CFO

What can you expect?

This position offers a unique opportunity to work at the Dutch Red Cross, where your strategic vision and financial leadership will contribute to making a humanitarian impact. The CFO plays a crucial role in ensuring the financial sustainability and efficiency of our organization. You will spend 60% of your time on our activities in the Netherlands and 40% on our international activities.

You will lead a team of five experienced finance and IT managers, comprising approximately 30 finance professionals and approximately 30 IT professionals. As a member of the seven-member Management Team (MT) of the Dutch Red Cross, you help determine the organization’s strategic direction and work on a future-proof multi-year budget. In addition, you are responsible for designing, setting up, and delivering relevant management and performance information, thereby supporting the organization in making strategic and operational decisions.

You will be closely involved in developing a simpler and more effective organizational structure. You will work closely with the executive director, the members’ council, and the audit committee of the association’s board. In addition, you will maintain close relationships with external stakeholders, such as Red Cross partner organizations, grant providers, accountants, tax specialists, donors, and other partners who contribute to our mission and goals.

What will you be doing?

In this multifaceted role, you will be responsible for the financial policy and strategic management of the Dutch Red Cross. You will develop a sustainable and future-proof funding model that ensures a balanced mix of donations, grants, and revenue from services, enabling the organization to continue providing its vital assistance.

You will lead the planning and control cycle, be directly responsible for liaising with the auditor—including the preparation and audit of the financial statements—and ensure clear accountability regarding grants to internal and external stakeholders. Drawing on your financial expertise, you will also support international projects by advising on the optimal use of international aid funds and guiding partner countries toward achieving financial sustainability.

In addition, you will play a key role in modernizing our financial and IT processes. You will have final responsibility for working with managers to ensure that these processes not only effectively support the delivery of our services, but also that the data and insights they generate enable the right strategic decisions to be made. You will work on streamlining and integrating the existing financial structure, processes, and systems, with the goal of establishing an efficient and future-proof department. In doing so, you will focus on innovation, utilize data-driven insights, and capitalize on opportunities for simplification and improvement. In addition to this strategic approach, you will also ensure the effective allocation of practical resources such as facilities and transportation, so that our relief efforts are optimally supported. With your strategic and operational perspective, you will help build a financial foundation that aligns with the mission and goals of the Red Cross, enabling us to continue expanding, strengthening, and securing our relief efforts.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for a leader who thrives on collaboration and inspiring others, with a clear vision and a focus on achieving results. You are an open, positive, and forward-thinking person, but also someone who brings structure and maintains a clear overview in a complex environment. You’re not afraid to be a constructive critic who challenges the status quo and holds colleagues on the Executive Team and your own team accountable, while encouraging and supporting them to take ownership and achieve results independently. At the same time, you connect people and create a culture centered on ownership and a results-oriented approach.

You combine decisiveness with meticulousness, make well-considered decisions, and stay the course, even in a dynamic environment. With your hands-on approach, you don’t hesitate to pitch in when needed, ensuring that plans are not only conceived but also carried out. Through your ability to maintain an overview and keep long-term goals in sight, you provide direction and create calm and clarity within the organization.

In addition, you possess the following skills:

• Resolute and decisive: Youare able to bring structure and maintain direction in an environment marked by sometimes conflicting interests and complex challenges. You make decisions based on thorough analysis, but do not hesitate to take decisive action when necessary. With a clear focus on results, you ensure that set goals are achieved while providing clarity and stability to the team and the organization as a whole.
• Strong strategic, analytical, and communication skills: Youhave a keen eye for the big picture, while also paying close attention to detail. You are conceptually strong and able to translate complex issues into clear, practical terms, which is well-suited to an organization with diverse stakeholders, both nationally and internationally. With your communication skills, you know how to effectively convey ideas and decisions and build support at all levels within and outside the organization.
• Integrity and a strong moral compass: You are a reliable, independent, and critical partner to the CEO and the Executive Management Team. As the organization’s financial conscience, you can carefully assess situations and make decisions that align with the Red Cross’s mission and values.
• Environmental awareness and inclusive leadership: You have a keen sense of the dynamics and interests both within and outside the organization, and you know how to bring people with different perspectives together. With your empathy and communication skills, you build support and strengthen collaboration.

• Financial expertise with a forward-looking perspective: You have a solid understanding of financial strategies, financial control, IT, and risk management. Ideally, you are a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), but more important is your ability to translate financial insights into innovative solutions that help the organization move forward.
• Inspirational leadership: You know how to bring out the best in people by motivating them, fostering connections, and giving them the freedom to take ownership. With proven experience in leading teams, you create an inclusive environment where everyone can perform at their best and work together.
• Alignment with the mission and values of social organizations: You have a genuine interest in working for a humanitarian organization and, preferably, experience in the nonprofit sector. You understand the unique challenges and opportunities faced by organizations with a social mission and proudly champion that cause.

With your energy, vision, and collaborative approach, you make a difference at the Dutch Red Cross. Together with your team, you enhance the impact of our assistance and help fulfill our mission, both within the organization and beyond.

What do we offer you?

At the Red Cross, you’ll be part of an organization that changes lives around the world. In addition to a meaningful role, we offer:

• A workspace in The Hague, a 5-minute walk from Laan van NOI station.
• A salary based on scale 15 of the NRK Collective Bargaining Agreement (€6,139–€8,458.42, plus a possible 110% RSP)
• An Individual Choice Budget of 18.9%, including vacation pay and a year-end bonus.
• Flexible working hours and the option to work partly from home.
• Excellent benefits, such as a pension plan, travel allowance, and a laptop and cell phone.
• An environment that fosters personal and professional growth.

Interested?

The Dutch Red Cross strives to be a diverse and inclusive organization. The more the Red Cross reflects society, the better our assistance becomes. Regardless of your gender, age, cultural background, who you love, or what you believe: we warmly invite you to apply. Together, we turn our differences into our strength.

The Dutch Red Cross works with the recruitment agency Colourful People for its hiring and selection processes. René Burgler, a senior partner at Colourful People, would be happy to provide you with more information about the position and/or the application process. You can contact him by email (r.burgler@colourfulpeople.nl) or via WhatsApp at 06 2857 5436. 

Please submit your cover letter and resume in PDF format as soon as possible, but no later thanJanuary 7, 2025, via the "Apply" button onwww.colourfulpeople.nl. In your cover letter, we’d like to see you explain your motivation for working at the Dutch Red Cross, your professional pride and achievements, the value of your practical experience, and how you plan to apply it. We look forward to discovering how you can make a difference!

We aim to complete the process in January. The preliminary interviews will take place in week 2, and the final interviews at the Dutch Red Cross will be held on January 23 and 27, 2025.

We believe it is important to ensure the reliability, professionalism, and integrity of our organization and our current and future employees. Integrity screening is a standard part of our selection process. This means that an online assessment and a reference check are standard parts of our selection process, and we may also ask you to provide a Certificate of Good Conduct (depending on the position).