UpStart

Financial Planning and Analysis

• Own the monthly close process end-to-end: direct the external bookkeeping firm’s close activities, review and approve all deliverables before they reach leadership, prepare variance commentary with explanations sufficient for board-level review, and obtain CEO sign-off on the final monthly package.
• Prepare monthly and quarterly financial reporting packages for the Finance Committee and the full board.
• Maintain grant-level financial tracking, including award receipt, net asset classification, expense drawdown against grant budgets, and timely release from restriction in accordance with donor intent.
• Ensure financial statements are GAAP-compliant and audit-ready at all times, not only at year-end.
• Prepare and review the annual Form 990 in coordination with the accounting firm; reconcile 990 figures to audited financials before filing, ensure Part VII compensation disclosures, Schedule B, and functional expense allocations are reviewed and signed off by the CEO prior to submission.
• Own the annual audit process: manage the auditor relationship, prepare all PBC schedules, resolve open items, present findings to the Finance Committee, and coordinate execution of the management representation letter with the CEO.
• Drive resolution of all prior-year audit findings with documented remediation evidence.
• Maintain the internal controls environment; ensure the Accounting Manual is reviewed and updated annually following each audit cycle.
• Ensure all disbursements carry documented approvals per policy; hold staff accountable to the standard.
• Maintain restricted fund tracking at the project level: intake, classification, monthly balance review, and timely release from restriction.
• Serve as the primary point of accountability for the outsourced bookkeeping and accounting firm; reviewing all deliverables before they reach leadership or the Finance Committee, owning the chart of accounts structure in QuickBooks Online, and directing the firm on proper coding, class tracking, and account mapping.
• Lead the transition from the current accounting firm to a new provider (Q2–Q4 FY27), including vendor selection, onboarding, and knowledge transfer.
• Hold the firm accountable to SLA and quality standards; document performance issues; escalate to the CEO when warranted.
• Partner with the Deputy CEO on the annual budget process; maintain the master budget workbook and consolidation across operating and fiscal sponsorship entities, develop and maintain a rolling 12-month cash flow forecast updated monthly and presented to the Finance Committee.
• Manage fiscal sponsorship financial reporting as a distinct environment from operating financials, maintaining fund isolation across sponsored projects, tracking pass-through revenue and disbursements at the project level, calculating and reconciling admin fees, and producing financial reports for individual sponsored projects sufficient to support their programmatic and compliance needs.
• Design and maintain a controls environment sufficient to prevent and detect material misstatements, unauthorized disbursements, and grant misclassification; document the controls framework and assess it against findings each audit cycle.
• Implement and document a grants accrual process for all incoming awards, with CEO sign-off at month-end.
• Oversee Bill.com and related disbursement workflows; ensure approval trails are complete and retained.
• Identify and deploy finance technology and AI-powered workflow improvements consistent with UpStart’s efficiency-forward operating strategy.

Senior Director, Finance