THE OPPORTUNITY

The City of Rancho Palos Verdes, California offers its next Finance Director a career-defining opportunity to lead in a city with a high-performing organizational culture where employees make important contributions and are valued as team members. This opportunity allows the successful candidate to join an Executive Team that enjoys working together and supporting one another in an ideally situated Southern California city.

THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES

Situated on the coast of the Pacific Ocean and among the bucolic hills and bluffs of the Palos Verdes Peninsula in Los Angeles County, the City of Rancho Palos Verdes is a contract city that has maintained its low-tax, low-density, semi-rural environment. The City enjoys expansive open space and picturesque views of the Pacific Ocean, Catalina Island, and the Los Angeles basin. Rancho Palos Verdes’ diverse and active population of approximately 41,000 enjoys all the benefits of a coastal community with a beautiful seaside location.

THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT

The City's Finance Department is responsible for managing all the financial affairs of the City. The Department primarily provides essential internal support services and ensures compliance with the City’s procedures and internal controls. The Department is responsible for a wide range of services through the following functions: fiscal services, treasury activities, accounting, purchasing, and business licenses. The Department is comprised of 8 personnel and the Finance Director has one direct report – the Deputy Finance Director.

THE POSITION

This exempt, at-will position reports directly to the City Manager. This is a Department Director classification that oversees, directs, and participates in all activities of the Finance Department, and provides highly responsible and complex professional assistance to the City Manager. Essential job functions include overseeing the preparation of the City’s annual budget, the Ten-Year Financial Model, and the Five-Year Capital Improvement plan; participating in and making presentations to the City Council and a wide variety of committees, boards, and commissions including the Finance Advisory Committee as the staff liaison; establishing the City’s central budgeting, accounting, and financial reporting practices; evaluating accounting procedures and financial controls; ensuring compliance with Federal, State, and local government accounting and financial reporting standards and controls; and participating in negotiations with the City’s two labor organizations representing full-time and part-time employees.

The ideal candidate will have exceptional management, interpersonal, and communication skills, with a hands-on and proactive approach to addressing a broad range of municipal fiscal issues and responsibilities. The successful candidate must value relationships and be an empowering leader who encourages innovation and problem solving while holding people accountable for quality work. Prioritizing the need for solid leadership and management skills, the City prefers candidates with backgrounds in various areas of municipal finance. Ideally, the new Finance Director will have a career history which features service in communities of similar size and complexity.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Any combination of training and experience, which would provide the required knowledge, skills, and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the required qualifications would be:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business or Public Administration, or a related field from an accredited four-year college or university.

• Experience: A minimum of seven years of management and/or administrative experience in municipal finance and accounting.

• Certification: Certification as a Certified Public Accountant in the State of California is highly desirable.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

The annual salary range for the Finance Director is up to $217,414. Placement within the range is negotiable and dependent upon the qualifications and experience of the selected candidate. The City participates in the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS). California PERS 2% @ 60 for employees with continuing PERS employment with a 7% employee contribution OR 2% @ 62 for new PERS members with an employee contribution of 50% of the normal rate. Employee contributions are made on a pre-tax basis. Final compensation for both plans is determined by the three-year average option.

Full-time employees work 80 hours in 9 days (9/80) and receive every other Friday off. City Hall hours are Monday – Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A flex schedule via telework is possible with the City Manager’s approval.

Interested candidates are encouraged to review the detailed recruitment brochure for additional benefit information by clicking on the .pdf link on this page .

RECRUITMENT PROCESS

This recruitment will be handled with strict confidentiality. References will not be contacted until mutual interest has been established. Confidential inquiries are welcomed to Bryan Noblett or Greg Nelson at (916) 550-4100.

Interested candidates are encouraged to apply below immediately, as this recruitment will close once a sufficiently strong candidate pool has been established.

The City of Rancho Palos Verdes is an Equal Opportunity Employer.