Organization: BHARAT RURAL LIVELIHOODS FOUNDATION

Job Title: CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER - FINANCE

Reports to: CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Location: NEW DELHI

Introduction:

Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (BRLF) was set up by the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India (GOI) as an independent organization under the Societies Registration Act to facilitate civil society action in partnership with State and Central Government, for transforming livelihoods and lives of rural households, with an emphasis on women, particularly in the Central Indian Tribal Region.

BRLF is a unique and first-of-its-kind initiative and the Foundation is constituted as a partnership between Government on the one hand and private sector philanthropies, public and private sector undertakings (under Corporate Social Responsibility) on the other. Major functions of BRLF is fostering strategic partnerships with state govt for improving programme outcomes, provide financial grants to Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to meet their human resource and institutional costs for the up-scaling of proven interventions, invest in institutional strengthening of smaller CSOs, capacity building of professional human resources working at the grassroots, and to create a Knowledge Hub for the sector.

For more details on BRLF, please refer to the website https://www.brlf.in/

Reason for the hire:

BRLF is looking to hire an experienced finance professional to serve as the Chief Operating Officer Finance based out of their Delhi Head Office and reporting to the CEO-BRLF. The Chief Operating Officer Finance will serve as a member of the senior management team of the organization and will be responsible for providing overarching leadership to the organisation, particularly the Finance & Accounts vertical. S/he will play a pivotal role in ensuring robust financial systems and controls, adherence to compliances, and maximizing organisational resources.

Roles and Responsibilities:

As a member of the senior management team

- Provide leadership, insights and guidance to BRLF on the organization's financial health, investments, potential risks & mitigation strategies with respect to finance and compliance issues, coordinate information needed for finance strategy development and participate in key senior management meetings of the organization

- Travel outside Delhi, to remote locations to perform duties as deemed necessary Financial Management and Planning

- Overall supervision and management of finance and accounts function as per the finance policies and procedures

- Responsible for developing SOPs, and suggesting revisions to the finance rules as may become necessary from time to time.

- Responsible for the preparation of the annual budget of BRLF under guidance of the CEO.

- Present budget estimates for the financial year and revised estimates in the course of the year to the FAC, EC and GB for consideration and approval

- Supervise recording of transactions in tally accounting package and maintenance of books of accounts and other documents as required by law. Ensure ethical closure of books.

- Ensure timely payment to vendors, consultants and staff.

- Responsible for handling the entire banking operations of BRLF for local and FC funds

- Under the guidance of the Finance and Audit Committee (FAC) of BRLF, ensure investment of BRLF corpus funds as per corpus management policy to maximize returns while ensuring capital protection

Administration, Procurement & IT

- Supervise office management of BRLF Head Office and provide necessary support to staff for smooth functioning of the office. Also ensure administrative support for BRLF state offices.

- Review and ensure all procurement at BRLF are in strict compliance with the procurement policy specified in GFR

- Ensure BRLF's procurement result in value for money

- Ensuring proper management of fixed assets and maintenance of Fixed Asset Register. CSO Grant Management

- Responsible for grant management process end to end on the online application as per Grant Management Policy for the CSO grant partners. Preparation and review of grant contracts until grant closure.

- Conducting proper financial due diligence of grantee partners by checking the balance sheets and audited reports of grantees during proposal assessments. Conduct periodic checking of the utilization of funds against predefined milestones, as well as during reporting.

- Finalize grant contracts with CSO partners

- Coordinate with programme staff on release of grants periodically and ensure timely release from the finance department. Ensure smooth functioning of finance module of the MIS software for online grant-making

- Oversee all financial approvals and processing are done online through the Finance module

- Handhold CSO partners from time to time on financial matters relating to the grant

- Undertake monitoring visits to assess the institutional and financial performance of CSO partners from time to time

- Supervise audit of grant partners annually and take follow-up action based on audit findings

Donor-coordination on financial matters:

- Oversee and ensure that all grant-related terms and conditions is appropriately briefed to team and CEO.

- Support Resource Mobilization team in preparation of budgets for proposals submitted to donors

- Creating donor-specific budget heads, ensuring proper recording and financial reporting to donors

- Ensure expenditures under ongoing donor contracts are as per donor budgets/agreements.

- Provide periodic update budget management

- Engage effectively during donor negotiations and clarifications regarding funds disbursed and their utilization related to the project

Compliance, audit and assurance

- Possess in depth understanding and ensure statutory compliance with the law of the land - IT, FCRA and so on in a time-bound manner

- Handle internal & external Audits, including C&AG audits and donor audits. Organize audits of BRLF partners by external auditors.

- Take follow up action on audit reports and update CEO and FAC as maybe appropriate

Team Management and external representation

- To develop, mentor and support team members for successful financial and operational management at BRLF

- Play an active role in external representation for various audits, income tax and financial compliances and also encourage and involve the finance team of BRLF during such external representation

- To strengthen collaboration with programs, fundraising, M&E, HR etc. teams so that finance is seen as an enabling function while ensuring that compliances at all levels and best financial management practices are being followed

- To ensure excellent communication and a good working relationship with the Government of India's Departments and Ministries and with other stakeholders- institutional and corporate donors, Board members, other BRLF stakeholders, grantee partners and other non-profit organizations as required.

BRLF Board meetings

- To work with the CEO in planning and organizing the Board meetings and other relevant Board events as and when required.

- Report to the Finance and Audit Committee of the Board on the proposed budget, twice a year, along with the Audit report, before it is presented to the BRLF Board.

- Attend Board and Committee meetings, as and when required

- To assist the CEO on any matters regarding the finances before it is tabled to the Board.

COMPETENCIES & SOFT SKILLS

- Excellent understanding of financial systems, policies and procedures.

- Proactively seek changes in statutory and regulatory landscape for not for profits in the country.

- Exhibit extraordinarily high standards of integrity, transparency and teamwork at the workplace.

- Good communication and representational skills along with the ability to build value-based relationships.

- Mature professional with the ability to handle multiple stakeholders and complex situations

- Ability to understand the demands and work under pressure

EXPERIENCE

Must Haves:

- Applicants must have a CA/CMA or Master's degree in Business Administration (Accounting/Finance) from any recognized university with a minimum of 15 years of relevant work experience of which at least 5 years should have been in a leadership role

- Prior experience of working with senior leadership of an organization and the Board on strategic matters.

- Sound experience in financial management, budgeting, statutory compliances, government regulations, financial troubleshooting and audits

- Experience of stakeholder management, particularly with the Government and Ministries.

- Well versed with Official government written communication

Preferable:

- Demonstrated leadership and a track record of working with government/civil society organizations having nationwide programs in a senior finance role.

- Demonstrated experience in handling a range of Indian and FCRA grants is helpful.

BRLF is an equal opportunity organization without discrimination by virtue of religious belief, social class, caste, special ability, or gender

Third Sector Partners is a pioneering cause-connected executive search firm and has been retained for this position. Interested candidates can send in their CVs along with three references and a cover note. The last date to send in your application is June 15th, 2023.

Please note only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

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