Director, Finance Systems Strategy & Optimization

Director, Finance Systems Strategy & Optimization

College Board   - Finance

Location : This is a remote role. Candidates who live near CB offices have the   option   of being fully remote or hybrid (Tuesday and Wednesday in office). All CB employees   are required to   occasionally travel to meet in person for business purposes.

Role Type : This is a   full time   position

About the Team

The Operational Excellence (OX) function at the College Board is a high-performing team, serving as   a center of excellence   i n the Finance Division, led by the Executive Director, Operational Excellence.  Situated directly under the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), OX brings deep   expertise   in project management,  process   architecture, product strategy, data analytics, and strategic communications. We are committed  to driving organizational excellence by designing and   optimizing   integrated systems, enhancing cross -  functional   collaboration, streamlining complex workflows, and fortifying policy and communication  frameworks. Our mission is to empower every function within the Finance Division to   operate   at peak  performance—delivering exceptional value and measurable impact to the College Board .

About the Opportunity

As the Director, Finance Systems Strategy & Optimization, you will serve as the execution leader  responsible for translating strategic vision into tangible system improvements across the College Board’s  core financial platforms—Workday Financials, Adaptive Planning, and Strategic Sourcing – Workday  Financials, Adaptive Planning, and Strategic Sourcing. You will focus on driving end-to-end delivery of  technical solutions, coordinating complex projects, and ensuring our financial systems   operate   efficiently,  accurately, and in alignment with business needs.

You will partner with Accounting, Procurement, Strategic Finance, Investments, Technology, and Talent  to   ensure these systems are fully   leveraged   to deliver maximum value. You will play a critical role in owning the   system   roadmaps—taking full responsibility for executing both immediate and long-term  action plans. You will lead the investigation and implementation of new functionality, ensuring alignment  with   the needs and priorities of all major stakeholders. You will have a special focus on AI integration,  ensuring our systems   utilize   the latest and greatest technologies to automate and innovate so   Finance    teams   can work faster and most efficiently and produce more critical insights with ease. Teams will rely  on you to build custom dashboards in Workday Financials and   maintain   financial data integrity to   help  to   drive business decisions. You will   be responsible for   developing enhanced reporting solutions. You will  create and   maintain   a suite of staff-friendly resources to ensure system processes are clear and known to  all users.

Our ideal candidate is passionate about technology, along with prioritizing and simplifying – implementing  the   most impactful things and finding powerful solutions for complex   problems. The ideal candidate  has Workday Financials   expertise , an excellent ability to   anticipate   user needs, an obsession with data,  and the ability to manage the technical and people components of projects with attention to detail and  speed .

In this role, you will:

Prioritize and implement technical solutions in Workday Financials to meet business needs (40%)

- Translate functional needs into solutions, ensuring that our Workday Financials solutions meet  business needs and are scalable, repeatable, automated,   leverage   AI and new and emerging  technologies, etc.
- Project manage the implementation of new features and enhancements, overseeing  configuration, testing, deployment, and change management
- Engage and manage external consultants, as needed
- Manage the intake and prioritization of product/systems requests, working closely with  stakeholders to ensure we prioritize the most impactful work

Maintain and   optimize   Workday Financials from a technological and usage perspective (25%)

- Own business process enhancements of Workday Financials modules to support   optimal   user  experience
- Develop and   monitor   key performance metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of Workday  Financials solutions and   identify   areas for improvement
- Proactively analyze,   identify , and correct technical problems and deficiencies
- Stay up to date with industry trends and best practices to ensure our Workday Financials and Adaptive instances are   optimized
- Facilitate bi-annual Workday releases and liaise with our Workday account manager to  understand their roadmap
- Work with Technology to support the integrative and administrative needs of Workday Financials  and Adaptive
- Create and   maintain   detailed documentation and user guides on major system tasks, reports,  custom   BPs, etc.

Execute comprehensive data/dashboard solutions for the Finance functions (20%)

- Serve as the “go to” to develop reporting and data solutions within Workday Financials, Adaptive,  and Strategic Sourcing (and in supplemental tools—i.e., Tableau or   PowerBI —as needed)
- Design and implement comprehensive dashboard solutions within Workday Financials to provide  actionable insights and support decision-making for Procurement, Accounting, and Investments

Lead roadmap development and drive execution across teams (15%)

- Develop and   maintain   the finance product roadmaps in collaboration with functional Finance  leadership, related SMEs, and Technology to   optimize   system use
- Provide status reports and updates to Leadership, as needed

About You

You have:

- At least five to eight years working in finance operations, with at least three years specifically in  Workday Financials
- A   B achelor's   degree   r equired   in a related field   r equired ,   Workday Financials and/or Adaptive
- Planning certification is a plus
- Proficiency   in Financial Accounting, Procurement, and Expense modules within Workday  Financials, as well as with Adaptive Financial Planning and Strategic Sourcing; and you are  eager and able to learn continuously and grow in your Workday skills
- Ability to pivot quickly, adapt to evolving requirements, and work in an Agile-  adjacent environment
- Proficiency   in Workday Worksheets and Discovery Boards; and, preferably, experience with  Workday Prism and working knowledge of Tableau and/or   PowerBI
- Exceptional attention to detail and strong organizational skills, with the ability to manage a wide  range of tasks effectively and see them through to the end
- E nthusiasm for data, passionate about harnessing the power of large data sets to inform business  decisions and capable of moving quickly to transform data
- Ability to collaborate and work cross-functionally with different areas of an organization, and  bring a team-first mentality and “no job is too small” perspective
- Confidence in working on both sides of the system - with our users and our engineers - and feel  comfortable translating practical needs to technical solutions
- Great verbal and written communication skills
- Excited about supporting educational opportunities for millions of students
- Experience with Jira and Confluence preferred
- T he ability to travel 2-3 times a year to College Board offices or on behalf of College Board  business
- Authorization to work for any employer in the United States

All roles at College Board require:

- A passion for expanding educational and career opportunities and mission-driven work
- Curiosity and enthusiasm for emerging technologies, with a willingness to experiment with and adopt new AI-driven solutions and comfort with learning and applying new digital tools independently and proactively .
- Clear and concise communication skills, written and verbal
- A learner's mindset and a commitment to growth: welcoming diverse perspectives, giving and receiving   timely , respectful feedback, and continuously improving through iterative learning and user input.
- A drive for impact and excellence: solving complex problems, making data-informed decisions, prioritizing what matters most, and continuously improving through learning, user input, and external benchmarking.
- A collaborative and empathetic approach: working across differences, fostering trust, and contributing to a culture of shared success
- Authorization to work in the United States

About Our Process

Application review will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled.   This role is expected to accept applications for a minimum of 5 business days.

While the hiring process may vary, it generally   includes:   resume and application submission, recruiter phone/video screen, hiring manager interview, performance exercise such as live coding, a panel interview, a conversation with leadership and reference checks .

What We Offer

At   College   Board, we offer more than a paycheck: we provide a meaningful career, a supportive team, and a comprehensive package designed to help you thrive.   We’re   a self-sustaining nonprofit that believes in fair and competitive compensation grounded in your qualifications, experience, impact, and the market.

A Thoughtful Approach to Compensation

The hiring range for this role is $88,000-$160,000. We adjust salaries by location to ensure fairness, no matter where you live. Below,   we've   offered an estimated range for a variety of metro areas throughout the United States.

- New York City, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington  DC  and Los Angeles:  $135,000-$160,000
- Austin, Boston, Chicago,  Philadelphia  and Denver:    $120 ,000-$ 140, 000
- Atlanta, Miami, Iowa  City  and most other locations throughout the Southeast and Midwest:   $8 8 ,000-$1 2 5 ,000

We aim to make our best offer upfront, rooted in fairness, transparency, and market data.  You’ll  have open, transparent conversations about compensation, benefits, and what  it’s  like to work at  College  Board throughout your hiring process. Check out  our   careers page   for more.