Chief, Finance Services and Treasury Operations at Pan American Health Organization in Washington, D.C.

Job description

• The Department of Financial Resources Management (FRM) oversees the financial transactions of the Organization by establishing the accounting policies and procedures, in accordance with PAHO’s Financial Regulations and Rules; processes the disbursements of funds; prepares the financial statements of the Organization; monitors the inflow of funding and utilization of these resources; is responsible for investments and banking, financial analysis, the monitoring of the cost centers’ financial administration; payroll, pension, taxes, Staff Health Insurance, and the processes and systems involved with FRM’s area of responsibility.
• The incumbent serves as Chief, Finance Services and Treasury Operations, providing strategic leadership for finance service delivery, treasury operations, shared services governance, payroll and staff entitlements, Staff Health Insurance (SHI) administration, and commercial payments.
• The incumbent oversees treasury operations, including liquidity, treasury risk, and accounts payable management, and provides executive-level reporting and analysis on the Organization's financial position, treasury performance, investment portfolio, and liquidity forecasts to the Director, FRM, senior management, and the Investment Committee.
• The incumbent serves as the principal institutional liaison with financial institutions, banking counterparties, and external investment advisors, and provides strategic oversight of payroll, staff entitlements, and benefits administration, ensuring compliance with PAHO policies, rules, and regulations.
• The incumbent also leads FRM's Finance Shared Services model under the Shared Services Hub (SSH), overseeing governance, service performance, resource planning, and operational efficiency to ensure high-quality, cost-effective finance services across the Organization.

Responsibilities

• Under the general supervision of the Director of Administration (AM), and the direct supervision of the Director, Financial Resources Management (FRM), the incumbent is responsible for, but not necessarily limited to, the following assigned duties:
• Treasury and Liquidity Management
• Direct PAHO’s liquidity management encompassing short and long-term cash flow forecasting, and anticipated flows from different revenue streams.
• Maximize portfolio returns within Investment Committee-approved risk, tenor, and benchmark parameters; serve as participant and Secretary of the PAHO Investment Committee; recommend new investment instruments and policy revisions; coordinate presentations by financial advisors; and oversee preparation of the Status of Investments and Cash Flow Reports.
• Financial Risk Management
• Identify, assess and mitigate financial risks across cashflows, investments and counterparty exposures; apply best practice internal controls over receipts, disbursements and the management of PAHOs financial assets.
• Bank account and Financial Institution management
• Determine PAHO’s global banking requirements including electronic banking, transaction reporting and reconciliation standards; develop and maintain strategic relationships with banking partners to ensure efficient and cost-effective service delivery: advice on country office banking arrangements;
• Executive Reporting
• Provide executive level reporting on performance of areas under your responsibility to the FRM Director, PAHO senior management and members of the investment committee.
• FRM Shared Services Governance
• Provide strategic governance of FRM's finance shared services model under the Shared Services Hub (SSH) arrangement with NTT
• Data, including oversight of service-level agreements, performance monitoring of approximately 19 NTT finance agents, and accountability for capacity planning and workload optimization across consolidated finance pools (payroll, commercial payments, SHI, voluntary contributions, revolving fund accounting).
• Drive the integration and optimization of consolidated service pools, replacing siloed functional structures with a pooled model that generates economies of scale; evaluate and implement opportunities for progressive migration of country office accounting activities and additional transactional finance functions into the shared services environment.
• Define and monitor key performance indicators and service-level targets for the SSH arrangement; lead periodic performance reviews with the service provider; and escalate and resolve service delivery issues to ensure continuity and quality of finance operations.
• Staff Benefits, Entitlements and Staff Health Insurance
• Provide strategic oversight and policy direction for PAHO's staff entitlements and benefit administration, ensuring compliance with PAHO, WHO, and UN system rules and regulations; advise staff and management on the implications of changes in international civil service regulations and U.S. tax law. Oversee payroll, pension, tax, and Staff Health Insurance (SHI) operations to ensure accuracy, efficiency, and timely delivery of entitlements; evaluate and enhance systems, procedures, and ERP solutions supporting benefit administration and financial reporting. Monitor the financial performance of SHI and benefit funds; provide evidence-based recommendations to ensure long-term sustainability and cost-effectiveness; manage relationships with third-party administrators and health insurance providers, including participation in contract tendering processes and performance evaluations.
• Finance Operations
• Oversee treasury operations support functions — trade confirmation, settlement, payment processing, and bank account reconciliation; ensure IPSAS-compliant financial accounting and reporting, including monitoring of standard changes, policy development, and system design; support financial year-end closure; and maintain effective bank card programmers.
• Organizational Management and Staff Leadership Provide strong leadership, guidance, and supervision to staff by setting clear objectives and performance expectations. Ensure timely and effective performance management through structured reviews, regular feedback, and conflict resolution. Foster a learning-oriented work environment that promotes professional development in technical expertise, managerial competencies, and organizational values. Promote a culture of ethical behavior and integrity in accordance with the Organization’s Code of Ethical Principles and Conduct, ensuring respect, accountability, and compliance. Establish a stable and credible managerial framework that builds trust with Member States, partners, civil society organizations, and donors while optimizing staff performance.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Overall attitude at work: Maintains integrity and takes a clear ethical approach and stance; demonstrates commitment to the Organization’s mandate and promotes the values of the Organization in daily work and behavior; is accountable for work carried out in line with own role and responsibilities; is respectful towards, and trusted by, colleagues and counterparts.
• Respecting and valuing individual differences: - Treats everyone with dignity and respect, fostering positive relationships with everyone. Reflects on personal behavior to avoid stereotypes and considers situations from the perspective of others.
• Teamwork: Advocates for collaboration across the Organization - Creates and encourages a climate of team- working and collaboration across the Organization; sees cooperation as a key Organizational priority and creates collaborative systems and processes to achieve Organizational goals. Actively identifies and tackles disagreements between internal and external counterparts that compromise the Organization’s goals and mandate; diplomatically facilitates the resolution of conflicts between others and ensures strategic partnerships with a range of key stakeholders; maintains and extends an effective collaborative network of individuals inside and outside the Organization.
• Communication: Share knowledge - Articulates the Organization’s strategic objectives when formulating and delivering information and presentations and adapts presentation methodology to address the needs of different audiences. Share decisions and directives of senior management and communicate to them in a manner that ensures both understanding and acceptance; shares knowledge and best practice at the three Organizational levels (country, regional and global), as necessary.
• Creating an empowering and motivating environment: Provide direction/Support, motivate and empower others - Oversees and provides teams and departments with clear managerial directions which are translated from Organizational strategy. Builds a performance culture in the Organization; contributes to setting Organizational performance goals and standards; monitors Organizational performance against milestones and strategic goals; identifies and nurtures talent as appropriate. Promotes autonomy and empowerment throughout the Organization; inspires enthusiasm and a positive attitude in people towards their work and contribution to the Organization’s success.
• Ensuring effective use of resources: Strategize and set clear objectives/Monitor progress and use resources well - Sets specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely objectives for own team and/or the Organization; systematically analyses and anticipates priority projects for own team and allocates necessary resources to achieve them; identifies the cross-Organizational resources needed for large- scale projects in line with key Organizational objectives. Anticipates foreseeable changes and adapts own and team’s projects in the face of unforeseen circumstances and/ or challenges; creates measures and criteria to monitor progress of overall projects against key Organizational objectives; creates cost-effective solutions for the Organization.
• Driving the Organization to a successful future: Constructive leadership style/ Set the vision and build commitment - Leads and develops a road map for successfully achieving real progress in the Organization’s mandate, including consultation with key stakeholders; demonstrates respectful, trustworthy, transparent and accountable behavior in order to develop a reliable and coherent identity for the Organization. Creates a coherent Organizational vision of shared and successful goals; fosters a culture of vision and long- term goals, recognizing and rewarding efforts to maximize the Organization’s value.
• Technical: Extensive progressive expertise at a senior decision-making level, in specialized functions related to the theory and practice of accounting and finance which are critical for the accurate preparation of the Organization’s financial reports. Expertise in the theory and practice of accounting and finance to manage and invest funds administered by the Organization. Practical knowledge of organizational development and disciplines related to general management, strategic planning, organizational change, and human resource management.
• Managerial: Extensive experience in senior and progressively responsible positions in management of large public or private organizations with a substantial administrative element and requiring sensitive negotiations, high level intervention, and extensive financial negotiating and reporting. Demonstrated leadership in strategic, organizational, managerial, and analytic work in health or related sector(s).
• Administrative: Experience with creation and integration of administrative procedures to deliver high-quality results; resourcefulness, initiative, highly developed judgment and interpersonal skills to deal with difficult and sensitive situations; courteous style, tact, sensitivity to confidential information; ability to establish and maintain effective team working relations at different professional levels without prejudice to disciplines, nationality, and cultural background.
• Essential: A bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance or business administration, and a master’s degree in accounting, finance, international finance or any other field related to the functions of the position from a recognized university.
• Desirable: Certification in accounting, finance and investing, or treasury operations is highly desirable.
• Essential: Thirteen years of combined national and international experience with international banks covering international finance. Professional work experience in financial management, ideally within multicultural international environments. Demonstrated substantive work in operations support, policy analysis and risk management. Experience in cash, currency and investment management or the equivalent multi-national corporate treasury experience. Must include at least six years’ supervisory/managerial experience.
• Fluency in English and a working knowledge of Spanish. Knowledge of French and/or Portuguese would be an asset.
• Demonstrated ability to effectively use current technology and software, spreadsheets and presentations, as well as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and management information systems. Other IT skills and knowledge of software programs such as Microsoft Excel, Outlook, OneDrive, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint, and Word are considered essential.

Skills

Required

• Microsoft Excel
• Outlook
• OneDrive
• PowerPoint
• Teams
• SharePoint
• Word
• Management information systems

Benefits

• Telework available to support work-life balance.
• An attractive compensation package that includes: 2.5 days annual leave per month, parental and sick leave, a defined benefit (DB) pension plan and international health insurance coverage
• Other benefits for internationally recruited staff may include travel and removal expenses on appointment and separation, settling-in grant and rental subsidy.