The organization was established in 2015 to explore the possibility of developing self-sustaining Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) through securing innovative funding and building sustainable revenue models. Initially, our focus included conducting economic valuations of coral reefs and marine conservation to persuade decision-makers to invest more public funds in MPAs.
Although the rationale was compelling, it became evident that state resources alone would not suffice to meet the budget requirements of each country’s expanding MPA network in the short term. This realization led us to develop a unique marine conservation model and collaborate closely with governments to create and nurture self-sustaining MPAs.
This is a very good opportunity for someone to join a growing global trend in software, an exponentially growing company; a management team that is driven, ambitious, and fun-loving.
The Finance & Operations Director oversees the group's financial functions, including accounting, financial management, procurement control, and asset administration. This role also encompasses internal control and operational support for the group, which involves designing and managing tools for country program management.
Duties and Responsibilities:
Management Team Member
▪ Is a key member of the senior Management team;
▪ Works across departments to enhance and improve core organizational business functions;
▪ Contributes to the development of strategic goals and works collaboratively with
management to achieve them;
▪ Assists the Executive Director in fundraising ventures and institutional relationship
management.
Strategic Leadership and Governance
▪ Develops and implements strategic objectives per project that are aligned with the group's strategic objectives and initiatives;
▪ Works with the different Managers (SMEs, non-profit entity) and Directors of Department (science, ecotourism, others if any) to ensure a complete fit between the program strategic plans and each department strategic plan;
▪ Develops standard 5-year program plans with clear milestones and timelines to set the scope of each program, clarify the objectives, define the deliverables and important deadlines;
▪ Defines the 3-year financial plan for each program with the regular financial projections and funding plan;
Finance and Accounting Management
(i) Finance & Financial Control
▪ Ensures that all entities and programs have adequate funding and liquidity according to their financial plan, annual budgets and evolving local needs;
▪ Engages with international /national investors to manage the funding contracts for reporting and financial requirements plus funding requests;
▪ Ensures monthly reporting of financial situation of all entities (Head Office and local programs);
▪ Identifies any deviance from the financial plan and/or annual budget and works with the respective management teams to clarify the underlying reasons and propose remediation measures;
▪ Participates in the procurement processes via confirmation of budgets and/or validation of special requests
Accounting & Procurement Control
▪ Ensures that all entities have adequate accounting practices in terms of managing the accounting system, recording transactions, managing the bank accounts and the petty cash;
▪ Monitors on regular basis the procurement processes and practices of the different entities;
▪ Ensures regular reconciliations between the accounting system and the bank accounts;
▪ Monitors payments due to suppliers and due by customers / partners and ensures timely payments;
▪ Sets up and manages for all entities monthly payroll practices;
▪ Coordinates with the different administration teams / departments and monitors the management of the fixed asset registries and valuations
▪ Ensures legal and tax compliance with respect to filing and payments of all institutional taxes and duties.
Quality Assurance and General Internal Control
▪ Defines with the senior Management team the necessary quality standards on each of the entity;
▪ Works with the local program management teams to implement the standards in each program;
▪ Reviews the situation of each program with respect to the standards on regular basis;
▪ Reviews the practices of all entities in terms of compliance with the various policies, procedures and manuals on regular basis
Stakeholders Management & Reporting (Head Office and local programs)
(i) Internal
▪ Reports regularly on Head Office and local programs progress versus the annual work plans and budgets;
▪ Reports regularly on Operations specific projects (see section d)
▪ Reports on ad hoc basis any significant deviance from the original plans and proposes remediation measures and/or adjustments to the plans.
(ii) External
▪ Develops good relations with local and international external stakeholders to ensure sound conditions for the group development;
▪ Manages international funding contracts for reporting and financial requirements; ;
▪ Reports on ad hoc basis any significant deviance from the original plans and proposes remediation measures and/or adjustments to the plans.
People Operations (HR)
▪ Defines with the senior Management team the right staff management framework (performance management, financial / non-financial incentives and payroll, capacity building, general working conditions and discipline management)
▪ Works with the local program management teams to adapt and implement the standards in each program
▪ Reviews the situation of each program with respect to the standards on regular basis Reviews the practices of all entities (Head Office and local programs) in terms of compliance with the various policies, procedures and manuals on regular basis.
Operations: Country Supervision
▪ Conducts regular reviews with the respective management teams to assess the progress with respect to annual work plans
▪ Reviews and validates all expected deliverables pertaining to Management, Operations and New Businesses
▪ Works with the respective management teams to identify key challenges and propose remediation measures
▪ Works with the respective management teams to identify key risks and propose mitigation measures
Operations: Frameworks and Tools (Head Office and Local Programs)
▪ Develops and implements standard frameworks and tools for the group to work efficiently. The scope shall encompass at least (not exhaustive): o Project management frameworks and tools (local or international projects to introduce new products / services) o Shared technical platforms for co-working (emails and calendars, folder and file management, internal and external communication tools excluding marketing tools)
▪ Conducts regular reviews of how the different teams use the frameworks and tools with respect to Bf standards
▪ Adjusts if need be.
Requirements
Must-have Skills / Qualification:
- Minimum of 10 years of relevant experience
- Experience in NGOs, non-profit organizations, or eco-tourism is highly advantageous, but not mandatory.
- Open to candidates from various other beneficial industries include performance-focused sectors and growth-oriented businesses.
- Must be prepared to engage in fundamental tasks personally, rather than solely relying on delegation.
- Experience in managing and adapting standards
- Familiarity with internal policies and similar processes.
- Expertise in handling key operational processes, including finance and accounting, administration, and human resources.
- Established network with legal professionals to ensure compliance and governance is a plus but not required
- Familiarity with existing procurement processes.
- Ability to evolve organizational structures and identities.
- Clear understanding of how to achieve organizational goals and objectives.
- Strong strategic vision and leadership skills.
- Proven experience in cross-department collaboration and enhancing organizational functions.
Location: Hybrid (Open to visit Mindoro and Palawan's offices)
Employment: Full-time Employment
