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Vice President for Finance & Administration
The Annie E. Casey Foundation

Background

The Annie E. Casey Foundation, Inc. (the “Foundation”), a private not-for-profit organization headquartered in Baltimore, is dedicated to serving disadvantaged children and their families. The Annie E. Casey Foundation was established in 1948 by United Parcel Service (UPS) co-founder Jim Casey and his siblings George, Harry, and Marguerite in honor of their mother Annie E. Casey.

Today, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, with headquarters in Baltimore, is the world’s largest philanthropy dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged children. The Foundation has grown to become one of the nation’s most respected charitable organizations, ranking the 15th largest private foundation in terms of total assets. Its direct service arm, Casey Family Services (“Direct Services”), a fully licensed and accredited nonprofit child welfare agency headquartered in New Haven, serves more than 4,100 vulnerable children and their families in New Haven in six states in New England.

The primary mission of the Annie E. Casey Foundation is to foster public policies, human-service reforms, and community supports that more effectively meet the needs of today’s vulnerable children and families. In pursuit of this goal, the Foundation makes grants, funds demonstrations, provides foster care, adoption, youth and family services, delivers technical assistance and disseminates data and analysis – all aimed at helping states, cities and neighborhoods do a better, more cost-effective job of supporting children and families. The Foundation’s investments in each of these areas are evaluated against clear goals and measured results, performance outcomes, and return on investment.

For a description of their grant making and direct services, please see the Foundation’s website: www.aecf.org

Current Situation

The Annie E. Casey Foundation is governed by a 12-member Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees engage in ongoing planning activities as necessary to advance the mission of the Foundation, provide advice on long-range strategy development, and approve the annual budget.

The day-to-day operations of the Foundation are led by a President and CEO who oversees a Foundation staff of 532: a grant making staff of 180 in Baltimore at two facilities and a Casey Family Services staff of 352 in New Haven, Baltimore, and six New England states. The Foundation’s Senior Leadership Team includes an Executive Vice President, a Senior Vice President, a Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, a Vice President for Finance and Administration, a Senior Advisor and Vice President for Assessment and Advocacy, a Vice President for Human Development & Operations, a Vice President of Innovations and Strategic Consulting, and a Vice President and Executive Director of Casey Family Services. The Senior Leadership Team also serves on the Management Committee along with 25 executive team leaders from various units of the Foundation. The Foundation has offices in 16 sites in New England and Maryland.

The Foundation qualifies as a tax-exempt private foundation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. In 2008, the Foundation has budgeted $240 million of total expenditures including $185 million in grants, and $55 million in administration and operations expenses, investment fees and taxes. At the end of 2007, the Annie E. Casey Foundation had net assets of $3.4 billion.

Specific Role

The Vice President for Finance & Administration, a member of the Senior Leadership Team and Management Committee, reports directly to the President and oversees a staff of about 40 in finance, grants management, human development, operations, and information technology functions of the Foundation. These responsibilities encompass a combination of organization-wide functions and functions that are more specifically oriented to the grant making or direct services divisions of the Foundation. The Vice President works closely with the senior management of the direct services division (Casey Family Services) to support the needs of their 352 staff, particularly with the Deputy Executive Director for Direct Services who oversees the daily operations of Direct Services.

The Vice President coordinates the preparation of the annual budget and the generation of regular financial reports for the Board of Trustees, the President, and the Senior Leadership Team. The Vice President ensures the Foundation’s finance and administration policies are in compliance with applicable laws, rules, regulations and procedures established by the Board of Trustees and all regulatory bodies, and oversees modifications to finance and administration policies and procedures. The Vice President proactively seeks opportunities to improve the efficiency of Foundation operations, balancing overall goals and objectives with business best practices.

Finance & Grants Management

The Director of Finance-Grants reports to the Vice President for Finance & Administration and works closely with the Grants Manager, the Manager of Grants Accounting, the Manager of Financial Reporting and Compliance, and the Manager of Investment Accounting. The Vice President oversees the preparation of the annual audit and federal and state tax returns, the budget control and cash management functions, grants processing and the disbursement of funds to all grantees and contractors. The Director of Finance–Direct Services also reports to the Vice President and oversees all accounting, budgeting and financial reporting for Direct Services.

Human Development, Operations, and Facilities

The Vice President for Human Development & Operations reports to the Vice President for Finance & Administration and supervises Human Resources Directors for Grants and Direct Services, an Operations Manager, and a Facilities Manager. The Human Development & Operations team manages personnel, benefits and training functions and supports the operating needs of each employee of the Foundation. The Facilities Manager in collaboration with the Deputy Executive Director for Direct Services supervises the operations and maintenance of the Foundation’s facilities and properties including contract staff and consultants. The Deputy Executive Director for Direct Services collaborates with the Vice President regarding emergency preparedness and business continuity.

Information Technology

The Managing Director of Information Technology reports to the Vice President for Finance & Administration and oversees the planning, development, and implementation of information systems that offer state-of-the-art technology support to the grant making and direct services staff of the Foundation. The Information Technology Director supervises technical support to staff and grantees, maintains the security and integrity of all Foundation data bases and systems, and oversees both the telecommunication and audiovisual systems and services. The Managing Director collaborates with the IT Director–Direct Services on the delivery of IT services and support for all direct services staff and offices.

Major Objectives

The Annie E. Casey Foundation expects the new Vice President for Finance & Administration to accomplish the following major objectives over the next 12-18 months:

Successfully lead the Foundation-wide integration of the finance, accounting, information technology, human development, operations, and facilities teams to provide best in class systems and procedures in a responsive and timely manner;
Continue to develop a comprehensive enterprise reporting system that ensures financial integrity, including internal controls and compliance with the Foundation’s policies and governmental requirements;
Continue to build a robust finance and grants operation, consistent with the Foundation’s mission and strengthen the operating structure to support the Foundation’s growth;
Leverage, enhance, and integrate the IT systems to industry standards that incorporate business priorities, minimize costs, and improves reliability;
Improve customer service to internal and external constituencies;
Build, motivate, and develop the various teams and create a platform for giving voice to staff needs;
Assess the overall performance of the departments and determine best practices to improve integration, productivity, and responsiveness.

Professional Qualifications

The following qualifications are preferred in the new Vice President for Finance & Administration:

A Master’s degree in Business Administration or an advanced degree in Finance, Public Administration, or Accounting and/or a CPA;
Ten or more years progressively responsible experience in nonprofit accounting and financial management, particularly with a private foundation, college, or university, strong knowledge of U.S. government reporting requirements, and exposure to social services/case management work;
Experience developing systems and procedures to assure financial resources are effectively deployed to support Foundation objectives;
Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively across a complex organization and to partner with internal and external stakeholders to meet operational goals;
A client- and customer-focused finance and accounting leader with a demonstrated ability to manage a significant business application functions in a complex environment;
In-depth knowledge of best practices and trends in nonprofit finance, accounting and audit, and governmental reporting requirements;
Strong management skills with an ability to build, motivate, and lead a diverse team in a collegial environment;
Ability to work in a fast-paced environment, managing several projects simultaneously and to influence a broad spectrum of constituencies, achieving outcomes through influence rather than direct authority;
Strong background in implementing core business and IT solutions;
Proficient in the use of personal computer and working knowledge of applicable software programs (i.e., word processing, spreadsheets, e-mail) and internet-based applications.

Personal Characteristics:

The following characteristics are preferred in the new Vice President:

Passion and values that align with those of the Foundation’s mission;
A strategic thinker with a vision for success, yet interested in and attentive to details and operational issues;
An engaged, self-confident professional who values new ideas and perspectives;
Interest in innovative best practices regarding superior customer service;
Keen intellect with interest in technical IT and business software applications;
Drive, coupled with energetic, entrepreneurial qualities;
Comfortable working within a team context with diverse members;
Strong analytical, interpersonal, and communication skills;
Healthy respect for colleagues, employees, and superiors;
Goal-directed, project-oriented, and achievement-oriented;
Politically astute, able to communicate on multiple levels;
Strong sense of honor and integrity;
A warm, personal style with a good sense of humor.