vice president, finance and administration

The Stuart Foundation seeks a strategic, effective, and
knowledgeable multidisciplinary leader as Vice President, Finance
and Administration – reporting to the President, sitting on the
Senior Leadership Team, and directly supervising three team members
– to oversee and enhance finance, operations, and board relations
in alignment with the Foundation's mission, values, goals, and
strategies.

ABOUT THE STUART FOUNDATION

The Stuart Foundation is a family foundation dedicated to
transforming life outcomes for young people through public
education. For nearly four decades, the Foundation has cultivated
the conditions for adolescents to thrive in California and
Washington state. Established as an independent family foundation
in 1985, the Foundation has been committed to transforming systems
to realize sustained change from its beginning.

Young people thrive when they can bring their full selves into
the world and are engaged and supported as learners and change
makers. Three interconnected commitments guide our work: supporting
adolescent thriving, advancing equity, and reaffirming the purpose
of public education.

We believe that well-resourced and inclusive public education
systems underpin vibrant communities, inclusive economies, and a
functioning democracy. Public schools should be joyful places where
young people are seen, safe, and supported as learners and leaders
across all types of difference, including race, class, gender,
sexual orientation, immigration status, language, and ability. The
conditions of young people's lives – immigration status, zip code,
income, or system involvement – should not determine their
trajectory or define how they experience school.

To achieve this vision, we must transform our current system to
equitably provide engaging and empowering learning opportunities
and school environments that center belonging and respect. This
kind of public education system is only realized with the shared
leadership and authentic engagement of everyone in our education
systems and communities, especially young people themselves.

The Stuart Foundation engages with people, programs, systems,
and ideas. We leverage our financial resources and social capital
to advance a vibrant and just public education system in California
that supports all young people to thrive. In addition to
grantmaking, we engage in knowledge sharing, narrative change, and
relationship building. The Foundation has an asset base of
approximately $554 million and annual charitable expenditures of
approximately $27 million.

ABOUT THE POSITION

The Vice President, Finance and Administration (VPFA) is
responsible for aligning finance and administrative functions to
program strategy and strengthening internal operations so that the
Foundation has the internal infrastructure and culture in place to
achieve its goals. The VPFA reports to the President and is equal
parts strategist and operator, helping the programmatic vision come
to life through sound internal systems and practices. Serving as a
strategic thought partner to the President, the Board, and staff
across the organization, the VPFA will be a key member of the
Senior Leadership Team. The VPFA will provide leadership beyond the
Foundation's finances to include overall organizational operations,
design, risk management, and effectiveness as well as board
management, learning, and efficacy. The VPFA will proactively
design internal operations that are aligned with and in support of
the Foundation's programmatic strategies, creating impact on the
external work. This is an exciting opportunity to co-create a
vision of success for running the organization that inspires the
Board and staff and creates holistic, adaptive systems to support
the organization's mission and values.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategy and Leadership

As a key member of the Senior Leadership Team, the VPFA helps
shape organizational strategy and policy.

Develops and implements strategies to optimize the Foundation's
finances and operations in service of its mission and goal,
including partnering closely with the Strategy, Partnership and
Learning (SPL) team to ensure that financial and operational
systems support programmatic goals.
Serves as a creative financial thought partner to the SPL team
on funding models for grantee partners, contract design, and more
in support of programmatic strategies.
Supports the President with managing the Board of Directors,
including developing short- and long-term meeting objectives;
quarterly docket planning; developing meeting content with input
from the President and all departments; supporting meeting minutes;
managing items that require follow-up; and continually revising and
updating the Board communication plan, according to Board and
organizational needs.
Develops and maintains a Board Handbook and works with the
President to ensure the board members are trained and up-to-date on
their legal responsibilities.
Serves as the point person to the Board on financial,
investment, and operational matters, presenting at Board meetings;
serving on the Investment, Finance, and Audit Committees;
responding to related Board inquiries; and identifying and
supporting related learning and development needs.

Organizational Effectiveness and Team
Building

In partnership with the President and Vice President, SPL, leads
workforce planning and design, ensuring capacity is aligned with
strategy and goals.

Fosters a workplace culture that allows a talented and diverse
group of employees to feel valued and engaged which includes
supporting the design and execution of staff meetings and events
that cultivate positive culture and other organizational activities
aimed at enhancing a culture of trust, collaboration, and
belonging.
Oversees all-staff and Senior Leadership Team meetings,
including agendas and facilitation. In close partnership with the
Director of Operations and Technology, designs and implements
internal organizational policies and procedures across finance,
accounting, human resources, and operations ensuring they are
equitable, inclusive, and aligned with the values and mission of
the Foundation.
Ensures there is communication and transparency across all
departments on organizational decisions and processes.

Works in partnership with outside HR consultants to design and
oversee values-aligned processes and approaches to performance
management, professional development, and employee relations.

Supports the Director of Operations and Technology in
development and execution of hiring, onboarding, and training
practices to ensure they are thorough, welcoming, and
inclusive.

Leads annual compensation and performance review processes with
support from HR consultants, as needed.

Finance and Investment Management

Oversees the finance functions of the Foundation – inclusive of
budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, and investments – with
strategy, integrity, and accountability.

Directly supervises the Controller and a Senior Accountant who
are responsible for day-to-day accounting and finance activities,
including tax reporting and the annual financial audit
process.
Reviews and approves all internal financial reporting materials
and routinely communicates short- and long-term financial
information to the President and the Board, providing insight and
recommendations on financial decisions.
Oversees the budget development and monitoring process, in
partnership with the President and the SPL team to ensure budgets
and forecasts are aligned with the strategic programmatic
goals.

Oversees the investment assets of the Foundation, in partnership
with/overseeing the external investment advisor, and is responsible
for Investment Committee meetings.

Ensures the investment portfolio supports the mission and
trajectory of the Foundation, recognizing any potential investments
that run counter to the Foundation's programmatic
strategies.

Manages cash flow and forecasting, in partnership with external
investment advisors, ensuring there is sufficient liquidity to meet
the operational needs of the Foundation.

Office Management

Directly supervises the Office Coordinator who is responsible
for the day-to-day office management, facilities, and internal
meeting support.

Manages the current San Francisco office lease serving as the
landlord's main contact.
Leads strategic deliberation, decision making, and
implementation related to the future of the Foundation's office
space and work culture given the upcoming lease termination in
October of 2026.

Legal-Risk Management

Works cross-functionally with the SPL, grants management and
operations, and finance teams to ensure the Foundation operates
within all legal requirements and to best practice standards.

Keeps abreast of laws and regulations relevant to private
foundations to ensure regulatory compliance and timely filing of
required reports.
Serves as a resource to senior leadership for problem solving
related to legal compliance on all operational activities and works
with outside counsel to resolve more complex issues or questions
that arise.

Responsible for maintaining and updating organizational
corporate documents and board adopted policies (Bylaws, Spending
Authorization Policy, Conflicts of Interest Policy, etc).

Ensures the Foundation is adequately insured to safeguard the
investment assets of the Foundation, staff, and board members.

KEY QUALIFICATIONS

The ideal VPFA will bring many of the following experiences,
characteristics, and abilities – among other related/transferable
skills – to the Foundation:

Commitment to the mission and values with a passion for
transforming life outcomes for young people; lived or professional
experience related to the Foundation's work is a plus.
Progressively responsible senior leadership experience in
financial and administrative organizational leadership ideally
inclusive of overseeing finance, operations, human resources,
and/or legal/risk management functions.
Experience leading budgeting, financial forecasting, and
reporting along with a record of success implementing strategic
goals and priorities across an organization.

Demonstrated experience managing high-performing teams and
supporting healthy organizational culture, smooth operations, and
complex budgets with competence and ease.

A connector who builds strong, trust-based relationships with
others and demonstrates a high degree of emotional intelligence,
accountability, and discretion in handling sensitive personnel or
other matters.
Experience and comfort building relationships with, presenting
to, and helping to develop and support the efficacy and development
of a Board of Directors.
Working knowledge of philanthropy, or nonprofit management, is
strongly preferred, including knowledge of related best practices
in the field.
Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion with a
thoughtful approach to culture development and supervision that
creates a sense of welcoming and belonging for all staff.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills with an
ability to communicate clearly and persuasively translating complex
technical information in creative, easily digestible ways to a
diverse set of audiences leveraging numbers and data to support
strategic storytelling and recommendations leading to effective
decision-making.
Experience operationalizing and implementing bold vision and
ideas supported creatively leveraging systems, policies, and/or
procedures to meet organizational goals.
Highly organized and methodical with great attention to detail
and the ability to multitask and manage complex projects, both
independently and collaboratively.
Extensive experience in Microsoft Office applications
(particularly Excel) with a familiarity with or comfort learning
how to identify and/or better leverage key CRM, accounting, HR, and
other systems such as Salesforce, ADP, Quickbooks, Paylocity,
and/or Sage Intacct.
Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, or a related business
discipline with an MBA and/or CPA preferred or equivalent degree or
experience.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS

The Stuart Foundation provides a competitive salary and a
comprehensive benefit package. The annual salary range for Vice
President, Finance and Administration is $260,000 to $312,000 with
an anticipated starting salary of $290,000, commensurate with
experience. Benefits offered include health, dental, and vision
plans with full coverage for domestic partners and dependents; a
403(b)-retirement savings plan (15% of salary contribution with no
match required); tuition/student loan reimbursement; generous
vacation and sick time; and more.

ABOUT THE APPLICATION PROCESS

The Stuart Foundation is partnering with Walker and
Associates Consulting – a BIPOC- and woman-owned
equity-centered strategic management consulting and search firm –
to facilitate this search. To apply, email a cover letter, resume,
and list of three references (references will not be contacted
without your advance notice) to
by Friday, May 10, 2024 at
5:00 pm PT. Use the subject line: VPFA Application. Please submit
PDF or Microsoft Word files only, preferably with all materials in
one combined file. Resume review begins immediately. Questions or
Nominations? Contact Jeannine N. Walker at

The Stuart Foundation team is composed of compassionate,
committed individuals working to make meaningful impact. The Stuart
Foundation as an employer is committed to diversity, equity and
inclusion. We value differences among individuals across multiple
dimensions and we work to build an organizational culture where
each staff person feels they belong. The Stuart Foundation believes
that all persons are entitled to equal employment opportunity and
does not discriminate against nor favor any applicant because of
race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity
and expression, physical ability, religion and socioeconomic
status. Stuart Foundation welcomes applicants of all backgrounds
and abilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation in order to
participate in our application process, please let us know.

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