The Institutes Careers

About The Institutes 

A not-for-profit organization located in beautiful Malvern, PA, The Institutes have been the leading provider of risk management and property-casualty insurance education for more than 100 years. By living our values—Put the Customer First, Do What You Say, Work Together, Be Innovative and Do the Right Thing— our talented team delivers innovative solutions that best empower risk and insurance professionals to help those in need. In 2024, The Institutes was named a Top Workplace by Philly.com for the ninth time. We understand the importance of work-life balance and provide excellent benefits and a friendly and team-focused work environment to drive employee engagement.  

SVP, Finance and CFO

The Senior Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is responsible for leading Finance and other shared services as assigned to develop, align, coordinate and execute strategic goals in support of the organization’s strategic initiatives and business model. The CFO is also responsible for directing the financial strategy of the organization, performing analysis to understand opportunities and challenges to the financial health of the business, overseeing the accounting function of the business and forward-looking forecasting on both tactical and strategic levels. This position is a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT).  This position reports directly to the President and CEO. The Controller, General Counsel, Vice President of Human Resources, Director of Facilities and Inventory Management, and Risk Manager report to this position

Key responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Directs financial strategy, planning and forecasts in partnership with the Senior Management Team. Understands the business model, studies, analyzes and reports on trends, opportunities for business expansion and growth, and projection of future company growth, including mergers and acquisitions.
• Provides leadership and oversees all financial activity for the organization, including audits, treasury and cash flow management, statutory & tax compliance, capital investments, general accounting, financial analysis and reporting to management and Board of Trustees, and retirement plans.
• Leads technology evaluation and adoption to leverage new technology including Gen AI, where appropriate, to execute business tasks and analysis.
• Builds forecasting models to project short term financials results as well as longer term strategic financial health of the company. Is also responsible for anticipating and recommending different financing techniques such as debt, stock issuance for for-profit subsidiaries and other financing techniques as may be required. Oversees capital structure of the organization including funding strategies. Manages relationships with investment manager, banks, and other financial institutions.
• Contributes, as a member of the Senior Management Team, to developing and implementing strategic initiatives, scalable processes, policies and practices.
• Leads Finance and other shared service departments as assigned to develop, align, coordinate, and execute strategic goals in support of the organization’s strategic initiatives.
• Assures legal and regulatory compliance with existing laws and regulations; anticipates and prepares the organization for compliance with new laws and regulations as they arise or are forecasted.
• Identifies risk elements of our operations and helps to manage and minimize risk elements, wherever possible. Proactively works with an enterprise risk management focus to protect the key elements of our business and review periodically the enterprise risk management plan.
• Oversees the development of business processes for new products and services, improvement of existing business processes, negotiation of contracts, and integration of acquisitions.
• Serves as a Trustee of the Pension Committee.
• Develops and manages staff to achieve organizational goals through effective, interdependent, and independent contribution.
• Oversees the development, documentation, implementation and updates of comprehensive building and grounds preventive maintenance, cleaning, and improvement for all properties either owned or leased.
• Act as an SMT Liaison, ensuring alignment between SMT, team and charter; responds to and updates SMT; offers strategic perspective and advises chartered team when appropriate.
• Actively shapes the culture and leads the company to rally around the vision; consistently promotes and exhibits behaviors within core values.

Competencies and Expereince Required:

Candidates will have a minimum 10 years’ experience of progressive accounting in both private and public accounting and  hold a Bachelor’s degree in business, Finance, or related field required.  Advanced degree is desirable. CPA is strongly preferred and larger non-profit Financial management is a plus. In terms of the performance and personal competencies required for the position, we would highlight the following:

Setting Strategy

• The ability to create and articulate an inspiring vision for the organization, not only for the areas they are directly responsible for, but the enterprise as a whole.
• The inclination to seek and analyze data from a variety of sources to support decisions and to align others with the organization's overall strategy.
• An entrepreneurial and creative approach to developing new, innovative ideas that will stretch the organization and push the boundaries within the industry.
• The ability to effectively balance the desire/need for broad change with an understanding of how much change the organization is capable of handling, to create realistic goals and implementation plans that are achievable and successful.

Executing for Results

• The ability to set clear and challenging goals while committing the organization to improved performance; tenacious and accountable in driving results.
• Comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty; the ability to adapt nimbly and lead others through complex situations.
• A risk-taker who seeks data and input from others to foresee possible threats or unintended circumstances from decisions; someone who takes smart risks.
• A leader who is viewed by others as having a high degree of integrity and forethought in their approach to making decisions; the ability to act in a transparent and consistent manner while always taking into account what is best for the organization.

Leading Teams

• The ability to attract and recruit top talent, motivate the team, delegate effectively, celebrate diversity within the team, and manage performance; widely viewed as a strong developer of others.
• The ability to persevere in the face of challenges, and exhibit a steadfast resolve and relentless commitment to higher standards, which commands respect from followers.
• A leader who is self-reflective and aware of their own limitations; leads by example and drives the organization's performance with an attitude of continuous improvement by being open to feedback and self-improvement.

Relationships and Influence

• Naturally connects and builds strong relationships with others, demonstrating strong emotional intelligence and an ability to communicate clearly and persuasively.
• An ability to inspire trust and followership in others through compelling influence, powerful charisma, passion in their beliefs, and active drive.
• Encourages others to share the spotlight and visibly celebrates and supports the success of the team.
• Creates a sense of purpose/meaning for the team that generates followership beyond their own personality and engages others to the greater purpose for the organization as a whole.

Driving Sustainability

• Firmly believes that both sustainability and profit are in the organization’s best long-term interest.
• Integrates economic, societal, and environmental factors into a purpose-driven strategy, turning sustainability into a competitive advantage.
• Understands and incorporates viewpoints from all key stakeholders to drive decision making and share the benefits.
• Delivers breakthrough innovations and business models that create value for all stakeholders, continually challenging traditional approaches.
• Sets audacious business and sustainability goals, driving concerted action and investments, and stays the course in the face of setbacks or push-back from short-term oriented stakeholders.

Competitive compensation package commensurate with expereince.