The Partnership offers a modern hybrid work environment, which includes both remote and office building settings in Olympia, Tacoma and Seattle. All staff are required to report to offices and work sites as needed. Some staff may be required to work in an office setting more frequently than others if they are unable to effectively conduct work remotely or as business needs arise. All newly hired employees will be expected to report to the Olympia office on their first day of employment for onboarding.
 
As the Puget Sound Partnership’s Chief Financial Officer, you will provide strategic leadership and operational oversight for the Partnership’s budget, accounting, contract, and business functions to support, enable and enhance the agency’s mission and policy and programmatic initiatives and activities.

A little bit about the Partnership
The Puget Sound Partnership is a non-regulatory state agency leading the region’s collective effort to restore and protect Puget Sound. We are also one of the Executive Cabinet agencies under Governor Inslee’s Office. The Partnership brings together hundreds of partners to mobilize action around a common agenda, advance Sound investments, and advance priority actions by supporting partners. We are on a journey working to transform a vision where each of us can bring our intersectionality and true self to the workplace. Our commitment to creating equitable and inclusive work environments that support the success of the full range of staff is grounded in recognizing that each of us needs different things to thrive. We believe that employees who feel valued and respected will create policies, programs, practices, and services that effectively meet the needs and exceed the expectations of our increasingly diverse partner populations.
  

We are proud to offer a suite of “Employer of Choice” initiatives, including:

• A healthy/work balance by offering flexible and alterative schedules
• Generous professional development and at-home office allowances
• Active and engaging equity and inclusion programs, including an affinity group
• Comprehensive benefits package, including additional Employee Assistance Program benefits
• Fully vested in modern workplace practices and design
• An Infant at Work Program that is based on the long-term health values of infant-parent bonding and breastfeeding newborns. 

For more information, visit our website: www.psp.wa.gov.

A Little bit About the Position
This full-time unrepresented position is exempt from civil service law and has a duty station at our Headquarters building in Olympia, Washington. This position’s duty station may change to Tacoma once that location is operational in 2023. Within the organizational chart, this position is a member of the Internal Operations Team and reports directly to the Chief Operating Officer. 

Regular travel throughout the state may be necessary for this position.
 

We encourage applicants from outside of Washington to apply! The successful candidate would be required to relocate to Washington state within 30 days of the appointment date. The expectation of this position’s starting appointment date is Nov-Dec of 2022. 

What you will be Doing
You will be responsible for overseeing the fiscal aspects of the agency and will provide oversight of Puget Sound Partnership’s roughly $34M biennial budget. You will supervise fiscal and contracts staff in the performance of accounting, budget, contract/procurement, and compliance functions. You will be responsible for ensuring that sound financial procedures and systems are in place for the agency, that all funds are managed in compliance with state and federal policies and regulations, that the funds can be appropriately and accurately tracked, and that staff throughout the agency have the information they need to make informed choices in financial management.

Some of the duties include:

• Provides overall strategic financial leadership to apply and manage financial resources in support of agency mission and program goals 
• Supervises the Grants, Contracts & Compliance Manager and the Accounting and Budget Program Manager 
• Manages and directs agency accounting and budget operations 
• Manages and oversees contracting and purchasing activities 
• Contributes to decision-making, and advises executive management on resource allocation, opportunities, and constraints 
• Facilitates solutions and communicates outcomes and positions 
• Advises agency leadership in the development and implementation of administrative policies, procedures, and practices to achieve results 
• Directs and implements process improvements for fiscal and business operations of the agency 
• Directs and conducts financial analysis, monitoring and forecasting 
• Oversee the creation of tools and processes that integrate data in support of budget development, financial analysis and reporting 
• Plans, coordinates and oversees preparation and submission of biennial and supplemental agency budget requests and monitors appropriations requests throughout the governor’s and legislative budget processes. 
• Leads internal processes to prioritize and allocate resources from appropriations, and other sources to accomplish highest priority work 
• Manages and oversees federal and state compliance functions, maintains internal controls and risk management, liaison with auditor and external financial agencies 
• Coordinates the ranking of Puget Sound recovery related decision packages submitted by other state agencies – this activity has statewide budget and policy impact 

• Quality Improvement:
  • Promotes, implements and fosters an environment that proactively supports change and innovation within the area of responsibility
  • Facilitates team efforts in continuous quality improvement activities consistent with the Governor’s quality initiative
• Staff:
  • Engages staff in a way that supports high performance and quality improvement
  • Exercises independent judgment within legal and agency HR policy frameworks related to: interviewing, hiring, training, mentoring, recognizing, and developing personnel
  • Development of training plans for each position in the division (dependent on budget).
  • Partners with staff on professional development goals and objectives
  • Demonstrates abilities in holding staff accountable, including giving them clear direction, defined objectives, and managing performance based on agency policy and HR best practices
  • Manage staff schedules, including telecommuting, in a manner that ensures a balance between staff flexibility and desired work outcome
• Management of Work:
  • Ownership (accountability and responsibility) for the lines of business. This will include the ability to prioritize work consistent with agency budgets, work plans, priorities, standard operating procedures (SOPs), policies and best practices, etc., and the ability to make important/critical decisions for which the position is responsible for
  • Identifies conflicts and proactively initiates corrective action
  • Demonstrate the ability to balance demands and keep multiple initiatives and work tasks going at the same time
  • Understands their scope of authority and escalates appropriately
  • Uses data and stakeholder feedback to drive decisions, including appropriate use of performance measures to manage the business in the near and long-term
  • Effectively partners with other partners (internal and/or external) to accomplish outcomes in a way which promotes teamwork and decision making at the lowest possible level
• Fiscal:
  • Responsible for expense and revenue budgets related to the lines of business. This includes understanding and monitoring line item authority
  • Responsible for contract and grant management related to the lines of business
  • Understands and models the use of agency fiscal policy and related state and federal policies

Required Experience, Competencies, and Technical Skills (experience may be concurrent):

• Minimum of four (4) years of experience as a supervising financial manager and a demonstrated ability to develop and lead others
• Ability to understand, interpret and apply Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)
• Ability to apply and communicate state and federal fiscal rules
• Experience with grants management and technology-enabled operations/accounting systems
• Strong project management and organizational skills with a record of developing and strengthening systems and processes
• Excellent interpersonal skills and a strong customer service orientation
• Desire to work with people of different backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives
• Demonstrated ability to maintain confidentiality in a team environment
• Ability to interact with coworkers, clients, and others in a positive manner; practice active listening; be open and honest; treat others with respect, kindness, and consideration; respond to difficult, stressful, or sensitive interpersonal situations in ways that reduce or minimize potential conflict and maintains good working relationships among internal and external customers
• Demonstrated ability to produce results and maintain relationships in stressful situations
• Ability to fulfill commitments to agency staff with quality and timely work and promote a friendly climate and cooperation among team members
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• Willingness to accept personal responsibility for the quality and timeliness of work can be relied upon to achieve excellent results with little need for oversight
• Ability to manage competing priorities and ensure deadlines are met

PREFERRED:

• Master’s degree in Public Administration, Political Science, Accounting, Economics, Finance, or another related field.
• Three (3) or more years of fiscal and/or budget management experience at the executive management level in a state agency.
  
  

CONDITIONS OF THE WORKING ENVIRONMENT:
   With or without accommodations, I am willing and able to:

• Work indoors, at a desk/workstation the majority of a workday, in an open office environment with possible conversation and other noise distractions 
• Work in a tobacco-free, drug-free, and alcohol-free environment
• Work a 40-hour work week (A flexible work schedule may be considered upon request and supervisory approval, after an initial review period)
• Occasionally work in excess of 40 hours per week and/or to adjust normally scheduled hours, which may include evenings and weekends, to meet program needs and critical deadlines
• Occasionally travel throughout the state, which may include overnight stays, as required, while performing the duties of this position
• Work in a fast-paced environment with multiple priorities and competing deadlines
• Maintain confidentiality regarding information accessed or discussed while performing the duties of the position
• Interact and work with partners and staff in a positive, friendly, and supportive manner that meets the needs and standards of the office and the agency

Intrigued?  

We’d love to hear from you. At Puget Sound Partnership we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role, but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every preferred qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Click on “Apply” to submit your detailed application. Please attach the following documents in order to be considered; failure to do so may result in you not being considered for the position:

• A letter of interest that describes how you meet the specific qualifications for this position. 
• Current resume, detailing experience, and education.

** You will want to ensure you have a current list of at least three (3) professional references with current contact information attached or available to provide at the time of the interview.

NOTE:  By submitting these materials, you are indicating that all information is true and correct. The state may verify the information. Any untruthful or misleading information is cause for removal from the applicant pool or dismissal if employed. A resume will not substitute for completing the “duties summary” section of the application.  Please do not say “refer to resume for detail” in your question responses, or your application may be disqualified.

Things we ask you NOT include in your submission:

• Please remove any private or personal information such as your social security number, date of birth, marital status, family status, etc

• Do not attach documents that are password protected
• Do not include your vaccination records or verification
         

Conditions of Employment: 

•  COVID Vaccination Requirement: Per Governor Inslee’s Proclamation 21-14(Download PDF reader), state employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. This position requires in-person attendance with no option for full-time telework.  Please note that any offer of employment is contingent upon you providing verification of your vaccine status. No start date will be approved until you have verified your vaccine status.