Restructuring Director

CFA Institute; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 165,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

CFA Institute is seeking a Director to lead turnaround and restructuring engagements from Chicago or New York. You will oversee teams, drive liquidity management, and develop strategic alternatives while communicating with senior stakeholders.

The role demands deep financial analysis, modeling expertise, and strong client relationships in high-pressure environments with travel around 40%.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or related field.
• MBA, CPA, CFA, or other advanced credentials preferred.
• 6+ years of professional experience in turnaround, restructuring, or financial advisory.

Responsibilities

• Lead multiple turnaround, restructuring, and performance improvement engagements.
• Manage engagement scope, timelines, deliverables, and client expectations.
• Collaborate with executive teams, lenders, investors, boards and stakeholders.

Skills

Leadership

Financial analysis

Financial modeling

Liquidity forecasting

Stakeholder management

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance/Accounting/Economics

MBA/CPA/CFA or equivalent credentials

Tools

Three-statement financial models

Job description

Leveling: Director

Location: Chicago, IL or New York, NY

Turnaround & Restructuring

Our nationally recognized turnaround, restructuring and advisory team serves companies and their stakeholders across a wide spectrum of industries and sizes, with a focus on the middle market. We provide clients with a team of seasoned professionals who have notable track records of creating value through both operational turnarounds and financial restructurings. We are actively recruiting Turnaround & Restructuring professionals to join our team. You will provide extensive financial and operational support on client engagements across a variety of industries and markets; utilize experience and on the job training to successfully deliver reports, models, work product and advice that helps guide the direction and decisions related to client turnaround and/or restructuring objectives.

Position Overview

Directors serve as engagement leaders, overseeing multiple client assignments while managing teams, driving strategic initiatives, and maintaining strong client relationships. Engagements often involve liquidity management, financial restructuring, operational improvement, business plan development, profitability analysis, interim management support, and stakeholder communications.

Successful candidates are highly analytical, collaborative, and comfortable operating in situations that require both strategic thinking and hands‑on execution.

Key Responsibilities

Engagement Leadership & Client Management

• Lead multiple turnaround, restructuring, and performance improvement engagements simultaneously.
• Manage engagement scope, timelines, deliverables, and client expectations.
• Work closely with executive management teams, lenders, investors, boards, and other stakeholders.
• Quickly assess business performance, liquidity challenges, and operational issues to identify actionable solutions.
• Develop strategic recommendations designed to stabilize operations and improve enterprise value.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to client leadership teams.
• Communicate engagement progress and key findings to internal and external stakeholders.
• Mentor, develop, and manage consultants and junior team members.
• Foster a collaborative, high-performance team environment.

Financial & Operational Analysis

• Analyze historical and projected financial performance, capital structures, and debt obligations.
• Build and review detailed three-statement financial models.
• Develop and manage 13-week cash flow forecasts and liquidity analyses.
• Create customer, product, business unit, and profitability analyses.
• Prepare board, lender, investor, and management presentations.
• Design KPI reporting packages and executive dashboards.
• Develop business plans, turnaround strategies, and restructuring alternatives.
• Support refinancing initiatives, capital raises, and M&A-related projects.
• Assist with liquidity management and cash preservation initiatives.
• Review contracts, financing agreements, and other key business documents.
• Support interim finance, accounting, FP&A, and Office of the CFO functions when required.

Business Development & Firm Initiatives

• Support marketing, networking, and business development activities.
• Expand relationships with referral sources, lenders, investors, attorneys, and other professional partners.
• Identify opportunities to deepen existing client engagements.
• Participate in recruiting, training, mentorship, and internal leadership initiatives.
• Contribute to the firm's continued growth and culture.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a related discipline.
• MBA, CPA, CFA, CTP, or other advanced credentials are preferred.
• 6+ years of professional experience, including at least 3 years within a turnaround, restructuring, or financial advisory environment.
• Demonstrated experience leading client engagements and managing project teams.
• Strong background in restructuring, cash flow forecasting, financial modeling, and business performance improvement.
• Advanced proficiency with three-statement financial models and liquidity forecasting.
• Experience building business plans and presenting recommendations to senior stakeholders.
• Ability to analyze large and incomplete data sets and develop meaningful business insights.
• Strong written, verbal, and presentation skills.
• Excellent client relationship and stakeholder management capabilities.
• Ability to balance detailed financial analysis with strategic decision-making.
• Comfortable operating in high-pressure, rapidly changing environments.
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines simultaneously.
• Willingness to travel as needed, typically averaging approximately 40%.

What Makes This Opportunity Attractive

• Direct exposure to CEOs, CFOs, boards, lenders, and investors.
• Opportunity to lead high-impact restructuring and turnaround engagements.
• Significant client-facing responsibility and leadership exposure.
• Entrepreneurial environment with meaningful opportunities for advancement.
• Diverse project work spanning restructuring, performance improvement, and interim management.

Compensation Base Salary:

$165,000 - $200,000