Chief Financial Officer

Talence Group | Executive Search & Consulting; Portland (OR); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Central City Concern is seeking a strategic finance leader to join as CFO, guiding the organization through evolving Medicaid funding, multi‑funding streams, and complex contracting. You will partner with the CEO, executive team, and Board to shape long-term financial resilience and sustainability across health services, housing, and support programs.

The role requires deep experience in multi-funded environments, exemplary communication with diverse stakeholders, and a commitment to serving

Qualifications

• 15+ years of progressive finance leadership in complex, multi-funded environments
• Experience leading finance in healthcare, affordable housing, or human services
• Strong track record in strategic planning, budgeting, and multi-year forecasting
• Experience with audits, compliance, and financial reporting to senior leadership and boards

Responsibilities

• Lead the annual budget and multi-year forecast with scenario planning.
• Serve as Executive Leadership Team member and trusted partner to CEO and Board.
• Oversee Accounting, Billing, and Consolidated financial reporting across entities.
• Guide revenue strategy amidst funding changes and new payment models.
• Manage risk, internal controls, and external audits to ensure compliance.

Skills

Strategic finance leadership

Board liaison

Cash forecasting

Financial modeling

Audit coordination

Regulatory compliance

Stakeholder communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in accounting/finance/business

Advanced degree preferred (MBA/MPA) or CPA

Tools

ERP systems

GAAP/Regulatory frameworks

Job description

Who our client is…

Founded in 1979, Central City Concern (CCC) is a Portland nonprofit that helps people experiencing or at risk of homelessness build healthy, stable lives. Its integrated model spans a Federally Qualified Health Center with 16 clinics, 2,433 affordable and supportive homes across 32 properties, and addiction recovery and employment services. CCC serves approximately 14,400 people each year, with $150M to $200M in annual revenue and more than 1,100 employees.

Federal Medicaid changes, shifting public funding, and evolving payment models are reshaping health care and housing economics. The next CFO will be a strategic partner to the CEO, Executive Leadership Team, and Board in defining how CCC's integrated model is funded and sustained.

What Central City Concern needs…

The ideal candidate is a strategic, mission-anchored finance executive with deep experience leading finance in complex, multi-funded organizations, and the agility to quickly master new revenue models and funding environments.

Equally at home in the boardroom and alongside program leaders, this leader brings financial insight to consequential choices and the empathy to understand what those choices mean for clients and staff. They think clearly through difficult questions and are willing to recommend the right course, even when it is not the easy one.

What you will do…

Strategic & Executive Leadership

• Build a deep understanding of CCC's programs, operations, and culture, establishing credibility with the Executive Leadership Team, Board, and program leaders as a foundation for change.
• Serve as a member of the Executive Leadership Team and a strategic thought partner to the CEO, leadership team, and Board, helping shape CCC's strategy and define what the organization becomes over the next three to five years.
• Integrate the financial perspective across health services, housing, and recovery and employment programs, breaking down silos and building a single enterprise view of performance.
• Lead clear, data-informed decision-making by presenting options and trade-offs, and recommend decisive courses of action when the moment requires them.

Revenue & Funding Strategy

• Develop strategies to protect and grow revenue amid federal Medicaid changes and shifting public funding, including evaluating alternative payment models and new reimbursement opportunities.
• Navigate a complex funding environment of federal, state, regional, county, and city partners; strengthen contract terms and apply disciplined criteria to new funding, declining opportunities that do not support long-term sustainability.
• Partner with Philanthropy to diversify revenue and strengthen CCC's long‑term financial resilience.

Planning, Forecasting & Risk

• Lead the annual budget and build a multi‑year forecast and scenario plan against which the organization measures performance, including cash forecasting for variable public payment cycles.
• Establish financial guardrails, risk tests, and sustainability standards for growth, new programs, partnerships, and contracts.
• Lead cost‑of‑service and project feasibility analysis, assess the financial and operational risk of programs and investments, and recommend, implement, and monitor mitigation strategies.

Asset & Capital Strategy

• Partner with Housing & Development, program, and operations leaders on asset and disposition modeling, including tax credit, refinancing, and transfer options, to guide decisions on CCC’s real estate portfolio with clear timelines.
• Guide capital planning and financing for facilities, housing, and program investments.

Accounting, Controls & Compliance

• Lead Accounting, Billing, Business Information Systems, and Purchasing, ensuring accurate tax filings and consolidated financial reporting across the organization and its affiliated entities and partnerships.
• Lead the annual audit process, including the independent financial audit, single audit, and partnership audits, and maintain strong internal controls that protect public and philanthropic funds.
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, county, and city funding and contract requirements, partnering with legal and compliance colleagues on regulatory matters.

Board & External Relations

• Serve ex officio on the Board Finance and Audit Committees, preparing agendas, materials, and reports.
• Build trusted relationships with lenders, funders, elected officials, and government partners, navigate a complex public‑funding and policy environment, and represent CCC's financial position with clarity and credibility.

Team, People & Systems Leadership

• Lead, develop, and retain a tenured finance team, maintain clear communication, and champion the team's needs with leadership.
• Partner with Human Resources on compensation philosophy and workforce investment, including collective bargaining, balancing the needs of a represented and non‑represented workforce with long‑term financial sustainability.
• Build the business case and a phased roadmap for modern finance systems while delivering clear, timely financial and KPI reporting to program leaders and the Board.

What you will bring…

• 15+ years of progressive finance experience, including senior leadership of multi‑layer finance and accounting teams in healthcare, affordable housing, human services, or another complex, highly regulated environment.
• Experience leading finance in a complex organization with multiple revenue streams, and the agility to quickly learn new funding models.
• A record of leading organizations through funding contraction, restructuring, or transformation, exercising sound judgment on difficult resource allocation and portfolio decisions.
• Strong track record building multi‑year scenario plans, cash forecasts, and program‑level risk models, and turning financial and operational data into clear options for leadership.
• Experience leading a strong internal control environment and external audit process, with a clean audit and compliance history.
• Exceptional communication skills, including experience staffing board finance and audit committees and translating complex funding for boards, funders, lenders, elected officials, and staff.
• Genuine commitment to serving people experiencing homelessness, addiction, and poverty, with a leadership style grounded in empathy, respect, and a deep sense of personal accountability.
• Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, or business required. Advanced degree preferred: Master’s degree in business, finance, accounting, health administration, or public administration, or CPA.

Preferred

• Health care finance experience, including reimbursement and cost reporting.
• Affordable housing or real estate finance experience, including asset management.
• Health plan, payer, or value‑based payment experience.
• Experience working with Medicaid or other public payers.
• Experience with government grants, contracts, and single audits.
• Experience managing cash through variable public payment cycles.
• Experience leading finance systems modernization.
• Experience evaluating partnerships, affiliations, or asset transfers.
• Experience with philanthropy, endowments, or unionized workforces.