Associate Vice President Financial Operations and Controller

Associate Vice President for Financial Operations and Controller

Department: CFO & Vice President Operations

Location: Arlington

Position Status: Full-time

Work Schedule: Monday – Friday; 8:00am – 5:00pm (may extend during peak cycles)

Travel: Occasional travel may be required.

The Associate Vice President for Financial Operations & Controller provides executive leadership for the university’s core financial, transactional, and compliance functions, with a strong mandate to modernize operations, lead enterprise change, and leverage technology to improve efficiency, accuracy, and service delivery. Reporting directly to the Vice President/ CFO, this role oversees student financial services, accounting, financial reporting, payroll, grant accounting, and supply chain management.

The AVP serves as the university’s chief steward of financial integrity while acting as a change leader responsible for transforming financial operations into a streamlined, data‑enabled, customer‑centric organization.

• Serve as a senior leader on the CFO’s executive team, driving large‑scale operational change across financial services.
• Lead organizational transformation initiatives focused on process simplification, standardization, and service excellence.
• Actively manage change impacts across teams, ensuring clear communication, staff engagement, and leadership alignment.
• Build a culture that values continuous improvement, accountability, innovation, and professional development.

• Oversee end‑to‑end financial operations to ensure efficient, accurate, timely, and compliant execution.
• Identify and eliminate redundant, manual, or high‑risk processes; redesign workflows to improve cycle time and quality.
• Establish and monitor performance metrics and service‑level expectations for financial operations.
• Partner with academic and administrative units to improve customer experience while maintaining strong controls.
• Lead the adoption of financial systems optimization, automation, and digital workflows, including:
  • Transactional automation
  • Workflow and approval redesign
  • Self‑service tools
  • Data quality and system integration improvements
• Collaborate closely with IT leadership (CIO, CAO, CISO) to align financial operations with enterprise technology strategy.
• Champion innovative uses of technology to reduce risk, improve transparency, and increase scalability.

• Ensure compliance with GAAP, GASB, UT System policies, and state and federal regulations.
• Oversee preparation and accuracy of the university’s annual financial report and other required regulatory filings.
• Serve as executive liaison to external auditors and regulatory bodies.
• Maintain a strong internal control environment and proactively manage financial risk.

• Lead, mentor, and evaluate executive directors, directors, and managers across financial operations portfolio.
• Develop succession plans, modern skill sets, and leadership capacity within the financial operations organization.
• Promote cross‑training, collaboration, and shared accountability across functional departments.
• Create an engaging culture in a remote working environment.

• Lead development and modernization of financial policies and procedures.
• Advise the CFO and senior leadership on operational risks, compliance issues, and strategic improvements.
• Represent UTA in UT System, state, and national financial and business‑operations forums as appropriate.

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or a related field.
• Minimum of ten years of progressively responsible leadership experience in financial operations, accounting, or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex organizations, large teams, and enterprise‑level change initiatives.

• Master’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or related field.
• CPA or equivalent professional certification.
• Experience in a large, complex public university or research institution.
• Demonstrated success…