Strategic Finance Director, DonorsChoose
$109.2-142k
Salary dependent on location. + Annual performance-based raises as they grow in their role
More information about location
Online crowdfunding platform
Open for applications
Online crowdfunding platform
201-500 employees
Open for applications
$109.2-142k
Salary dependent on location. + Annual performance-based raises as they grow in their role
More information about location
201-500 employees
Company mission
To make it easy for anyone to help a teacher in need, ensuring a nation where students in every community have the tools and experiences they need for a great education.
Role
Who you are
- This is a highly cross-functional role for someone who thrives at the intersection of financial analysis and strategic decision-making
- We are looking for candidates who have deep scenario planning and modeling experience – who are able to analyze financial data, build financial models, generate financial forecasts and play a key role in driving business decisions
- Success in this role requires equal parts analytical rigor, curiosity, creativity, and business judgment
- You'll thrive if you enjoy moving between spreadsheets and strategy conversations and are equally comfortable diving into the details and presenting the story behind the numbers
- Have 8+ years of related work experience in strategic finance, FP&A, corporate development, management consulting, investment banking, private equity, accounting, or another discipline responsible for financial forecasts and analysis
- Enjoy turning ambiguity into structured analysis and actionable recommendations
- Build trusted relationships across functions and know how to influence without formal authority
- Have built sophisticated financial models from scratch—not simply maintained existing models
- Are naturally curious, ask thoughtful questions, and are comfortable challenging assumptions with data and sound judgment
- Communicate complex financial concepts in ways that help non-finance leaders make informed decisions
- Problem solver who is comfortable diving into complex scenarios
- Balance confidence with humility—you have a point of view but remain open to new information and perspectives
- Tech-savvy and comfortable embracing new systems and tools
- Care deeply about education and share our organization’s commitment to racial and economic equity in America’s public schools
- Experience working with Adaptive Insights or another cloud-based financial planning software
- Comfortable with intermediate Excel/Google Sheet functions (pivot tables, lookup functions, graphs/tables)
- If you don’t check every box listed here, or you know you’d bring additional experience to the table, we hope you’ll submit your application
What the job involves
- The Finance, IT, & Procurement team provides the infrastructure and stewardship that keep DonorsChoose financially strong, technologically enabled, and focused on getting resources into classrooms
- The team manages the day-to-day finances while shaping long-term strategies, ensures our distributed workforce has the technology and systems to work seamlessly, and manages vendor relationships
- Together, these functions turn financial resources into tangible materials in the hands of teachers and students
- DonorsChoose is seeking a tactical, collaborative Strategic Finance Director who will report to the VP, Finance & Accounting
- You will work closely with senior leaders to provide insights that drive growth, optimize resource allocation, shape cash and margin decisions, and enhance financial performance across the organization
- About a third of your time will be dedicated towards budgeting, forecasting, and month-end reporting activities as needed while maintaining primary focus on strategic finance and decision support
- You'll build sophisticated financial models from scratch, pressure-test assumptions, synthesize information from multiple sources, and communicate recommendations that help leaders make better decisions
- Build and maintain a 3-statement financial model for budgeting, forecasting, cash flow management, scenario analysis, and net asset impacts
- Independently develop ROI analyses and cost-benefit frameworks that shape prioritization decisions and track the end-to-end lifecycle of initiatives from investment through post-launch impact measurement
- Influence decision-making across senior leaders with actionable financial insights to solve key business challenges and position our organization for growth
- Partner across the organization to evaluate deal economics, optimize margins, and improve efficiency
- Communicate executive-ready analyses, dashboards, and Board materials that translate complex financial information into meaningful business insights
- Lead critical FP&A processes, including annual budgeting process, recurring forecasts, month-end reporting, and preparation of financial reporting for senior leadership and Board presentations
- Improve and automate FP&A processes, systems, and reporting as the company scales by using modern tooling (including AI-enabled solutions) to improve speed and accuracy
- Guide senior leaders on resource allocation and strategic decisions, occasionally presenting at leadership meetings and playing a critical role in influencing change across cross-functional workstreams
- Manage vendor renewal calendars and ensure no material contracts auto-renew without review
- Support the build-out of an internal procurement process, one that establishes a centralized function for spend management, contract reviews, vendor selection, and purchasing process
- Own mission-critical initiatives such as an updated pricing strategy to optimize our margins
- The Strategic Finance Director will independently lead complex analytical work that influences organizational financial strategy and executive decision-making
- They own sophisticated financial modeling efforts, develop recommendations with limited direction, and regularly partner with senior leaders across the organization
- While this role does not include direct people management responsibilities, the Strategic Finance Director is expected to exercise significant independent judgment, influence cross-functional decisions through expertise and credibility, and raise the overall quality of strategic financial thinking across DonorsChoose
- Successful team members take work nearly to completion independently, seek thoughtful input at key decision points, and communicate recommendations with clarity, confidence, and sound business judgment
Our take
A 2020-21 survey found that public educators spent, on average, at least $750 of their own money on supplies for their students. Teacher-turned-founder, Charles Best, figured that people would more likely help if they could see where their money was going. With DonorsChoose, teachers can post funding requests, and donors can choose the ones they want to support.
DonorsChoose understands that each classroom has unique needs based on the students. By allowing teachers to post their own needs, donors can help in a multitude of specific ways, such as funding school trips, providing flexible seating in the classroom, or resourcing basic classroom materials. Donors are shown exactly how their money is spent, and receive a thank you from the kids themselves.
DonorsChoose continues to raise a huge amount of money for public school teachers - at least one teacher in 87% of all US public school districts uses the platform. The company's positive work culture earned them the title of #1 "Best Nonprofit to Work For" by the Nonprofit Times whilst large companies such as United Airlines are among its donors.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
13% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 4 rounds)
Jul 2024
$0.1m
GRANT
May 2020
$1.2m
GRANT
Total funding: $7.1m
Company benefits
- Flexible work environment
- 5 weeks paid vacation
- 100% paid health, dental and vision coverage
- Stipend for professional growth
- Monthly guest speakers
- Snacks and gourmet coffee
- Generous time off for new parents
Company HQ
Garment District, New York, NY
Leadership
Charles Best
(Founder & Board Member)Started as a Social Studies teacher at Wings Academy, a Bronx public high school, before founding DonorsChoose. Has been a Board Member for GuideStar, BMe Community, iMentor.
Alix Guerrier
(CEO)CEO of the company since 2022. Also the Board Director at Scholastic and an Advisor at Financepeer and Kinspire.
Salary benchmarks
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