Description

***Primarily Remote***
 

Position Summary

The Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) is a strategic and mission-driven leader responsible for aligning people strategy with organizational performance and compliance while driving excellence across select administrative, operational, and support functions. This role combines oversight of Human Resources with executive-level administrative leadership, requiring financial stewardship, budgeting expertise, and the ability to lead cross-functional process improvement and change management initiatives that ensure scalability, efficiency, and mission alignment. The CAO must bring proven experience managing budgets, process and policy design, optimizing resource allocation, and executing organization-wide strategies in alignment with institutional priorities.      
                                          

Organizational Role & Job Scope

The CAO serves on the Executive Leadership Team (ELT), is a member of the Operations Management Committee (OMC) and partners closely with the CEO, executives, and other College leadership to foster an inclusive and high-performance culture where people feel valued, supported and inspired; while guiding strategies that drive growth and optimize operational practices across The College.

In addition to shaping culture, the CAO serves as a key operational strategist, ensuring that organizational infrastructure, resource allocation, and performance and compliance management systems support The College’s long-term goals. This includes oversight of cross-departmental coordination, and the continuous improvement of administrative systems, policies, and procedures.

The CAO is expected to bring a strong command of organizational development, business operations, and fiscal management, ensuring operational decisions align with both strategic intent and financial sustainability. Additionally, the CAO is directly responsible for The College’s human resources and people strategy with broad authority to act on behalf of The College on matters related to its human capital and administrative operations, including direct oversight of associated functional units.
 

Expected Contributions

Operations/Administration

• Serve as one of the key architects for The College, ensuring administrative, human resources, processes, and policies are streamlined, efficient, and aligned with strategic priorities, the mission and values.
• Optimize business processes, policies, systems, and resources to support strategic and operational goals.
• Establish and monitor KPIs for organizational efficiency, service delivery, and operational ROI.
• Lead annual budgeting and forecasting process for their areas of responsibility, collaborating with Finance to ensure fiscal discipline, resource optimization, and alignment with institutional goals.
• Ensure that operational strategies promote innovation, cost-effectiveness, and scalability in a largely remote environment.
• Implement enterprise-wide change management frameworks that improve performance, communication, and accountability.
• Drive process improvement through data-informed decision-making and cross-functional collaboration.
• Foster a culture of accountability, operational excellence, and innovation across departments.
  
  

People & Culture

• Maintain award winning culture and promote a shared purpose that reflects The College’s mission, vision and values, across all levels, in a remote working environment.
• Guide engagement and culture-building and transformation initiatives that foster inclusion, collaboration, trust, and lifelong learning.
  Lead efforts in faculty and staff recruitment, development, and retention, ensuring talent strategies are tightly integrated with organizational structure and operational priorities.
• Use HR analytics and operational data to drive insights for both people and process improvement.
• Apply organizational development methodologies to structure teams for efficiency and clarity.
• Develop and administer comprehensive total rewards programs: compensation (including executive compensation and variable pay plans), benefits, and recognition programs that are fair, competitive, and aligned with The College’s values.
• Ensure compliance with employment laws, workplace safety, and HR best practices across the 30 states where The College employs faculty and professional staff.
• Champion continuous improvement and lead large-scale change initiatives that strengthen agility and alignment across The College.
  
  

Strategic Leadership & Collaboration

• Serve as a trusted advisor to the CEO, executive team and other senior leaders on people, culture, and operational matters; and liaison to Trustee Board on matters related to talent and compensation.
• Partner with the CEO to translate strategic priorities into actionable operating plans, ensuring people, processes, and systems are aligned.
• Design and implement comprehensive talent development programs that align with long-term strategic goals, support succession planning, and drive sustainable growth.
• Serve as the primary advisor on organizational structure and operational readiness, including workforce planning and resource allocation.
• Lead organizational design and development efforts, ensuring roles, reporting structures, and workflows support institutional agility.
• Support the enterprise transformation and modernization initiatives, ensuring change efforts are structured, measured, and sustained.
• Model inclusive and empathetic leadership, ensuring decisions are rooted in equity, transparency, and long-term sustainability.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Organizational Development, Business Administration, Human Resources, or related field (Master’s degree strongly preferred)
• Certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) (preferred)
• 10+ years of progressively responsible leadership experience with at least five years in an executive leadership role
• Proven executive experience overseeing both human capital and administrative functions
• Demonstrated budgeting, forecasting, and financial analysis expertise; P&L responsibility preferred
• Track record of implementing organization-wide process improvements, technology adoptions, and change management initiatives
• Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills and strong organizational and planning skills
• Ability to effectively lead, coach, inspire and manage others, and to communicate with and work effectively with faculty, staff, client companies, volunteers, alumni, peers, industry partners and vendors
• Advanced understanding of organizational development, systems design, and cross-functional leadership in complex or matrixed organizations
• Must be adaptable and self-directed with ability to exercise good judgment and to use discretion in interactions with others
• Demonstrated success fostering inclusive workplace cultures and driving organizational change in mission-based settings (non-profit, higher-education, professional associations, etc.)
• Demonstrated success managing multi-million-dollar budgets and aligning operational decisions with strategic and fiscal priorities
• Strong business acumen and subject matter expertise in HR practices and trends, labor law, compliance, organizational development, and higher education operations
• Working knowledge of HR Information Systems (HRIS) and other ERP and operating systems (e.g., Paycom, Microsoft Windows/Office, NetSuite, Salesforce, etc.); and ability to lead technology adoption to improve HR and operational workflows
• Strong operational and financial acumen with demonstrated success in process improvement and cross-functional leadership; ability to manage departmental and organizational budgets
• Exceptional communication, relationship-building, collaboration, change management and facilitation skills
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and aligning people and processes with organizational goals
• Proven ability to foster inclusive cultures and lead organizational change, transformation initiatives, and process improvements
  
  
                                                                                                         Core Competencies

Subject Matter Expertise: Able to keep abreast of all legislation and compliance issues related to The College’s people and systems operations, including awareness of legal, reputational and operational risks
Mission-Driven Leadership: Able to act with strong integrity to promote The College’s mission of applied financial knowledge, lifelong learning, ethical standards, and societal impact
Inclusive Culture Builder: Able to create an environment where faculty, staff, and students feel valued, and supported
Operational Stewardship: Leads with fiscal accountability and operational discipline; able to interpret financial data, streamline workflows, and implement systems that improve institutional performance and sustainability.
Operational Acumen: Able to connect strategy to execution by managing budgets, resources, and systems that drive measurable results.
Strategic Thinker: Able to balance the needs of today with opportunities for innovation and growth while being mindful of how departments and functions interrelate across The College
Change and Transformation Leadership: Skilled at leading large-scale organizational change with empathy, communication, and process discipline.
Collaborative Partner: Able to build trust and shared ownership across academic and administrative teams; and to communicate and influence across The College

The College provides an award-winning culture and offers a competitive total compensation package that includes:
Lucrative Time Off (25-40 Days PTO, Paid Family Medical Leave, 11 Paid Holidays)
Retirement Savings Plan with Supplemental Contribution and Match
Tuition Remission and Reimbursement
Medical, Dental, Vision, and Wellness Benefits
Company-paid Short Term and Long-Term Disability
Flexible, hybrid, and remote work schedules 
 
The target hiring range is in the low to mid-$200,000s
***The salary of the candidate selected for this role will be based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to departmental budgets, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, specialty, and training.  The hiring range represents The College’s good faith and reasonable estimate of possible compensation at the time of posting.  Applications for this opening will be accepted through Friday, December 5th

In policy and practice, we encourage diversity and provide equal employment opportunities to all individuals based on job-related qualifications and ability to perform a job. We are committed to maintaining a welcoming and inclusive environment.

The American College of Financial Services is an E-Verify Employer.