Controller

Description

About this Role

Women's Lunch Place is a Boston-based nonprofit serving more than 2,300 women annually through day shelter, meals, housing, healthcare, and case management. We believe Dignity is Everything and that is how we operate, with the same care and commitment. 

We’re looking for a Controller ready to own the financial function of a mission-driven organization. This is a real step up and for many candidates, this will be your first Controller title, earned at an organization where that work genuinely matters. 

This role comes with a real coaching opportunity by working alongside executive leaders and a collaborative team, you'll help build the financial acumen of the organization from the inside out.
 

Who We're Looking For

• Experience: 5–7 years of progressively responsible finance experience; nonprofit background preferred. Individuals reentering the workforce are encouraged to apply.
• Education: Bachelor’s in Accounting, Finance, or related field; CPA or MBA a plus.
• Technical Skills: Solid grasp of nonprofit accounting (revenue recognition, restricted fund management, and grant expense compartmentalization).
• Systems: QuickBooks Online experience preferred; equivalent systems with a willingness to learn considered.
• Communication: A strong communicator who can translate financials for non-finance audiences.
• Collaboration: A natural coach you translate complexity into clarity for the people around you.      
• Judgment: Someone who knows the rules, and brings a creative solution-oriented approach working within management direction to find the best outcome for the organization.

What You'll Do

• Financial Strategy: Annual budgeting and long-term financial planning.
• Reporting: Monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reporting.
• Audit & Compliance: Audit preparation, managing external auditor relationships, and grant compliance across government and private funders.
• Operations: Cash flow management, risk assessment, and internal controls.
• Leadership: Financial presentations to the Board of Directors and Finance Committee.
• Coordination: Oversight of external bookkeeper and cross-functional coordination with HR and Philanthropy.

Requirements

What You’ll Bring

• Mindset: A growth orientation — you see this role as a career-defining opportunity and show up ready to build, not just maintain.
• Initiative: A proactive, entrepreneurial approach — you're anticipating what's coming and getting ahead of it without being asked.
• Risk Awareness: The instinct to spot financial risk early and put mitigation in place before it becomes a problem.
• Precision: Exceptional attention to detail — every number is right, every time, because accuracy here has real consequences for real people.
• Reasoning: Strong deductive thinking — you can look at a program team's budget submission and work backwards to confirm it holds up.
• Efficiency: A knack for simplicity — you structure funding and allocate expenses as cleanly as possible while still meeting every requirement.
• Stewardship: A genuine instinct to stretch resources and spread funding across the organization in a way that serves the mission and keeps the organization growing.

Benefits Highlights

• Time Off: 20 days vacation (25 after 3 years), 10 sick days, and 10 paid holidays.
• Health & Wellness: 80% employer-paid health insurance; 100% employer-paid dental and vision.
• Retirement: 403(b) and 5% employer contribution. 
• Extras: Pre-tax commuter benefits, life insurance, and short/long-term disability.

Women's Lunch Place is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We do not discriminate based on race, color, gender or gender identity, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or disability.