Chief Financial Officer

Plona Partners; Nashville (TN); Hybrid; USD 350,000 - 700,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

Executive leadership network

Competitive compensation package

Job summary

Plona Partners seeks a seasoned CFO to partner with the Chair, Managing Partner and Board, guiding financial strategy, profitability, governance, and growth across a global professional-services platform. The role demands executive presence, commercial judgment, and the ability to align capital with strategic objectives.

Based in Nashville with hybrid flexibility, the CFO will oversee FP&A, accounting, tax, treasury, and controls, drive system modernization, data analytics, and AI-enabled

Qualifications

• Minimum 15 years of progressively responsible financial leadership experience.
• Experience advising executive leadership or governing boards.
• Significant experience in a large professional-services organization (AmLaw 100 preferred).
• Deep knowledge of law firm economics, profitability, utilization, leverage, and partner compensation.
• Proven track record in FP&A, accounting, treasury, tax, billing, and internal controls.

Responsibilities

• Serve as principal financial advisor to the Chair, Managing Partner, Executive Committee and Board on strategy, performance, capital allocation and risk.
• Shape annual and long-term strategic plans aligned with growth objectives.
• Evaluate investments in practice expansion, recruitment, real estate, technology and strategic combinations.
• Present actionable financial insights to partners and senior executives.
• Oversee budgeting, multi-year planning, rolling forecasts and scenario modeling.
• Drive profitability, working capital improvements and resource allocation.
• Establish KPIs, dashboards and reporting frameworks for governance.
• Direct accounting, tax, treasury, audits, payroll accounting and internal controls.
• Maintain compliance across jurisdictions and manage banking relations and liquidity.
• Lead modernization of financial systems, data architecture and process automation, including AI adoption where appropriate.
• Develop a high-performing, global finance organization and succession planning.

Skills

Executive leadership

Strategic finance

FP&A

Financial reporting

Risk management

Education

CPA

MBA

Bachelor's in finance or business

Tools

ERP systems

BI tools

Financial software

Job description

Reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer, the CFO will serve as a trusted financial advisor to the firm's Chair, Managing Partner, Executive Committee, and Board. The successful candidate will bring the commercial judgment, operational discipline, and executive presence required to guide financial strategy, optimize profitability, strengthen financial infrastructure, and support major investment and growth decisions.

• Primary Location: Nashville, Tennessee
• Alternative Locations: New York, Washington DC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, or Palo Alto
• Work Arrangement: Hybrid, three days onsite per week
• Standard Workweek: 35 hours, with flexibility appropriate to an executive leadership role
• Travel: Periodic travel to other firm offices and leadership meetings

Key Responsibilities

Enterprise Strategy & Executive Leadership

• Serve as the firm's principal financial advisor, partnering with executive leadership on strategy, financial performance, capital allocation, and enterprise risk.
• Help shape annual and long-term strategic plans, aligning financial priorities with firmwide growth objectives.
• Evaluate investments in practice expansion, lateral partner recruitment, office growth, technology, real estate, and potential strategic combinations.
• Present actionable financial insights to partners, management committees, and senior executives.

Financial Planning, Performance & Profitability

• Oversee annual budgeting, multiyear financial planning, rolling forecasts, and scenario modeling.
• Drive improvements in profitability, working capital, financial performance, and resource allocation.
• Establish meaningful KPIs, executive dashboards, and financial reporting frameworks.
• Partner with practice and office leadership to evaluate financial performance and growth opportunities.

Global Finance Operations & Governance

• Direct accounting, financial reporting, tax, treasury, audit, payroll-related accounting, and internal controls.
• Ensure accurate financial reporting and compliance across multiple jurisdictions.
• Oversee banking relationships, liquidity planning, capital management, and financial risk mitigation.
• Maintain rigorous governance standards and protect confidential partner, client, and firm financial information.
• Provide executive oversight of billing, collections, accounts receivable, work in progress, and revenue realization.
• Improve cash conversion and financial efficiency through stronger controls, reporting, and accountability.
• Lead modernization of financial systems, data architecture, business intelligence, and process automation.
• Evaluate opportunities to leverage AI, predictive analytics, and emerging technologies responsibly within finance operations.

Leadership & Organizational Development

• Lead and develop a sophisticated, multidisciplinary global finance organization.
• Establish clear performance expectations, succession planning, and leadership development initiatives.
• Build strong relationships across the firm's offices, practice groups, and administrative functions.
• Foster a culture of accountability, service excellence, operational efficiency, and continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or a related discipline; MBA preferred.
• CPA designation strongly preferred, although equivalent executive financial leadership experience will be considered.
• Minimum 15 years of progressively responsible financial leadership experience, including substantial experience advising executive leadership or governing boards.
• Significant experience within an AmLaw 100 firm, international law firm, partnership, or comparably complex professional-services organization strongly preferred.
• Comprehensive knowledge of law firm economics, including profitability, utilization, leverage, realization, working capital, and partner compensation structures.
• Demonstrated success leading finance functions encompassing FP&A, accounting, treasury, tax, billing, collections, financial systems, and internal controls.
• Experience driving organizational transformation, financial technology implementation, and operational improvements.