Position Information

The CFO reports to the Executive Director and is the central point of responsibility and accountability for the Office of Financial Management (OFM). The CFO’s primary responsibility is to manage the System’s financial operations, which includes the pension, two postemployment healthcare plans, and the defined contribution plan.

The CFO leads a team of ~45 with five direct reports: Directors of Employer Accounting, General & Public Market Accounting, Investment Accounting & Budget, Pension Actuarial Services, and Annuitant Accounting.

As the senior financial officer, the CFO must be committed to developing, maintaining, and continuously testing a system of internal controls that meet SOC 1, Type 2 audit compliance and testing and verifying data to ensure financial reporting integrity. Some of the CFO’s current general responsibilities and duties include:

• Ensure that PSERS’ financial operations comply with Board policy, state and federal law, and applicable policies and procedures.
• Keep informed of and interpret laws, policies and regulations affecting PSERS.
• Regularly report to the Board and liaise with the PSERS’ Finance and Actuarial Committee.
• As directed by the Executive Director, serve as the external spokesperson on financial matters to member and employer groups, testifying before legislative committees, and as required, interacting with the media.
• Provide preliminary cost analyses of proposed legislation to estimate the future effect on the actuarial liability, the employer contribution rate, and overall financial health of the Fund.
• Maintain relationships with Commonwealth stakeholders including the Appropriation Committees of the Legislative caucuses, State Treasurer’s Office, State Comptroller Office, Governor’s Budget Office, the Department of Education, and the Independent Fiscal Office.
• Oversee investment accounting, the recording and reconciliation of investment account records in relationship to custodians and with investment managers.
• Provide accurate cash forecasts, both long-term and short-term, for operational and investment cash flow requirements.
• Coordinate various U.S. and international tax matters, tax compliance filings, and is the liaison with the IRS.
• Oversee the collection of over $6 billion of employer contributions including the collection of delinquent employer and member contributions through coordination with the Department of Education.
• Oversee the $7 billion annuitant payroll function and the preparation of over 250,000 1099s.
• Oversee the compilation and preparation of the administrative budget and provide support and oversight of the Healthcare administrative budget, Defined Contribution administrative budget, and Investment Related Expenses budget.
• Oversee the $3 billion Commonwealth share of Contribution Budget and coordinate with the Governor’s Budget Office, the Department of Education, and the House and Senate Appropriation’s staff.
• Oversee production of internal management reports and GAAP external consolidated financial reports; analyze and report results to the Executive Director and Board.
• Oversee production of the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report and submittal to the GFOA Excellence in Financial Reporting program.
• Oversee and manage the relationship with the external actuary, a Board level consultant, including the actuarial valuation and calculation of the employer contribution rate approved by the Board annually.
• Oversee the actuarial experience study and guide the Board, along with the Executive Director and Chief Investment Officer, through the setting of actuarial assumptions used to calculate PSERS actuarial liability and set employer contributions.
• Assess and identify potential financial and operational risk in coordination with PSERS enterprise risk management program.
• Coordinate with the custodian banks to ensure timely and accurate valuation and records of assets and transactions.