Senior Finance Operations Specialist II in New Orleans, Louisiana at Louisiana Public Health Institute

Senior Finance Operations Specialist II

Why is this a great job? (From the hiring manager) As the Senior Finance Operations Specialist II at LPHI, you will use your analytical, research, and finance skills to help shape LPHI’s strategic direction. Your financial and operations expertise will support our mission to improve lives in communities across Louisiana and the nation. LPHI’s mission and core values create a fulfilling environment where you can make a meaningful impact. This role offers opportunities for professional growth, social impact, with a supportive workplace. Further, this opportunity is great for a person who brings a strong background in supporting projects, improving systems, and partnering with teams to better manage the business side of their work. A successful person in the role will connect finance to operations, strategy, and mission delivery as a collaborative teammate.

ABOUT US
The Louisiana Public Health Institute (LPHI) is a statewide, non-profit organization that has been promoting the health and well-being of Louisianians since 1997. Our 65+ employees work alongside 500+ partner organizations at the local, state, and national levels to leverage our broad expertise in public health to achieve our mission of ensuring that everyone has fair and just opportunities to be healthy and well.
Our strategic plan priority areas include Health Equity, Partnerships and Collaboration, A Healthier Louisiana, and A Thriving Organization. To learn more, visit www.lphi.org.

POSITION DETAILS

Job Title: Senior Finance Operations Specialist II
Salary: $81,000 (Professional 3)

• Salary is based on various factors unique to each candidate, including skill set, experience, qualifications, and other job-related reasons

Work Schedule: 40-hour work week

• LPHI offers traditional (M-F, 8 am-5 pm), flexible (for example, M-F 10 am-7pm), and compressed work schedules (for example, M-Th 8 am-7 pm). Schedule details finalized between employee and manager.
• This position may require occasional after-hours or weekend work as needed with minimal travel.

Location: This is a Louisiana-based, hybrid position with occasional (<10%) travel required

• LPHI maintains an office in New Orleans if the employee prefers to be full-time in-office
• Expectation is for employee to work a minimum of two days per week onsite in the office.
• Employee must reside in Louisiana during the time of employment.

Team: Finance

Reports To: Chief Financial Officer

Supervises: None

Benefits:

• LPHI contributes 7% of pre-tax salary to the employees’ 401k per pay period regardless of employee contribution, after six continuous months of employment
• 100% paid premiums for employee health (Core plan), dental, short-term disability, long-term disability and term life insurance beginning on the first day of the month, on or following one month of full-time employment
• 100% paid Employee Assistance Program
• 100% paid parking at 601 Tchoupitoulas Parking Garage
• Traditional, flexible, or compressed work schedules
• Resources committed to professional development
• Holidays, Vacation and Sick Days:
• 15+ paid holidays per year that includes Thanksgiving Break and Winter Break
• 10 vacation days accrued per year, years 0-2
• 15 vacation days accrued per year, years 3-5
• 20 vacation days accrued per year, year 6+
• 3 personal days
• 1 floating holiday (employee’s choice)
• 12 sick days

ABOUT THE POSITION

The Senior Finance Operations Specialist II is responsible for financial planning and analysis, grant and project financial operations, and working across LPHI teams as professional services resource. This position supports organizational decision-making by preparing budgets, forecasts, managing dashboard indicators, and producing financial reports with accuracy, compliance, and transparency. The role operates as a high-impact individual contributor collaborating across the organization. This includes, but is not limited to, training non-finance staff on key financial principles, serving as a finance liaison to teams needing support with business planning, and building strong relationship-management and leadership skills.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A)

• Prepare and support annual operating budgets, including organizational and programmatic.
• Develop and maintain rolling forecasts and financial models.
• Perform budget-to-actual variance analysis and prepare clear narrative explanations.
• Support scenario modeling and ad hoc financial analysis for leadership.
• Assist with preparation of internal management and board-ready financial materials.
• Develop and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress and drive accountability.
• Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reports for departments and programs.
• Maintain dashboards, schedules, and reporting templates.
• Ensure consistency and accuracy of financial data across reports.
• Translate financial data into clear, actionable insights for non-finance staff.

Grant & Project Finance

• Support in developing, reviewing, and maintaining grant and project budgets.
• Partner with teams to monitor grant spending, funding timelines, and milestone achievements.
• Produce funder-required financial reports in accordance with grant agreements.
• Participate in audit and monitoring requests related to grants and program finance.

Cross-Functional Support

• Partner with program and department leaders to support financial understanding and accountability, including co-leading planned finance training initiatives and ad hoc support requests.
• Lead collaboration with internal teams to improve budgeting, reporting, and grant workflows.
• Provide operational and project support across departments.
• Partner with programs staff in delivery of program objectives when there is a need for programs and finance partnership with funders.

Other Duties as Assigned

ABOUT YOU

Position Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting or Finance with a minimum of three (3) years experience in financial analysis, grant finance, non-profit administrative operations, and completing and supporting program and organizational budget development.
• Knowledge of nonprofit accounting standards
• Experience in managing local, state, and federal government grant programs; and philanthropic foundation grants.
• Experience preparing budgets, forecasts, and variance analysis.
• Excellent reasoning and analytical skills.
• Strong oral and written skills.
• Demonstrated capacity and ability to lead and manage projects.
• Excellent time management and organizational skills, with careful attention to detail.
• Advanced knowledge and use of Microsoft Excel (e.g. financial modeling, pivot tables, formulas) and intermediate knowledge of other Microsoft Office products
• Demonstrated ability to manage multi-faceted projects and perform well under pressure.
• Ability to work with diverse personalities with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences.

Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities

• Commitment to public health and achieving health equity.
• Experience documenting financial policies and procedures.
• Experience in web-based accounting and financial planning software.
• Experience supporting audits or funder financial reviews.
• Ability to collaborate effectively and build strong, positive relationships with colleagues and partners, both internal and external to LPHI.
• Exceptional emotional intelligence, including interpersonal skills and experience working with individuals and groups from diverse backgrounds.
• Ability to champion innovation and changes within an organization.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver with excellent quality and impact.
• Ability to apply systems thinking and act strategically.
• Desire to support the development of individuals and team.

Your Impact at LPHI
The work you do at LPHI supports the organization’s ability to operate effectively and serve its mission. Your role contributes to how work gets done across teams—helping ensure efforts are organized, responsive, and aligned to organizational priorities that improve and advance health equity.

We value collaboration, respect for lived experience, and continuous learning, and we strive to create an environment where every team member can contribute fully to advancing Health Equity, strengthening Partnerships and Collaboration, building a Healthier Louisiana, and supporting a Thriving Organization.

How We Work

Work Environment & Physical Considerations:

We operate in a flexible work environment that includes both hybrid and fully remote roles, depending on position responsibilities and organizational needs. Our approach emphasizes trust, accountability, collaboration, and clear outcomes.

In all roles, employees can expect:

• Clear goals, priorities, and performance expectations
• Regular communication with supervisors and colleagues to support alignment and progress
• Thoughtful use of technology to enable effective collaboration and productivity
• Shared responsibility for maintaining a consistent organizational voice and upholding our values

Some positions require a hybrid schedule, with periodic onsite presence to support collaboration, relationship-building, and key meetings. Other positions are designated as fully remote. Work arrangements are determined by role requirements and may evolve over time based on operational needs.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Statement: Louisiana Public Health Institute is committed to accessibility and inclusion by providing reasonable accommodations and, when appropriate, flexible work arrangements, for qualified individuals with disabilities to support the job application process and performance of essential job functions consistent with applicable laws and organizational requirements. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us at HumanResources@lphi.org.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Statement: Louisiana Public Health Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of actual or perceived race (including hair texture and natural hair styles), color, religion, religious creed (including religious dress and religious grooming practices), sex (including pregnancy, perceived pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), gender, gender identity (including transgender identity, status and transitioning), gender expression and sex stereotyping, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, physical or mental disability, legally protected medical condition or information (including genetic information), family care or medical leave status, military caregiver status, military status, veteran status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, enrollment in a public assistance program, engaging in protected communications regarding employee wages, requesting a reasonable accommodation on the basis of disability or bona fide religious belief or practice, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal laws. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any of these factors.

*As with all positions at LPHI, this position is funded through grant and/or contract funding, which is renewed under the provisions of the grantor of the contract. Positions are contingent upon the continuation of grant/contract funding.