Director of Finance - Community Justice Project

Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network, Inc.; Harrisburg (Dauphin County); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network, Inc. is seeking a Director of Finance for the Community Justice Project. The role oversees accounting, payroll, budget development, and grant reporting, while ensuring compliance and strong internal controls.

The position supports the executive director and collaborates across departments, with travel to Harrisburg, PA as needed. The successful candidate will have a bachelor’s degree in accounting and at least five years in nonprofit finance, with advanced Excel

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in accounting or equivalent in experience.
• At least five years of experience in a non-profit or business environment with accounting, financial analysis, grants management, and reporting responsibilities.
• Previous experience with payroll and a working understanding of human resources is a plus.
• Demonstrated working knowledge of Microsoft Excel including advanced formulas and skills in word-processing.

Responsibilities

• Serve as primary financial point of contact, providing day-to-day financial oversight and support and responding to inquiries and requests.
• Develop an understanding of the program’s operations and the impact of financial factors on the program’s work.
• Work directly with financial and operational report users to review and analyze reports against budgeted amounts to ensure financial and operational accountability.
• Create, maintain and update standard report formats and generate ad hoc reports as necessary and appropriate.
• Provide grant support, including assisting with proposal budget development, designing and generating financial reports for grantors and audits, and identifying and collaborating to resolve grant compliance issues.
• Serve as the lead staff member in the annual budget and budget revision processes. Collaborate with staff to monitor financial results against budget and identifying, explaining, and resolving variances.
• Process general ledger entries. This includes (but is not limited to) paying and entering bills, expense allocations, cost distributions, transfers, adjustments, and revenue recognition.
• Process employee payroll on a semi-monthly basis and manage the administrative portion of the employee benefit programs.
• Handle cost allocations and reconcile balance sheet accounts. Identify problems and take appropriate action for resolution.
• Monitor CJP's internal controls for compliance with fiscal policies and procedures. Develop and recommend updates to internal controls as needed. Provide all necessary financial documents for CJP's auditors.
• Special projects as needed, in collaboration with the executive director.

Education

Bachelor's degree in accounting

Tools

Microsoft Excel

QuickBooks

Job description

Director of Finance - Community Justice Project

February 28, 2025

Overview of the Community Justice Project

The Community Justice Project (CJP) is a statewide legal aid program that works to protect the civil legal rights of low-income clients through impact litigation and policy advocacy. CJP is a project within the Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network.

Location

The director of finance can work mostly remotely, but ideally would have the ability to travel to Harrisburg, PA several times per year.

Responsibilities

The director of finance will work closely and collaboratively with CJP's executive director to ensure the accuracy and integrity of CJP's accounting system and associated reports. The director of finance will be responsible for financial reporting and the financial aspects of contract compliance, grant applications and grant reporting, cost allocations, and developing and analyzing the annual budget. The director of finance will also be responsible for employee payroll and managing employee benefit programs. The director of finance will also partner with the executive director to manage CJP's information technology contract and other administrative functions as needed.

A portion of the director of finance's time will also be contracted out to another non-profit organization performing general accounting and bookkeeping functions.

The director of finance's usual schedule will be approximately 35 hours per week, but hours may fluctuate depending on deadlines.

Essential Functions/Responsibilities:

The key responsibilities of the director of finance include the following:

• Serve as primary financial point of contact, providing day-to-day financial oversight and support and responding to inquiries and requests.
• Develop an understanding of the program’s operations and the impact of financial factors on the program’s work.
• Work directly with financial and operational report users to review and analyze reports against budgeted amounts to ensure financial and operational accountability.
• Create, maintain and update standard report formats and generate ad hoc reports as necessary and appropriate.
• Provide grant support, including assisting with proposal budget development, designing and generating financial reports for grantors and audits, and identifying and collaborating to resolve grant compliance issues.
• Serve as the lead staff member in the annual budget and budget revision processes. Collaborate with staff to monitor financial results against budget and identifying, explaining, and resolving variances.
• Process general ledger entries. This includes (but is not limited to) paying and entering bills, expense allocations, cost distributions, transfers, adjustments, and revenue recognition.
• Process employee payroll on a semi-monthly basis and manage the administrative portion of the employee benefit programs.
• Handle cost allocations and reconcile balance sheet accounts. Identify problems and take appropriate action for resolution.
• Monitor CJP's internal controls for compliance with fiscal policies and procedures. Develop and recommend updates to internal controls as needed. Provide all necessary financial documents for CJP's auditors.
• Special projects as needed, in collaboration with the executive director.
  

Qualifications

Education: Bachelor's degree in accounting or equivalent in experience.

Experience: At least five years of experience in a non-profit or business environment with accounting, financial analysis, grants management, and reporting responsibilities. Previous experience with payroll and a working understanding of human resources is a plus.

Other Required Skills and Abilities:

• Demonstrated working knowledge of Microsoft Excel including advanced formulas and skills in word-processing required. Working knowledge of Quickbooks preferred.
• Experienced with financial and operating data analysis, report design, and the presentation of quantitative information, including account reconciliation and budget to actual comparisons
• Ability to effectively communicate quantitative information verbally and in writing to audiences with varying levels of financial sophistication.
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision, to multi-task and to work collaboratively and cooperatively, as a member of a team. Must be organized and able to set priorities and to ensure timely completion of responsibilities. Willing to work on various tasks as assigned.
• Able to work a flexible schedule as needed.
  

Compensation

Compensation will depend on experience.