Strategic FP&A Director — Budget & Forecasting

Harvarduniversity; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Harvard College Library in Cambridge, MA seeks a Senior FP&A leader to drive budget planning, forecasting, and financial strategy for the library's operations.

You will supervise FP&A staff, partner with library leadership, manage endowment and fund activity, and deliver actionable insights to optimize resources. This role emphasizes governance, resilience, and cross-unit collaboration to support the university's mission. Prior higher education finance experience is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Supervise, mentor, coach, and develop FP&A staff by providing technical guidance and prioritizing workloads.
• Foster a collaborative, customer-focused, high-performing team culture emphasizing accountability and client service.
• Support recruitment, onboarding, training, performance management, and succession planning.
• Establish and continuously improve FP&A documentation, file structures, workflow standards, internal controls, and business continuity.
• Lead the annual operating budget, quarterly forecasts, multi-year financial plan, capital planning and related deliverables.
• Advise budget managers on budget development, forecasting, fund management, financial sustainability, and resource planning.
• Monitor funding sources including endowment income, gifts, and other revenue sources; advise on financial activity.
• Lead fund utilization and optimization, evaluating balances, reserves, and spending trends for flexibility.
• Oversee FTE and position management to align with budgets and strategic priorities.
• Identify financial risks and opportunities through variance analysis and long-range forecasting.
• Lead complex financial analyses, business cases, and projects supporting strategic decisions.
• Lead financial planning for facilities operations budgets, reserves, and capital projects.
• Provide FP&A for collections management, including budget development and long-term sustainability.
• Develop advanced financial models, dashboards, and tools to improve forecasting and decision support.
• Evaluate emerging technologies, including Generative AI, to improve reporting and automation.
• Perform other duties and special projects in support of Library Finance goals.
• Build collaborative relationships with Accounting, Library Administration, HR, and university financial offices.

Job description

Harvard College Library in Cambridge, MA seeks a Senior FP&A leader to drive budget planning, forecasting, and financial strategy for the library's operations.

You will supervise FP&A staff, partner with library leadership, manage endowment and fund activity, and deliver actionable insights to optimize resources. This role emphasizes governance, resilience, and cross-unit collaboration to support the university's mission. Prior higher education finance experience is preferred.