting, and scenario planning capabilities
• Superior ethics and integrity; the person will be well respected within their community, not only for technical skills, but also for credibility and high standards of professional conduct
• Deep understanding of 501(c)(3) and (c)(4) regulations, with demonstrated success in leveraging philanthropic capital
• Familiarity with impact investing, lending and fund management
• Expertise in building and managing adaptive systems to respond to changing financial landscapes
• Ability to operationalize innovative business models while ensuring alignment with organizational values
• Complex auditing experience. Skilled in preparing, reviewing, and analyzing operational and financial reports
• Entrepreneurial mindset with a collaborative approach to leadership and teaming across all levels of the organization
• Comfort navigating ambiguity and creatively solving complex financial problems
• Proven leadership skills with an ability to inspire when dealing with multiple constituencies and challenges; must be committed to a collaborative process, while exhibiting determination to drive an agenda needed to attain high performance.
• Exceptional interpersonal, written and verbal communication skills; with the confidence and maturity to articulate complex financial issues to an audience with varying levels of financial expertise
• Excellent diplomatic, meeting facilitation, negotiation, and conflict r]]>