PD_VA_Chief-Financial-Officer

Position Description

chief financial officer, Department of veterans affairs

Overview

Senate Committee

This chief financial officer is one of the CFO positions covered by the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-576), as amended, that may be filled through appointment by the president, with the advice and consent of the Senate, or through designation by the president from among agency officials who have been confirmed by the Senate for other positions. (31 U.S.C. §901(a)(1))
If filled through appointment by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate, the CFO goes through the Veterans’ Affairs committee and is a privileged nomination pursuant to S. Res. 116.¹ _{https://www.congress.gov/nomination/113th-congress/1250?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22Helen+Tierney%22%5D%7D&r=2}

Agency Mission

To fulfill President Lincoln’s promise u201cto care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow and his orphanu201d by serving and honoring the men and women who are America’s veterans² _{Previous Partnership for Public Service position description}

Position Overview

The chief financial officer advises the secretary on the financial management of the department and oversees the department’s budgetary and financial functions (38 U.S. Code § 309). CFOs also play a crucial government-wide role.

Compensation

Level IV $155,500 (5 U.S.C. § 5315)³ _{The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017 (Public Law 115-31, May 5, 2017), contains a provision that continues the freeze on the payable pay rates for certain senior political officials at 2013 levels during calendar year 2017.}

Position Reports to

Secretary and/or Deputy Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs

Responsibilities

Management Scope

The VA is the second-largest federal department and employs more than 340,000 individuals in a nationwide network of 144 medical centers, 1,203 community-based outpatient clinics, 300 vet centers and 56 regional offices. The VA also oversees a network of cemeteries, 131 of them national and 90 of them state or tribal. The VA administers its work through three major organizations: the Veterans Health Administration, the Veterans Benefits Administration and the National Cemetery Administration Services. The Department of Veterans Affairs’ budget for fiscal 2018 is over $185 billion.

Primary Responsibilities

® Is responsible for the overall budget and financial management of the department’s budget
® Oversees the department’s performance management, business oversight, asset enterprise management and corporate analysis, and evaluations programs⁴ _{http://www.va.gov/opa/bios/bio_murray.asp}
® Develops and maintains integrated accounting and financial management systems
® Oversees the recruitment, selection and training of personnel to carry out agency financial management functions, and manages, trains and provides policy guidance and oversight of these personnel and their activities
® Implements agency asset-management systems, including systems for cash management, credit management, debt collection, and property and inventory management and control
® Manages the financial execution of the agency budget and actual expenditures
® Provides financial and performance reports to staff, overseers and stakeholders
® Ties the budget and performance to outcomes
® Takes the lead role in enterprise risk management

Strategic Goals and Priorities

[Depends on the policy priorities of the administration]

Requirements and Competencies

Requirements

® Strong background in federal financial management
® Executive leadership experience
® Experience working in a large organization
® Risk-management experience
® Knowledge of the department’s functions and policies
® Familiarity with cyber technology (a plus)
® Background in data analytics (a plus)

Competencies

® Ability to collaborate with the chief information officers, under/assistant secretaries for administration/management, as well as other CFOs, and the Office of Management and Budget via the CFO Council
® Knowledge of and relationships with Congress, or ability to develop them
CURRENT AND PAST APPOINTEES
Jon J. Rychalski (2017 u2013 Present): Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Budgets and Financial Policy, Department of Defense; Director, PricewaterhouseCoopers; Consultant, BearingPoint; Executive Officer, United States Air Force ⁵ _{https://www.va.gov/opa/bios/bio_rychalski.asp}
Edward J. Murray (2015 to 2017): Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Office of Management, Department of Veterans Affairs; Deputy Chief Financial Officer, Department of Veterans Affairs; Executive Director for Operations of Office of Management, Department of Veterans Affairs⁶ _{http://www.va.gov/opa/bios/bio_murray.asp}
Helen Tierney (2013 to 2015): Executive in Charge in the Office of Management, Department of Veterans Affairs; Executive Director of Planning, Program Analysis and Evaluation for Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security; Army Senior Fellow, United States Army⁷ _{https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/10/04/president-obama-announces-more-key-administration-posts}
Todd Grams (2009 to 2013): Chief Financial Officer, Department of Commerce; Chief Information Officer, Internal Revenue Service; Chief Financial Officer, Veterans Health Administration⁸ _{http://www.va.gov/opa/bios/docs/gram.pdf}
The Partnership’s Center for Presidential Transition helps ensure the efficient transfer of power that our country deserves. The Center’s Ready to Govern· initiative assists candidates with the transition, works with Congress to reform the transition process, develops management recommendations to address our government’s operational challenges, and trains new political appointees.