A privately-held, multi-entity enterprise spanning food production, airline catering, full-service hospitality, deli and retail brands, consumer packaged goods, and commercial real estate is conducting a confidential search for a Chief Financial Officer. The CFO reports directly to the CEO, serves on the executive leadership team, and owns finance, accounting, treasury, tax, FP&A, and capital strategy across all operating entities.
About the Role
This is a builder's seat, not a controller's. You will inherit a functioning finance organization and be expected to professionalize it, install enterprise-grade reporting discipline, and convert finance from a back-office reporting function into the active steward of capital allocation, margin improvement, and enterprise value creation. You will operate across multiple business models with very different economics — contract food manufacturing, airline catering, full-service restaurants, CPG, and commercial real estate — and your job is to make each one accountable to a defensible return standard.
What You Will Own
- Strategic financial partner to the CEO and ownership on capital allocation, M&A, growth investment, real estate decisions, and enterprise risk
- Multi-entity consolidated financial reporting across 10+ operating companies, including inter-company accounting, transfer pricing, and entity-level P&Ls
- Annual budgeting, multi-year strategic planning, and monthly variance reporting with operating leadership held accountable to plan
- Unit-level and SKU-level profitability analytics across food production, catering, restaurants, retail, and CPG — turning cost accounting into a daily operating tool, not a year-end exercise
- Customer and contract profitability analysis with explicit attention to concentration risk, pricing discipline, and renegotiation strategy
- Cost accounting for food manufacturing: bills of material, raw material variance, yield, labor productivity, and overhead absorption
- Banking, treasury, and debt strategy including working capital facilities, equipment financing, real estate financing, cash forecasting, and lender relationships
- Capital allocation discipline: every investment — facility, equipment, real estate, M&A, new product, new SKU — held to a documented return hurdle
- Real estate financial strategy including acquisition underwriting, owner-occupancy economics, lease-versus-buy analysis, and portfolio-level returns
- Tax strategy across federal, multi-state, sales/use, and property tax, including pass-through entity planning and structure optimization
- ERP, financial systems, and reporting infrastructure capable of supporting multi-entity operations across very different business models
- Risk management: insurance, litigation reserves, customer credit, vendor concentration, and operational risk
- Monthly close discipline and a board/ownership reporting package that translates complexity into decision-grade information
Financial Mandate
This role is the chief steward of enterprise profitability. You will be measured on operating margin improvement across each entity, return on invested capital by business unit, working capital efficiency, capital structure optimization, and disciplined execution against budget. Your job is to make every dollar of investment in this enterprise defend its position against the next-best alternative and to ensure that the CEO and ownership have decision-grade financial information at all times.
Required
- 15+ years progressive finance and accounting experience, including 5–7 years as CFO or in a senior finance leadership role
- Multi-entity, multi-state experience in food production, food service, hospitality, manufacturing, retail, or similarly complex operating environments
- Demonstrated mastery of cost accounting in a manufacturing or production environment — BOMs, raw material variance, yield, labor productivity, and overhead absorption
- Multi-entity consolidation experience across 5+ operating companies with inter-company complexity
- Direct experience with banking, treasury, and debt facility management at scale
- Direct experience with commercial real estate financial analysis: acquisition underwriting, financing, owner-occupancy economics, and portfolio management
- M&A experience: buy-side diligence, deal structuring, negotiation, and post-close integration
- Strong systems orientation — proven experience implementing or significantly upgrading ERP and financial reporting infrastructure
- CPA required; MBA strongly preferred
- Demonstrated comfort with a privately-held, founder-led environment and the operating pace it requires
Preferred
- Direct experience in food manufacturing, contract food production, airline catering, or full-service restaurant operations
- Consumer packaged goods experience, including major retailer relationships
- Experience operating with significant customer concentration and the renegotiation and risk-management discipline that requires
- Active litigation management experience including reserve setting, outside counsel coordination, and ownership reporting
- Experience with minority equity investments in third-party operating companies, including reporting, board representation, and exit strategy
Compensation
Competitive base salary, performance-based annual incentive tied to enterprise EBITDA, comprehensive benefits, and additional executive considerations appropriate to the seniority of the role. Specific terms discussed with finalists.
To Apply
Submit a resume and brief cover letter highlighting relevant multi-entity finance leadership experience, with particular reference to operationally complex environments. All inquiries treated with complete discretion. Equal Opportunity Employer.
Pay: $125,000.00 - $250,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
