The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) position at the Cambridge Housing Authority (CHA) presents a rare opportunity to contribute to the day-to-day and long-term viability of one of the country’s most highly regarded housing agencies.
The CFO will organize, direct and oversee the agency’s financial activities and Finance Department staff, including activities of the CHA’s subsidiaries, affiliates and partner housing authorities that CHA also manages. Serving as a strategic thought partner to the Chief Executive Officer and senior leadership team, the CFO will play a critical role in advancing CHA’s next phase of organizational growth by aligning finance, technology, systems, and data to strengthen operational excellence. Working closely with Information Technology and cross functional leaders, the CFO will lead efforts to modernize financial systems, improve reporting and decision making, streamline business processes, enhance data quality, strengthen internal controls and leverage technology to increase efficiency, transparency and long-term financial sustainability.
The ideal candidate will be equally adept in building, managing and motivating a highly performing finance team while fostering a collaborative, service-oriented culture that enables the organization to effectively meet the needs of residents, employees and financial and regulatory stakeholders.
As CHA has grown into one of the nation's most innovative and financially sophisticated housing authorities, its operational complexity has expanded significantly, becoming more similar to a non-profit housing provider and developer. The next CFO will have the opportunity to strengthen financial infrastructure, modernize systems and reporting and build a finance organization capable of supporting CHA’s continued growth and innovation. The CFO will also play a pivotal role in identifying and advancing innovative financing strategies, capital structures, and revenue-generating opportunities, including positioning CHA to become a bond issuer—to enhance long-term financial sustainability and expand the agency’s capacity to preserve and develop affordable housing.
The Finance Department manages an agency budget of over $210 million and has a department budget of $3 million. The Department has 15+ FTEs comprised of deputy fiscal directors, a controller, a budget director, and several accountants and procurement staff. The CFO also serves as the CFO of the Belmont Housing Authority, an adjacent housing authority that CHA manages with a $2 million annual budget.
The CFO reports to the Chief Executive Officer of the CHA, Clara Fraden. Clara Fraden was unanimously appointed Chief Executive Officer of CHA in March 2026, becoming the first woman to lead the organization. Prior to her appointment, she served for eight years in progressively responsible leadership roles at CHA, most recently as Director of Planning and Development, where she led a multidisciplinary team responsible for a redevelopment pipeline exceeding $1 billion across more than 20 projects, advanced the preservation and creation of more than 1,200 affordable homes and integrated healthcare services across CHA’s portfolio.
Reports to: Chief Executive Officer
Direct Reports: Deputy Fiscal Directors
Budget Director
Senior Purchasing Agent
Other Key Relationships: Board of Commissioners
Deputy Executive Director
Deputy Executive Director of Development
General Counsel
Director of Real Estate (vacant)
Director of Information Technology
Director of Asset Management
Director of Operations
Director of Leased Housing
Key Responsibilities:
Strategic Financial Leadership
• Advises the CEO on all finance matters and participates in the formulation of financial policy for CHA, including its subsidiaries and affiliates; serves as a strategic thought partner on major agency economic strategies, long-term financial sustainability, capital planning and growth, organizational growth and risk management.
• Leads the development and implementation of agency-wide and departmental financial metrics to support financial forecasting, scenario planning and data-driven decision-making. Works closely with the CEO and senior leadership to produce timely and accurate budget-to-actual variance reports, regular revenue and cost projections, key performance indicators and analysis of financial risks and opportunities.
• Develops timely, transparent financial reporting and long-range scenario planning to support informed decision-making by the CEO, senior leadership and Board of Commissioners.
• Strengthens CHA’s financial infrastructure, reporting and internal controls to support borrower strength and bond issuance, maintain audit readiness, and sustain continued organizational growth.
• Builds scalable financial systems, dashboards and shared documentation that improve transparency, increase operational efficiency, strengthen organizational decision making and reduce dependency on individual institutional knowledge.
• Identify and evaluate innovative financing strategies, capital structures and revenue generating opportunities including positioning CHA as a bond issuer—to support long term financial sustainability and affordable housing development.
Financial Planning, Reporting & Operations
• Directs the preparation and timely completion of all required financial statements for the Board of Commissioners, CEO, Department Directors, property managers, funders, tax credit partners, financial institutions and other stakeholders.
• Directs preparation of department-level budgets, reviews budget proposals and prepares supporting documentation in partnership with senior leadership; provides timely and accurate reviews of the CHA’s financial status and progress across programs and activities. • Serves as CFO for the Belmont Housing Authority, an adjacent housing authority that CHA manages with an annual budget of $2 million.
• Leads the continued optimization of Yardi and related financial processes to include budgeting, procurement, accounts payable workflows, reporting and internal controls to improve operating efficiency and customer service.
• Formulates and recommends investment policy aligned with funder requirements, organizational risk tolerance and opportunities for impact investment; makes recommendations regarding the investment of available cash and endowments and oversees the CHA’s investment portfolio.
• Ensures financial operations effectively support the CHA’s expanding portfolio of real estate assets, affiliated entities, and affordable housing and social service financing activities.
• Ensures integrity of financial reporting and implements a robust system of internal controls.
Compliance & Risk Management
• Ensures compliance with HUD and other stakeholder requirements governing public housing and affiliated entities, with particular emphasis on the Moving to Work (MTW) Demonstration Program.
• Maintains strategic knowledge of federal housing programs and general real estate financing principles and proactively advises organizational leaders on the financial implications of changing regulations, funding levels, policy developments and market forces.
• Advises management regarding insurance coverage, enterprise risk management and protection against financial, operational and property-related liabilities while ensuring compliance with stakeholder and regulatory requirements.
• Identifies emerging financial risks and develops mitigation strategies that strengthen the CHA’s longterm financial sustainability.
• Oversees agency preparation for annual audit and other periodic monitoring by public and private funders. Liaise with CHA’s independent auditor, senior leadership, staff and the Board to review audit or other program review findings, coordinate management responses, and as necessary, implement corrective actions.
• As the Chief Procurement Officer, oversees and implements public procurement processes consistent with applicable agency and funder requirements.
External Relations & Stakeholder Engagement
• Represents the CHA with governmental agencies, financial institutions, investors, peer housing authorities, and other affordable housing providers and national industry organizations while serving as an ambassador for CHA's innovative financial and operational leadership.
• Communicates complex financial information clearly while building trusted relations and delivering responsive financial partnerships across the organization.
• Serves as a trusted financial advisor to the CEO and Board, helping translate financial data into strategic business decisions that advance the CHA’s mission.
Organizational Leadership & Talent Development
• Provides strategic leadership for the Finance Department through the hiring, supervision, mentoring and professional development of staff; establishes standard operating procedures, evaluates performance, and promotes continuous learning and accountability.
• Leads succession planning, delegation and talent development to strengthen organizational capacity, preserve institutional knowledge and build a high-performing finance organization prepared for future growth.
• Creates a high-performing, service-oriented finance organization that delivers responsive and timely financial support, builds trusted partnerships across departments, strengthens accountability and enables operational excellence throughout CHA.
• Leads the ongoing transformation of the Finance Department by modernizing systems, improving processes, empowering staff and fostering a culture of innovation, accountability and continuous improvement.
• Demonstrates exceptional leadership and team-building skills, inspiring collaboration, strengthening cross-functional relationships and transforming an already talented team into a highly engaged, high performing finance organization.
The Leader:
The ideal candidate will bring a demonstrated record of financial leadership, strategic thinking and organizational impact, supported by the following qualifications, experience and core leadership competencies:
Education & Professional Experience
• Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, business, or a related field, and a minimum of eight (8) years of progressively responsible experience in accounting, finance, investments or related disciplines, including significant supervisory experience. MBA and/or CPA preferred.
• Experience with grant funding, job costing and investment management.
• Experience leading finance functions through periods of organizational growth, change management and process improvement.
• Experience leading finance within affordable housing, real estate, higher education, healthcare, government or another highly regulated, operationally complex organization is strongly preferred.
Strategic Leadership & Business Acumen
• Demonstrates a strategic and entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to balance long-term vision and innovation with disciplined execution, financial stewardship and operational excellence.
• Sets high standards of performance, drives results with a sense of urgency.
• Leads with unquestioned integrity and sound judgment while fostering a culture of transparency, collaboration, and service that reflects CHA's mission and entrepreneurial spirit.
Leadership & People Management
• Provides direction by clearly and effectively setting the course of action for the department; manages performance by providing regular feedback and reinforcement to staff.
• Strong cross-functional leadership skills with the ability to build relationships, drive accountability, foster collaboration and influence across departments.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, develop and empower high-performing teams through periods of growth and change.
Communication & Relationship Management
• Ensures important information is shared with those who need to know; conveys information clearly and effectively, both orally and in writing; demonstrates active listening and an understanding of others' comments and questions.
• Ability to communicate complex financial information clearly and effectively to diverse audiences, including executive leadership, public boards, residents, community stakeholders and financial partners.
• Meets or exceeds the expectations of internal and external customers; identifies, understands, monitors and responds to stakeholder needs; recognizes colleagues as internal customers and fosters a service-oriented culture.
Collaboration & Organizational Effectiveness
• Demonstrates an open-door, collaborative leadership style that values transparency, active listening, accessibility and thoughtful decision-making while empowering staff and fostering trust.
• Balances team and individual responsibilities; demonstrates objectivity and openness to others' perspectives; welcomes feedback; builds morale and commitment to shared goals; and supports the success of colleagues across the organization.