Envision Education, Chief Operations and Finance Officer
Edgility Consulting, United States
Job Description
ORGANIZATION
Established in 2002, the mission of Envision Education is to transform the lives of students especially those who will be the first in their families to attend college by preparing them for success in college, career, and life. Envision is aiming for the moon: We are committed to changing how American schooling defines and measures success, not only for the students in our school network but for all public school students in the country. 99% of our graduates are accepted to college, and 75% are the first in their families to attend college. Envision is set apart from other school networks by three key features: our Portfolio Defense assessment system, our instructional and cultural vision rooted in an anti-racist and pro-Black framework, and our commitment to sharing our learning and improving public schools everywhere.
To learn more about Envision, please visit envisionschools.org.
OPPORTUNITY
Envision seeks a dynamic, experienced finance and operations leader to build on the successes of our three high schools and two middle schools and establish Envision Schools as exemplary schools of equity and excellence for all students. The Chief Operations and Finance Officer (COFO) will do this by providing vision, fiscal management, and operational leadership. The COFO will work with Envision’s Senior Leadership Team to achieve our goals:
- 95% of graduates will be accepted into a 4-year college
- All student subgroups will meet or exceed statewide performance on SBAC
- 90+% of those who attend 4-year college will persist due to their growth on 1-2 key SEL measures (to be established based on upcoming research) through Envision’s Portfolio Defense system, thus tapping into their power regardless of their marginalized status in society at large.
The COFO works within teams to develop strategic planning efforts and management team decisions in implementing new programs and will facilitate a collaborative relationship between the school teams, Support Office, and Envision Learning Partners. The COFO will evaluate the structures of the departments and teams and plan for continual improvement of the efficiency and effectiveness of the group.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Finance:
- Leads financial planning process and finalizes short- and long-term budgets with the leadership team
- Defines key financial metrics aligned with the performance measurement system
- Communicates and sets expectations with lenders and external stakeholders
- Ensures the organization can manage unexpected financial situations
- Determines contingency plans and recommends approaches to Board
- Recommends actions to the management team to meet budget
- Negotiates and develops positive relationships with investors/sources of capital to ensure valuable financing terms and potential for renewal
- Ensures integrity and transparency in auditor selection and audit process
Operations:
- Ensures strategic decisions are informed by political, education, and funding landscape
- Ensures Envision-wide strategic plan drives department planning and sets high expectations for alignment and coordination
- Ensures continuous improvement of activities to achieve the strategic plan
- Facilitates portfolio management discussions with the leadership team and Board
- Sets green lighting criteria for growth and contraction and recommends go/no-go decisions
- Ensures strategic decisions are informed by political, education, and funding landscape
- Leads the development of a technology strategy aligned with Envision’s strategic plan
- Ensure the alignment of school support, effective use of time, quality of service, customized supports, and resources to the operational and instructional needs of each school
- Collaborates with the CEO and the senior leadership team to establish and monitor the implementation of organizational goals, objectives, and strategic plans, exploring growth opportunities and identifying key risks and success factors
Requirements
QUALIFICATIONS
In order to fulfill these responsibilities, the ideal Chief Operations amp; Finance candidate will be/have:
- A strong analytic, performance management, accountability, and systems-thinking orientation necessary to inform strategy development and execution.
- A high-level, strategic thinker who focuses on ROI and operational efficiencies and brings senior-level, multI-functional leadership experience;
- Broad-based analytical, problem-solving, and leadership capabilities and an ability to contribute strategically in areas beyond finance and operations
- BS in Accounting or Finance, MBA, MFA, and/or CPA preferred;
- Excellent operat