Senior Director of Finance and Operations

About SMART

SMART (Schools, Mentoring and Resource Team, Inc.) champions education equity by supporting students in overcoming systemic barriers on their journey to a college degree. We envision a community with equitable pathways to college graduation for every student in San Francisco. SMART provides a unique twelve-year continuum of support that starts in 4th grade and extends through college, including school support, after-school enrichment, summer programming, college prep, and college persistence support. As a result, SMART Scholars are more than four times more likely to graduate college when compared to their peers. Furthermore, while only 21% of low-income students who enter college will graduate within six years, SMART Scholars are currently persisting at a rate of more than 80%.

SMART’s Values:

• Community: We build a community that celebrates diversity, thrives on teamwork, and appreciates everyone’s contributions. Through community, we are stronger.
• Equity: We are committed to systems and processes that are just, fair, and inclusive, enabling all people the opportunity to belong, participate, and reach their full potential.
• Empowerment: We believe the path to empowerment and self-advocacy is through the encouragement, support, and guidance of those around us.
• Learning: We believe education and life-long learning enhance our understanding of our world, our place within it, and provide the tools to change it. Through embracing challenges and learning opportunities, we make progress.
• Joy: We center joy in our community and practice. We view joy as an act of liberation, which unleashes creativity, strengthens relationships, and propels the work that we do.

Position Description

Reporting to the Executive Director, and a key member of SMART’s leadership team, the Senior Director of Finance and Operations oversees key aspects of SMART’s financial systems, human resources, and organizational operations and administration. This includes areas such as financial planning and management, budgeting, cash flow monitoring and credit card management, operational strategy and planning, IT systems, and more. In addition, the Senior Director of Finance and Operations oversees day-to-day operations, HR, talent, and culture. The Senior Director of Finance and Operations supervises the Operations, People and Culture Manager and is the lead liaison to a contract bookkeeping firm, external accountant, and auditor. The ideal candidate is a proven finance and operations professional, highly organized, attentive to details, with excellent communication skills, and a passion for youth development and supporting underserved communities.

Responsibilities

Financial Management

• Main contact with external bookkeeping firm; oversee all financial transactions and accuracy of data entry into QuickBooks.
• Oversee vendor payment process.
• Maintain staff credit cards, including coordinating with staff to facilitate receipt collection and ensuring proper account coding.
• Maintain proper financial records.
• Coordinate the execution of quarterly closes with external accountant and consult with external accountant on any complex accounting issues.
• Manage SMART’s comprehensive annual budgeting process involving all staff. Manage budget throughout the year, including monitoring spending, providing reports to staff managers, and building staff members’ budgeting skills.
• Manage annual audit and Form 990 filing process (with support from external accountant).
• Prepare financial statements and reports for the leadership team, SMART’s Finance Committee, and board of directors, including forecasts of income and expenses to support decision-making.
• Continually improve financial systems and processes. Research and implement new financial systems that result in more streamlined and secure financial operations.
• Support administrative processes, such as contracts and document management.
• Support development team with grant budgets and reporting, and other projects as needed.

Operations and Administration

• Supervising the Operations, People, and Culture Manager, oversee systems and processes related to people and culture, including payroll, benefits, hiring, onboarding, and the promotion of a people-centered workplace culture of joy and belonging.
• Oversee SMART’s work to promote health, safety, and preparedness for emergencies.
• Oversee administrative and technology systems (IT), ensuring stability, health, and efficiency. Conduct ongoing evaluation of all administrative and technology practices to assess needs, improve workflows, and manage organizational risk.
• Submit nonprofit legal filings as required by city, state, and federal law; maintain and ensure compliance with contracts and leases; serve as primary contact for insurance policies.

Partnership with Board of Directors

• Coordinate the activities of the Board’s Finance Committee and Audit Committee. This includes partnering with the Executive Director and Committee Chair to keep the committees’ progress on track, prepare agendas and meeting materials, facilitate meetings and more.
• Prepare financial materials for meetings of the Board of Directors.
• Attend quarterly Board meetings and annual Board retreat, and give presentations as needed.

Organization-wide Responsibilities

• Participate in organization-wide events.
• Participate in cross-department committees and teams.
• Other duties and special projects as needed.

Qualifications

Essential Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• At least seven years of professional experience, including at least two years of experience with nonprofit financial management.
• Experience with nonprofit budgeting and administrative functions.
• Proficiency in QuickBooks, Excel, including use of formulas and other features.
• Exceptional orientation to detail and obsession with accuracy.
• Passion for improvement of systems and processes, even when no one is looking.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
• Strong ability to work independently and excellent time management skills.
• Passion for SMART’s commitment to issues of educational equity for students from underserved communities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with a nonprofit audit.
• Proficiency with G-Suite (Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Docs, and Sheets).
• Experience managing payroll processing.

Additional Workplace Expectations:

• This is a full-time exempt position.
• Occasional evening work required.
• All SMART employees must be up to date on vaccination for COVID-19.
• SMART employees currently work on a hybrid schedule - three days per week at our office in San Francisco and two days per week remote.

Compensation and Benefits:

• Annual starting salary range for this position is $110,000-$115,000.
• SMART is also proud to offer additional competitive benefits, including: 13 paid holidays, generous paid time off policy and parental leave policy, week-long office closures during winter holidays and during summer, three department wellness days, 100% coverage of employee medical, dental, and vision insurance (and 50% coverage of dependent coverage), reimbursement for cell phone and home internet, professional development stipend, employer sponsored life insurance and long-term disability insurance, and access to pre-tax benefit programs such as commuter benefits, flexible spending accounts, and a 401K account.

How to Apply:

• Please submit a thoughtful cover letter and resume to Asaf Bar-Tura, Executive Director, at careers@thesmartprogram.org.
• Please write your name and the title for this position (“Your Name – Director of Finance and Operations”) in the subject line of your email.
• Due to the volume of applications we receive, please no phone calls.
• Deadline to apply: Applications accepted until position is filled.

SMART is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applicants from all racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds, national origins, sexual orientations and genders. Learn more about SMART’s commitment to equity, inclusion, and diversity at www.thesmartprogram.org/equity