Chief Financial Officer

Reporting to the Deputy Director, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) serves as a key member of the Whitney Museum of American Art’s functional leadership team – referred to as the Strategic Planning Group (SPG). The CFO is responsible for planning and oversight of the Museum's financial activities, including an annual operating budget of approximately $80 million. Working closely with the Museum's executive leadership team, colleagues across the Museum, and with the Finance, Audit, and Investment Committees of the Board of Trustees, the CFO will have responsibility for organizing short- and long-term financial planning activities, performance analyses, risk management, financial reporting, and cash/liquidity management.

The CFO oversees all Finance, Treasury, and Accounting functions, including, but not limited to, operating & capital budgets, annual audit, financial reporting systems, insurance, and tax-related information. In addition, the CFO has administrative oversight of the Museum's investment portfolio under the direction of the Investment Committee of the Board. Above all, the CFO will be a proactive strategic partner with the Museum's leadership team in enabling the Whitney's institutional priorities through proactive & rigorous financial planning.

Primary Responsibilities

• Financial Monitoring and Reporting
  • Direct, supervise, and improve the Museum's financial and budget planning processes to sustainably fund programs and operations, deliver on high-priority capital projects, and increase efficiency
  • Partner with functional leadership and teams across the Museum, including the Chief Advancement Officer, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Marketing Officer, to develop financial targets, monitor performance, and develop remediation plans as needed
  • Monitor financial performance across the Museum through clear and consistent metrics and measures of success. Advise on opportunities for revenue enhancement, cost efficiencies, process improvements, and related policy changes
  • Drive long-range financial planning initiatives across the Museum to enable diversified revenue growth and a positive operating bottom line
  • Provide periodic updates on the Museum's financial performance to staff with a view to reinforcing connections between departmental/ project budgets and the Whitney's mission and strategic priorities
  • Provide periodic updates and financial reporting to the Finance Committee of the Board of Trustees, including operating results, emerging financial opportunities, risks, trends and key performance metrics
  • Partner with department leadership teams in developing performance targets, monitoring performance, and creating remediation plans
• Design and recommend financial strategies for review and action by the Museum’s executive leadership team
  • Short- and long-term financial goals and related strategies for ratification by the Board’s Finance Committee
  • Long-range financial planning initiatives across the Museum to enable diversified revenue growth and a positive operating bottom line
  • Reporting and/or policy recommendations to support the execution of the Museum’s Strategic Plan
  • Course-corrective actions to address emerging financial risks
  • Museum-wide financial risk management policies and procedures, in partnership with the General Counsel
  • Management strategies for the Whitney's ongoing debt program with strategic guidance from the Board of Trustees. Working with external advisors and the internal finance team, oversee the negotiation, execution, and management of tax-exempt bond financings and credit facilities, including ongoing compliance with legal and reporting requirements
  • Strengthen the capabilities of the Finance organization, through a combination of people development, retention, and recruiting efforts (e.g. Data-driven decision-making strategies to help clarify links between departmental operations and the financial results of the organization)
• Act as a fiduciary on the Retirement Plan Investment Committee
• Oversee the Museum's Controller in coordinating the annual audit of the Museum's financial statements and tax filings, including the annual IRS Form 990

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or other quantitative or business-related discipline required; MBA/CPA preferred
• Minimum ten years of progressive experience in a senior-level financial management role
• Excellent analytical, verbal, and written communication and presentation skills required
• Strong communicator with the ability to make financial information accessible and comprehensible to stakeholders from a variety of backgrounds. Must be able to connect finance to the Museum's mission and values.
• Exceptional emotional intelligence, sound judgment, and a deeply collegial, collaborative leadership style · Demonstrated ability to develop positive board-level relationships. Experience working with governing boards and committees is helpful, but not required
• Excellent planning, financial management, and organizational skills
• Strong work ethic, along with effective management and supervisory skills; accustomed to building and developing teams
• Experience at a cultural institution or mission-driven non-profit organization is valuable but not required
• Able to always operate with transparency and with the highest degree of ethics
• Operationally oriented, with the ability to bring practical insights and solutions to critical financial decisions and initiatives across the Museum
• Able to manage and develop financial talent within the organization

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary range is $250,000 - $300,000 and will be commensurate with experience
• Medical, Dental, Vision, 403(b) elections
• Generous Paid Time off benefits
• Commuter benefits - parking, mass transit, and Citi Bike
• Admission to world-renowned museums across the city and nationally
• Pet insurance

About the Whitney:

The Whitney Museum of American Art, founded in 1930 by the artist and philanthropist Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, houses the foremost collection of American art from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. From her vision arose the Whitney Museum of American Art, which has been championing the most innovative art of the United States for 86 years. The core of the Whitney’s mission is to collect, preserve, interpret, and exhibit American art of our time and serve a wide variety of audiences in celebration of the complexity and diversity of art and culture in the United States. Through this mission and a steadfast commitment to artists themselves, the Whitney has long been a powerful force in support of modern and contemporary art and continues to help define what is innovative and influential in American art today.

EEO Statement:

The Whitney Museum of American Art is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The Museum does not discriminate because of age, sex, religion, race, color, creed, national origin, alienage or citizenship, disability, marital status, pregnancy, partnership status, caregiver status, veteran status, gender (including gender identity), sexual orientation, genetic information, predisposition, or carrier status, arrest or conviction record to the extent required by applicable law, credit history, domestic violence, sexual violence, or stalking victim status, or any other factor prohibited by law.  The Museum hires and promotes individuals solely on the basis of their qualifications for the job to be filled. The Museum encourages all qualified candidates to apply for vacant positions at all levels.