Finance Director

The Philadelphia Energy Authority (PEA), an independent municipal authority is a quasi-government entity, chartered by City Council and the Mayor in 2010, focused on issues of energy affordability and sustainability for Philadelphia. In 2016, in partnership with City Council President Darrell Clarke, PEA launched the Philadelphia Energy Campaign, a $1 billion, 10-year investment in energy efficiency and clean energy projects to create 10,000 jobs. Through 2022, PEA has helped launch over $380MM in projects and created 3,275 jobs. We focus on municipal assets, schools, low- and moderate-income housing, small businesses and commercial and industrial projects and programs. We view energy is a high impact tool for reducing poverty, improving education, strengthening communities and leveraging public investment. PEA has grown dramatically over the last few years in both size and complexity, and is seeking a senior level finance professional to support that organizational growth.

Job Title: Finance Director
Reports to: President & CEO, Emily Schapira
Number of direct reports: 0-4 (see below for more details)
Location: Hybrid work environment, all employees work partially remote and partially at 1400 JFK Blvd (City Hall), Room 566, Philadelphia, PA 19107.
Open Date: September 18, 2023
Close Date: October 20, 2023. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis since PEA is seeking to hire immediately.
Exempt/Non-Exempt Status: Exempt (Full-Time)

Position Summary:
The Finance Director is a senior-level position that will work directly with the President & CEO to manage the day-to-day financial operations of the Authority, lead financial and budgeting activities including grants management and contracting, oversee monthly and quarterly management finance reporting, manage annual audits, and provide strategic financial analysis and planning to ensure compliance, optimization of assets, risk management and more. The Finance Director will be charged with reviewing and enforcing financial controls, and may take on some facets of benefits management and administration. The Finance Director will begin with no direct reports, but once on board, should expect to manage at least one Grants Manager in the first year and up to 4 direct reports in the future, as well as numerous consultants and vendors, especially including accountants and auditors.

The Finance Director will collaborate with the President and other staff to assess existing revenue streams and provide key data and input for new revenue and grant opportunities to continue to scale our work, and will coordinate with PEA’s green bank affiliate, the Philadelphia Green Capital Corp (PGCC). The Finance Director will have primary responsibility for reporting and compliance. PEA plans on developing a strategic financial plan in FY24 and FY25, for which the Finance Director will play a key  leadership role. This is also a critical time for PEA to leverage funding from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which will require the Finance Director to become familiar with all federal funding reporting and financial requirements.

Key Success Factors:
We have a strong preference for an experienced professional with proven results-driven leadership experience and expertise in financial management, operations, risk management, systems improvement, grant reporting and compliance, strong people management skills, and an essential understanding of and comfort with a fast-paced entrepreneurial environment. A background in energy would be helpful, but is not required for this role. Experience working for or with complex organizations with multi-layered political and reporting structures will be helpful. Government experience is a plus. Attention to detail and strong organizational skills are required. The ideal candidate will have experience managing multi-million dollar budgets.

We seek a self-starter who is driven by results, who has demonstrated active leadership, who regularly takes on stretch experiences with gusto, who understands the needs of our entrepreneurial, growing organization and who has a bias for action. A commitment to Philadelphia and a passion for energy, sustainability, climate change, and/or poverty, equity and economic development issues are essential.

Job Responsibilities:

● Overseeing and in some cases implementing the day-to-day financial operations of the Authority, which will include, but not be limited to: budget management, weekly financial transactions and invoicing, payroll and travel, insurance management, certain contracting, impact metrics tracking, grants management and reporting and management of vendors and contractors related to accounting and auditing.
● Working with the President & CEO on annual budgets, projections and internal communications including board meeting preparation and City reporting.
● Working with the President and other staff on development and revenue planning and analysis, support financial strategic planning process.
● Assessing and implementing streamlined financial processes to ensure efficiency, transparency, and accountability.
● Overseeing the recruitment and management of consultants and others as needed. Managing 0-4 full-time staff, plus multiple consultants and vendors as appropriate. Overseeing employee benefits.
● Other duties as assigned. This role may require some occasional evening hours (e.g. board meetings). No travel is required.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required; relevant graduate degree desired (MBA or degree in Finance or Accounting would be a plus)
• 7+ years of relevant work experience, desired in non-profit, social enterprise or government management, finance and/or accounting
• 3-5 years years prior experience managing a team
• Demonstrated track record of taking on and successfully completing complex projects on time and on budget. Knows how to get things done when working accross multiple stakeholders and systems, how to be helpful, and how to be pleasantly persistent.
• Comfortable with appropriate professional technology: MS Office (including Excel and PowerPoint), Google suite, Quickbooks and Salesforce. Proficient in project management and organizational tools like Monday.com
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, strong interpersonal and management skills
• Ability to thrive in a busy environment managing multiple priorities, objectives, deadlines and varied political and social interests
• Prioritizes giving and receiving feedback with regularity, comfortable with difficult conversations, experience in “managing up” and managing via influence rather than authority
• Philadelphia residency required within 6 months of starting the position

Salary & Benefits: The expected salary range for this position is $100,000 to $120,000, commensurate with experience and skill set. Benefits include (but are not limited to) a generous healthcare package, retirement benefits and paid time off.

To Apply: Submit a brief, persuasive cover letter describing why you are the best fit for this position and including at least one example of a stretch experience related to leadership that you’ve taken on professionally, along with a resume to Emily Schapira, President & CEO at jobs@philaenergy.org with the subject line “Finance Director Application – {Your Name}.” Incomplete applications will not be considered. Inquiries or clarifications are preferred to be submitted via email.

The Philadelphia Energy Authority is an Equal Opportunity employer and does not tolerate discrimination based on race, ethnicity, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, marital status, source of income, familial status, genetic information or domestic or sexual violence victim status.