How to apply for Head of Finance

About Longview Philanthropy

Longview Philanthropy designs and executes giving strategies for major donors, focusing on long-term problems. It is a nonprofit, not a grantmaker, so the finance work centers on advising and moving philanthropic capital rather than managing an endowment. The role is remote in the US and involves US and UK entities.

About the role

This is a build role: Longview's first finance function. You will set up accounting, FP&A, treasury, compliance, and financial strategy systems, and manage restricted funds, grant commitments, and reporting across US and UK entities. You will also oversee external providers and internal capabilities, giving leadership visibility into spending and future needs.

A typical day

A typical day might involve reviewing cash flow and restricted fund balances, meeting with external accounting or compliance providers, and working with leadership on budget forecasts. You may also handle grant commitment reporting across US and UK entities and make treasury decisions with incomplete information. The exact rhythm is not described in the job details, so ask about team structure and reporting lines in interviews.

Who Longview Philanthropy is looking for

• Has built or transformed a finance function before, not just run an existing one.
• Has hands-on FP&A and accounting experience, plus treasury or investment experience.
• Has managed multiple legal entities, ideally across the US and UK, including restricted funds and grant commitments.
• Is comfortable making decisions with incomplete information in a growing organization and can oversee both external providers and internal staff.

Tips for this application

• In your resume, lead with examples where you built or transformed a finance function, not just maintained one.
• Quantify the complexity you have handled: number of legal entities, restricted fund volume, grant commitments, or treasury portfolio size.
• Name the specific systems you have implemented for accounting, FP&A, and treasury, and say whether you managed external providers or built in-house capability.
• Address US and UK entity experience directly; if you lack UK exposure, state how you would handle cross-border reporting and compliance.
• Show you understand Longview's model: philanthropic capital flows for major donors, not a traditional corporate or endowment finance role.

What to cover in your cover letter

Explain why you want to build a first finance function rather than join an established one. Describe a specific finance function you built or transformed, including the systems and the outcome. Detail your experience with multiple legal entities, restricted funds, and grant commitments. State your treasury or investment experience and how you make decisions with incomplete information.

Research before applying

• Read Longview Philanthropy's website to understand how it designs and executes giving strategies for major donors.
• Look for public information on Longview's US and UK entity structure and any published reports or grant commitments.
• Research the long-term problems Longview focuses on, since finance decisions will support those programs.
• Check for any public statements from Longview leadership about scaling, hiring, or organizational growth.

Likely interview topics

Based on the job description, expect questions about:

• Walk through a finance function you built or transformed from scratch. What systems did you put in place first and why?
• How have you managed restricted funds and grant commitments across multiple legal entities, including US and UK reporting?
• Describe a treasury or investment decision you made with incomplete information. What was your process and what happened?
• How would you set up FP&A and budgeting for a growing nonprofit where leadership needs visibility into spending and future needs?
• How do you decide what to keep in-house versus what to outsource to external providers for accounting, compliance, and financial strategy?

Common mistakes to avoid

• Presenting only steady-state finance management experience when the role explicitly requires building or transforming a function.
• Ignoring the multi-entity and cross-border aspect; treating US and UK reporting as a minor detail.
• Focusing only on accounting and omitting FP&A, treasury, or investment experience, which the role requires.