Background:

The IRC’s Center for Economic Empowerment (CEO) is a certified community development financial institution (CDFI) and 501c3 organization incorporated in 2011, and non-controlled subsidiary of the International Rescue Committee (IRC). The Primary Mission of CEO is to unlock access to credit to help create a fair financial system where low-income people can realize their potential to build better lives and communities prosper. CEO specializes in making small-dollar consumer and commercial loans to refugees, immigrants and other low-income individuals using a unique and robust national network of partners. CEO is a customer-centered organization with a core value to protect and work to the interest of customers and to trust their willingness to repay. CEO has made over $35 million in loans to date and is actively working toward expanding scale and scope, with a vision of a $100 million portfolio.

Job Overview:
Reporting directly to the Executive Director (ED), the Senior Director, Finance serves as a key member of the executive leadership team and a strategic partner in shaping the organization’s long-term financial growth. This role provides vision, oversight, and accountability for IRC-CEO’s finance, accounting, compliance, risk management, and administrative functions, ensuring they support scalability, sustainability, and impact in alignment with IRC-CEO’s mission as a CDFI.

In all aspects of the role, the Senior Director, Finance is expected to model a values-driven leadership style that emphasizes clarity, integrity, and transparency—ensuring financial reporting and decision-making support trust both internally and externally.

Major Responsibilities:

Strategic Financial Leadership

• Serve as a thought partner to the Executive Director and Board of Directors, leading the development of financial strategies that support long-term growth and sustainability.
• Lead financial forecasting, scenario planning, and capital modeling to inform strategic decisions related to expansion, investment, and risk.
• Provide financial data analysis to support business development efforts, including grant applications, fundraising, and investor relations.

Accounting, Budgeting & Financial Operations

• Oversee efficient, compliant, and GAAP-aligned accounting operations appropriate for a nonprofit loan fund.
• Lead the annual budgeting process and provide ongoing updates and forecasts of budget-to-actual performance.
• Supervise the preparation of timely and accurate financial reports for internal and external stakeholders.
• Oversee cash flow, reserve strategies, banking relationships, and investment policy execution.

Audit, Compliance & Risk Management

• Lead annual audits in collaboration with external auditors, ensuring timely preparation and response.
• Maintain and update financial policies and procedures in line with industry best practices.
• Monitor regulatory compliance across all financial operations and proactively identify and mitigate risk to internal controls.

Financial Reporting & Oversight

• Ensure CEO has accurate monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reports for internal stakeholders and external parties like grantors, investors, and government agencies.
• Present clear, actionable financial insights to the Board of Directors, including dashboards, trends, and risk indicators.
• Respond promptly to ad hoc data requests and contribute financial perspective to organizational decision-making.

Team Leadership & Capacity Building

• Supervise and support the finance team, fostering a culture of excellence, accountability, and continuous learning.
• Drive the evolution of financial systems and processes, adopting best practices to enhance efficiency and scalability.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to support organizational effectiveness, compliance, and alignment with strategic priorities.

Job Requirements:

• CPA license or a graduate degree in Business Administration, Finance, Accounting, or a closely related field (e.g., MBA, Master’s in Finance).
• At least 10 years of progressive experience in finance leadership, ideally in nonprofit, CDFI, or social enterprise settings.
• A commitment to economic empowerment and community development finance.
• Demonstrated experience in budget planning, financial strategy, and operational execution.
• Strong technical expertise in accounting, audit, and financial compliance, with knowledge of GAAP, grant and fund accounting, and multi-source funding models.
• Familiarity with funder/investor compliance and capital planning.
• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to present complex financial information to non-financial audiences.
• Proven ability to lead and develop high-performing teams and systems.

Working Environment:

• This position is fully remote within the United States.
• Work is performed from home at a computer workstation.
• This position requires travel to conferences or in-person meetings 3-5 times per year.

Compensation: (Pay Range: $118,750 - $149,510**)** Posted pay ranges apply to US-based candidates. Ranges are based on various factors including the labor market, job type, internal equity, and budget. Exact offers are calibrated by work location, individual candidate experience and skills relative to the defined job requirements.

Equal Opportunity Employer: IRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

US Benefits: We offer a comprehensive and highly competitive set of benefits. In the US, these include: 10 sick days, 10 US holidays, 20-25 paid time off days depending on role and tenure, medical insurance starting at $143 per month, dental starting at $6.50 per month, and vision starting at $5 per month, FSA for healthcare and commuter costs, a 403b retirement savings plans with immediately vested matching, disability & life insurance, and an Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support counseling and care in times of crisis and mental health struggles.