Korn Ferry has partnered with our client on their search for the role, Chief Financial Officer.
Purpose of the Position
The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is a critical enterprise leader responsible for safeguarding and advancing the financial strength of a member-owned financial cooperative while enabling sustainable, member-focused growth. Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer and partnering closely with the executive leadership team and Board of Directors, the CFO will set and execute the organization’s financial strategy, ensuring strong governance, sound risk management, and disciplined performance across the balance sheet and income statement. A central priority for this role is strategic leadership and planning rigor, including the development and execution of a 3–5-year strategic plan that translates enterprise priorities into a clear financial roadmap spanning capital, liquidity, profitability, and investment decisions.
As the organization pursues organic growth and approaches the $10B threshold, the CFO will help prepare the institution for increased scale and complexity by strengthening financial infrastructure, processes, and decision support to meet evolving regulatory expectations and balance-sheet sophistication.
Skills and Competencies
- Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business, or related field required (or commensurate experience); master’s degree preferred.
- 15+ years of progressive finance/accounting experience, including at least 7 years in senior executive leadership (SVP/C-level or equivalent) within a mid-to-large financial institution.
- 10+ years leading finance and/or accounting teams with demonstrated ability to scale processes, elevate talent, and drive enterprise results.
- CPA designation preferred (or equivalent credential, as appropriate for the organization).
- Deep expertise in financial strategy, accounting and reporting, forecasting and budgeting, and the practical application of financial concepts to business decision-making and growth initiatives.
- Demonstrated track record of delivering strong business outcomes with high accuracy, sound judgment, and attention to detail.
- Strong executive communication and influence skills; able to negotiate, facilitate, and build consensus across leaders and stakeholders (including Board-level interactions).
- Highly collaborative relationship-builder; effective partner across functions and with external vendors/partners while maintaining appropriate governance and risk discipline.
- Strong organizational and prioritization skills with the ability to manage multiple deadlines, operate with urgency, and execute with minimal supervision.
- Advanced analytical and technical capability, including strong proficiency in Microsoft Office (especially Excel) and comfort with report writing, financial modeling, data management, and finance systems/tools.
Experience and Professional Qualifications
Functional Leadership
- Ensures the security and soundness of all financial records; oversees fiscal management, accounting, tax, and reporting functions.
- Reviews key general ledger accounts and subsidiaries on a regular cadence to ensure accuracy and integrity; monitors daily cash and liquidity to ensure sufficient availability of funds.
- Ensures compliance with all applicable regulatory requirements; proactively recommends updates to policies, practices, and controls as regulations evolve.
- Provides timely, accurate analysis and advisory recommendations on budgets, financial reports, forecasts, and trends to support the CEO/President, Board of Directors, and executive leadership.
- Manages enterprise liquidity strategy, including actions to address concentration limits and maintain strong funding/liquidity profiles (e.g., loan sales or other balance sheet strategies as appropriate).
- Leads ongoing profitability analysis across products, services, channels, and business units; monitors cost-control activities and implements strategies to strengthen operating discipline and performance.
- Prepares and reviews financial projections; oversees investment portfolio strategy and related accounting activities aligned to risk tolerance and strategic objectives.
- Partners with business leaders to evaluate and monitor lending initiatives and new programs, ensuring financial discipline, risk alignment, and performance measurement.
- Oversees the Asset and Liability Management (ALM) program and governance; partners with internal stakeholders and external advisors to develop/review scenario models and interest-rate risk analytics.
- Provides oversight of loan purchase and sale transactions; supports partner due diligence to ensure strategic alignment, sound risk management, and achievement of portfolio objectives.
- Ensures compliance with Current Expected Credit Loss (CECL) methodology, processes, controls, and reporting standards, including appropriate governance and documentation.
- Leads the credit union’s capital allocation strategies, ensuring funds deployment in areas that yield required financial results within acceptable risk tolerances.
Team Leadership
- Coaches and develops team members, leveraging strengths to maximize contributions, align with enterprise strategy, and drive high engagement.
- Promotes a culture of excellence through accountability, continuous improvement, and forward-looking, innovative solutions across the finance function.
- Assesses organizational capabilities and builds talent accordingly; developing, attracting, and retaining leaders and specialists as the credit union scales.
- Uses strategic, data-driven decision-making to lead the function and continuously refine processes, tools, and reporting to enable achievement of organizational goals and objectives.
- Maintains strong compliance discipline across applicable state and federal regulations relevant to the role, including partnership on BSA/AML oversight as appropriate to the organization’s structure.
- Performs other responsibilities as assigned in support of enterprise priorities and strategic initiatives.
