Director, Fin Strat/Res Plan

Columbia University; New York (NY); On-site; USD 155,000 - 175,000; Full time

Job summary

Columbia University in New York seeks a Director of Financial Strategy & Resource Planning within CUIMC IT to serve as the CIO's senior advisor on financial strategy, resource governance, workforce planning, and administrative effectiveness. The role aligns financial and workforce resources with the IT strategy and institutional priorities, partnering with Finance, HR, and central offices.

The position leads long-range financial planning, executive-level analyses, and governance frameworks

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Finance, Accounting, Public Administration, or related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 5 years of progressively responsible experience in financial strategy, planning, administration, business operations, or resource management.
• Experience developing multi-year financial plans, leading budgeting/forecasting, and advising executives on resource allocation.
• Experience with workforce planning, organizational resource modeling, and staffing decisions implications.
• Experience establishing governance, performance measures, internal controls, and management reporting.

Responsibilities

• Own CUIMC IT's multi-year financial strategy and annual resource framework.
• Develop funding models incorporating central funding, internal chargebacks, and other methodologies.
• Advise CIO on resource allocation, risk, and strategic trade-offs for executive decisions.
• Establish department-wide financial governance and performance dashboards.
• Lead workforce and position planning in partnership with HR and IT leadership.
• Create governance for headcount, labor costs, and hiring plans.

Skills

Advanced analytics

Executive communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Influence senior leaders

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business Administration/Finance

Master's degree preferred

Job description

• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Bargaining Unit:
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• End Date if Temporary:
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Standard Work Schedule:
• Building:
• Salary Range: $155,000 - $175,400

The salary of the finalist selected for this role will be set based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to departmental budgets, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, specialty, and training. The above hiring range represents the University's good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible compensation at the time of posting.

Position Summary

Reporting to the Chief Information Officer (CIO), the Director, Financial Strategy & Resource Planning serves as the CIO's senior advisor for financial strategy, resource governance, workforce planning, and administrative operating effectiveness. The Director establishes the management framework through which CUIMC IT aligns financial and workforce resources with its multi-year technology strategy and institutional priorities.

This role has department-wide accountability for long-range financial strategy, investment and resource planning, workforce and position strategy, financial governance, management reporting, internal controls, and administrative performance. The Director develops decision frameworks, operating standards, and executive-level analyses that enable the CIO and IT leadership to evaluate priorities, risks, capacity, and resource trade-offs. The role partners with CUIMC Finance, Human Resources, central University offices, and senior institutional stakeholders to advance organizational priorities and ensure disciplined stewardship of departmental resources.

Responsibilities

Essential Duties

Enterprise Financial Strategy & Resource Governance

• Own the development of CUIMC IT's multi-year financial strategy and annual resource framework, aligning operating plans, workforce investments, and technology priorities with institutional objectives.
• Develop, refine, and maintain CUIMC IT's funding model, incorporating revenue from central funding sources, internal chargeback methodologies, and other funding mechanisms to support sustainable operations and equitable resource allocation.
• Advise the CIO and IT leadership on resource allocation, affordability, financial risk, and strategic trade-offs, frame options, and recommendations for executive decision-making.
• Establish department-wide financial governance, planning assumptions, decision rights, performance expectations, and review cadences that strengthen accountability and fiscal discipline.
• Lead scenario planning and sensitivity analysis to evaluate the financial implications of strategic initiatives, organizational changes, service models, and significant technology investments.
• Define the financial measures and executive reporting required to assess sustainability, resource utilization, and progress against strategic priorities.

Portfolio Planning & Executive Decision Support

• Create and manage an integrated planning process that connects strategic priorities, investment needs, workforce capacity, and available financial resources across CUIMC IT.
• Develop business cases, financial models, and decision frameworks for major initiatives and competing investment priorities; identify risks, dependencies, and longer-term resource implications.
• Provide the CIO and IT leadership with forward-looking analyses and recommendations rather than transactional reporting, including trend, scenario, capacity, and cost-driver analyses.
• Lead periodic executive performance reviews and ensure decisions, financial commitments, risks, and corrective actions are clearly documented and tracked to resolution.
• Workforce Strategy & Organizational Capacity
• Own department-wide workforce and position planning in partnership with the CIO, IT leadership, and Human Resources, translating strategy into multi-year staffing and labor-cost plans.
• Develop workforce scenarios that assess organizational capacity, critical capabilities, vacancy impacts, position priorities, and the financial implications of alternative staffing models.
• Advise leadership on organizational design, resource deployment, position management, succession considerations, and workforce investments required to deliver strategic priorities.
• Establish governance and reporting for headcount, labor costs, vacancies, hiring plans, and workforce commitments to support disciplined resource decisions.

Financial Governance, Controls & Performance

• Set standards for departmental budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, variance management, documentation, and financial controls; oversee their consistent application across CUIMC IT.
• Oversee the annual budget and forecast cycle at the departmental level, challenging assumptions and ensuring plans reflect strategic priorities, known commitments, risks, and resource constraints.
• Develop and oversee the financial and administrative framework for internal client service arrangements, including service-level agreements (SLAs), memoranda of understanding (MOUs), and associated financial arrangements, ensuring clear service expectations, funding methodologies, and financial accountability.
• Establish executive dashboards and key performance indicators that provide timely visibility into financial performance, workforce utilization, resource risks, and emerging trends.
• Ensure effective internal controls, audit readiness, and compliance with CUIMC and University financial and administrative requirements; sponsor corrective action when systemic issues are identified.
• Identify structural cost pressures, financial risks, and opportunities to improve resource utilization and recommend actions to the CIO and IT leadership.

Administrative Operating Model & Organizational Effectiveness

• Design and continuously improve the administrative operating model supporting CUIMC IT, including governance structures, management routines, standards, escalation paths, and accountability mechanisms.
• Translate CIO and IT leadership priorities into coordinated operating plans, measurable outcomes, and cross-functional execution mechanisms.
• Drive department-wide initiatives to improve administrative effectiveness, management information, process discipline, data quality, and organizational scalability.
• Serve as a strategic resource for complex financial, resource, and administrative matters requiring cross-functional analysis, coordination, or executive decision-making.
• Represent CUIMC IT with Finance, Human Resources, central University offices, and senior institutional stakeholders on strategic financial, workforce, and administrative matters.

Other

• Perform other related duties and responsibilities as assigned/requested.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Finance, Accounting, Public Administration, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 5 years of progressively responsible experience in financial strategy, planning, administration, business operations, or resource management within a complex organization, including experience leading complex initiatives and influencing decisions across organizational boundaries.
• Demonstrated experience developing multi-year financial plans, leading complex budgeting and forecasting, and advising senior executives on resource allocation and financial trade-offs.
• Demonstrated experience with workforce planning, organizational resource modeling, and the financial implications of staffing and organizational design decisions.
• Experience establishing governance, performance measures, internal controls, and management reporting across a complex function or department.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives through influence, subject-matter expertise, and collaboration without direct supervisory authority.
• Advanced analytical judgment and executive communication skills, with demonstrated ability to synthesize complex financial and operational information into decision-ready recommendations.
• Proven ability to influence and build alignment with senior leaders and cross-functional stakeholders in a highly matrixed environment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Business Administration, Finance, Public Administration, or a related field.
• 7 or more years of progressively responsible experience in finance, strategy, administration, or business operations, with increasing organizational scope, complexity, and strategic accountability.
• Experience in a large academic medical center, healthcare organization, higher education institution, or similarly complex and highly matrixed environment.
• Experience leading strategic financial and administrative planning within an information technology organization or other complex service organization.
• Experience advising executive leadership on portfolio prioritization, workforce strategy, organizational design, and resource allocation.
• Familiarity with Columbia University financial systems and administrative processes.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.