Public Health – Seattle and King County is seeking a Chief Financial Officer to join its leadership team in meeting its deep commitment to the health of all King County residents and eliminating health disparities for black, indigenous, and people of color. As a financial steward for the department, this position is a rewarding opportunity for a resourceful strategist to tackle systemic funding challenges and for an experienced manager to shape financial policies and practices for the department’s diverse set of programs and operations.

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT 
Public Health – Seattle and King County is one of the largest metropolitan health departments in the United States with 40 sites, a biennial budget of $800 million, and 1400 employees, most of whom are represented by 11 collective bargaining units. The department provides a wide range of services such as preventing and treating communicable diseases, preventing chronic diseases and injuries, delivering health services to vulnerable populations, inspecting restaurants and other food establishments, providing emergency medical services, responding to health emergencies, and assessing the impact of these and other efforts on the overall health of the community.
 
Public Health is a mission-driven organization working to protect and improve the health and well-being of all people in Seattle and King County and focused on eliminating the inequities in social and health outcomes for black, indigenous, and people of color. The department has built a regional and national reputation for innovative programs and its work on equity. Like many other jurisdictions, it is in the midst of multiple crises – leading the effort in King County to respond to the Coronavirus pandemic, helping launch and support the transformative work to respond to Racism is a Public Health Crisis, and managing funding and operational challenges exacerbated by the economic fallout from the pandemic.  
 
COMMITMENT TO EQUITY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE: 
As the only jurisdiction in the world named after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the most influential civil rights leaders in our nation's history, King County is a vibrant international community with residents that represent countries from around the world. It is a region with increasing diversity that cherishes the traditions of many cultures.
 
We have a deep commitment to equity and social justice and advancing practices, strategies, and policies that promote fairness, justice, and opportunity for all – in our workplaces and our communities. With this commitment, King County has adopted a pro-equity agenda to advance regional change and ensure that residents from vulnerable communities are incorporated into our emergency planning and public outreach efforts.
 
To learn more, please visit http://www.kingcounty.gov/equity

ABOUT THE POSITION 
The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is the department’s strategic financial advisor and standard-bearer for exemplary budgeting and financial management. Reporting to the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), the CFO works closely with the Director and department leadership on achieving the department’s priorities and strategic objectives in a complex financial environment. The position excels at helping solve business and strategic challenges through ensuring the right financial information is available and providing potential solutions that reflect the department’s risk appetite statement. The CFO collaborates with colleagues from across the department to create business practices that reflect the County’s commitment to equity and social justice.  

The CFO sets the direction and standards for effective financial management of over $800 million in operating revenues from multiple funding streams including federal, state, local, and private. The department's financial functions are organized into a central finance section overseen by the CFO and finance teams located in six divisions. With 28 professional staff, the central finance section includes department financial operations support, accounting services, grants administration, financial compliance, and budget and forecasting. The CFO has a matrixed oversight relationship with the finance leads from the six operational divisions. In consultation with this team, the CFO establishes department financial procedures, ensures compliance with policies and standards, conducts reviews of financial management practices, leads department-wide financial analyses and reporting, coordinates budget development and financial monitoring, recommends an annual internal audit work program, and responds to external audits, and oversees continuous improvement efforts.

• Guide the development of sustainable and pro-equity funding strategies to support Public Health's strategic direction. Create an environment that capitalizes on business insights, embeds equity and social justice, and supports leveraging innovative tools and technologies to drive strategies and decisions.
• Oversee continuous improvement efforts to achieve exemplary financial management throughout the department: 
  • Identify and pursue remedies to policies and practices that contribute to systemic racism and inequities;
  • Ensure that County, department, GAAP, and GASB standards are followed across the department's financial practices; and,
  • Establish efficient and streamlined financial operations with standard work, policies and procedures, training, and performance management for finance functions at all levels of the department.
• Supervise, lead, and mentor effective teams consistent with the County’s values particularly, we are racially just, we respect all people, and we are responsible stewards.
• Oversee internal controls and compliance by ensuring department-wide compliance with funder requirements; assessing internal control risks and identifying internal control weaknesses; identifying non-compliance with organization policies and/or laws and regulations, as well as opportunities to improve operational effectiveness and efficiencies; and ensuring implementation of compliance remedies and improvements. 
• Work with CAO and department leadership to develop a department’s biennial budget that reflects the County’s values of transparency, equity, inclusion, and public stewardship.  This work, emphasizes innovative ways to incorporate participation from employees and communities, particularly those who have been historically marginalized.
• Provide financial analyses and recommendations to support department leadership in making decisions: 
  • Integrate equity into financial analyses and recommendations; 
  • Identify risks, benefits, and countermeasures using the department’s risk appetite statement; and,
  • Provide guidance and support on the methodologies and analyses for developing rates and fees.
• Oversee the management of daily operations of the department’s central finance section: accounting services (billing grants, payroll, cash collection), grant administration (Medicaid administration, State contract, audit liaison, sub-recipient monitoring), fiscal monitoring and reporting (Best Starts for Kids levy revenue), and budget and forecasting (quarterly budget forecasting and monitoring, biennial budget preparation, and budget and scenario modeling).
• Monitor and analyze the financial performance of the department; provide regular updates to the Department Director, CAO, and executive leadership; and facilitate the development of possible corrective actions, where needed.
• Work with the CAO and department leadership on clarifying the role and responsibilities of the department's central finance section and division finance functions to meet the long-term needs of the department.
• Communicate the department's financial condition and progress to department leadership, County leadership, and external partners. 
• Participate as a member of the department's executive leadership team in developing and implementing the department's strategic direction. 

• Demonstrated commitment to Equity and Social Justice and pursuing changes to policies and practices that address systemic racism and inequities.
• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance or other related business field AND at least seven years of working experience in finance with at least four years of experience managing a finance team or section in a complex financial environment. Additional experience may substitute for the required education. 
• Knowledge of current standards and developing trends in public sector budgeting, government fund accounting, managerial and financial accounting, including GAAP, GASB, and Federal and State grant accounting and reporting. 
• Demonstrated experience and skills in managing diverse teams including motivating and developing employees, supporting professional development, coaching and mentoring, setting clear expectations, and providing constructive feedback. 
• Demonstrated knowledge and skills in methods and quantitative techniques for sound financial and budgetary analyses and forecasting. 
• Demonstrated ability to lead development of and buy-in for a vision for financial management and the plan for achieving it. 
• Demonstrated experience and skills in building trusted partnerships with internal and external customers through establishing a track record of transparency, follow through, and resolving differences respectfully.
• Demonstrated ability to anticipate and plan for future strategic and business needs including assessing financial implications and tradeoffs. 
• Demonstrated ability to successfully lead people to bring about desired results in a matrixed team environment.
• Demonstrated experience with auditing and working with federal, state, and local auditors to resolve issues successfully.
• Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate complex financial information to different audiences. 
• Knowledge of public administration, government contracting, and personnel administration. 
• Demonstrated experience to simultaneously manage multiple projects in a fast-paced environment and meet deadlines. 

• Five years or more of governmental accounting, budgeting, and contracting experience.
• Experience with revenue cycle management and financial management in a health care environment.

Forbes recently named King County as one of Washington State's best employers. 

Together, with leadership and our employees, we're changing the way government delivers service and winning national recognition as a model of excellence. Are you ready to make a difference? Come join the team dedicated to serving one of the nation's best places to live, work and play. 

Guided by our "True North", we are making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging in our workplace and workforce. To reach this goal we are committed to workforce equity. Equitable recruiting, support, and retention is how we will obtain the highest quality workforce in our region; a workforce that shares and will help advance our guiding principles--we are one team; we solve problems; we focus on the customer; we drive for results; we are racially just; we respect all people; we lead the way; and we are responsible stewards. We encourage people of all backgrounds and identities to apply, including Native American and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ+, people living with disabilities, and veterans.

King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer
No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other protected class. Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation.

COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement 

King County Executive Branch employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.  If you are the successful candidate for the position you applied for, the County will send you a conditional offer letter. 

As a condition of employment, prior to a final offer of employment, you will be required to:

• submit proof of vaccination or
• have an approved request for medical or religious exemption and an approved accommodation.  Philosophical, political, scientific, or sociological objections to vaccination will not be considered for an exemption or accommodation.

People are considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19 two weeks after receiving the final dose of a vaccination approved by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

• An electronic application through www.kingcounty.gov/jobs or www.governmentjobs.com (use the "Apply" link) including work history and position duties.
• A cover letter describing your interest in this position and how do you meet the required qualifications for this job. 
• A current resume.
• Responses to the supplemental questions.

• The selection process may include but is not limited to: evaluation of application materials and supplemental questions, interviewing, and testing. For more information on our selection process, please refer to www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/jobs/hiring.

• The selected candidate will be required to submit to a thorough background investigation. 
• Employees are required to protect the privacy and security of protected health information as defined in State and Federal Law.
• Employees are required to adhere to OSHA/WISHA guidelines including but not limited to completing required training on time.
• Regular and reliable attendance, effective communication skills, and the development of effective working relationships are requirements of all Public Health positions.
• Staff may be required to play an active role in the event of a public health emergency, which may include changes in responsibilities, work location, and working hours.

The home base for this position is Chinook Building located in Downtown Seattle, Chinook Building, 401 5th Ave., Seattle, WA 98104.