Director, Finance, Budget, and Operations

Director, Finance, Budget, and Operations

Salary: $134,531.96 - $190,090.14 Annually Location: Bakersfield College -- Panorama Campus, CA Job Type: Management - Classified Administrator Job Number: FY25-2600340 College: Bakersfield College Opening Date: 03/19/2026 Closing Date: Continuous Salary Range/Class: 015 Hours Per Week: 40 Months Per Year: 12 Assured Consideration Date: 04/09/2026 Internal Posting Information: None

Description Below is our job description for this position. Please also review the Important Instructions & Additional Information section below, which contains valuable information about our application process.

Basic Function Under the direction of the Vice President, Finance and Administrative Services or assigned supervisor, the Director, Finance, Budget, and Operations provides strategic planning, financial leadership, and decision support for the College through the compilation, analysis, and dissemination of data that informs sound resource planning and allocation. This position assists the Vice President, Finance and Administrative Services, in ensuring fiscal integrity, stewardship of public and external funds, regulatory compliance, and operational efficiency in alignment with the Colleges mission and strategic priorities.

The Director serves as a strategic partner to senior leadership and actively collaborates with Student Life, Instruction, Human Resources, Information Technology, and other College areas. The position fosters a culture of collaboration, mutual respect, innovation, continuous improvement, and customer service; supports shared governance and participatory decision-making processes; and promotes professional excellence, accountability, and teamwork throughout the department and division.

Representative Duties

• Demonstrate effective leadership in long-range planning, program review, and resource development activities, including reserve management.
• Promote transparency within and among assigned units or departments.
• Participate actively in operational processes and initiatives, by serving on or leading College committees, workgroups, task forces, and councils as assigned.
• Demonstrate full accountability for effective and efficient utilization of resources.
• Control and authorize expenditures in accordance with established guidelines.
• Measure and assess outcomes.
• Identify opportunities for improvement and implement actions to strengthen services to students and the campus community.
• Provide effective leadership, development, and guidance over all aspects of the areas assigned, including resource planning, budgeting, tracking, and reporting with appropriate college administrators.
• Ensure implementation and compliance with budget and grant/categorical policies and procedures.
• Lead the development, implementation, and ongoing monitoring of the Colleges annual operating budget, ensuring alignment with institutional priorities, program review outcomes, enrollment trends, and strategic planning goals.
• Develop and maintain multi-year financial projections, fiscal models, and scenario analyses to support long-range planning, institutional sustainability, and executive decision-making.
• Provide strategic financial analysis, reporting, and recommendations to the Vice President, executive leadership, governance bodies, and the Board of Trustees regarding resource allocation, financial trends, and the fiscal impact of institutional initiatives.
• Oversee budget administration and fiscal monitoring for all college funds, including unrestricted, restricted, categorical, and grant-funded programs, ensuring compliance with federal, state, district, and regulatory requirements.
• Coordinate the integration of institutional planning and budgeting processes, including program review, resource allocation, and participatory governance recommendations, to ensure transparent and data-informed resource decisions.
• Serve as the primary liaison with District fiscal services and other administrative units, ensuring alignment of college financial operations with district policies, reporting requirements, financial systems, and fiscal strategies.
• Collaborate with Human Resources and District offices to maintain accurate position control and personnel cost projections, including analysis of salary and benefit expenditures to support workforce planning and collective bargaining preparation.
• Provide leadership and oversight of assigned finance and budget staff and operations, including supervision, process improvement, development of financial procedures and internal controls, coordination of audits, and implementation of best practices in fiscal management.
• Implement budget planning, compliance, and monitoring programs in concert with the financial goals and objectives of the College, divisions, business initiatives, and related missions supporting the institutional alignment and integration of student success and instructional program funds to advance student outcomes.
• Direct and manage financial and operational studies and analyses providing critical management information with recommendations as appropriate.
• Monitor the District/College position control system used to track permanent employees, vacant positions, and requests for new positions; identify salary savings based on vacant positions to be utilized for other college needs; prepare reports related to salary and benefit costs utilized by management during collective bargaining.
• Collaborate with the District Office on financial procedures, policy updates, regulatory changes, and staff training initiatives to ensure consistent implementation, compliance, and alignment with District-wide standards and practices.
• Coordinate responses to inquiries and requests from the College Executive Management Team, District Management, Board of Trustees, Committees, etc. regarding budget and grant performance and management and college operations.
• Manage financial software and data systems, ensuring accurate data flow between departments.
• Select, train, supervise and conduct regular evaluations of personnel. Develop strategies to maximize staff effectiveness and service delivery. Foster teamwork, professional excellence, and a culture of accountability and customer service.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelors degree from an accredited college with a major in accounting, business administration, or a related field.
• Four (4) years of full-time supervisory experience in accounting/auditing/budget development and analysis.
• Demonstrated sensitivity to and understanding of the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, and disability backgrounds of community college students and employees.

Desirable Qualifications

• Masters Degree from an accredited institution in Business Administration, Public Administration, Economics, Finance or Accounting and four years of experience managing an accounting operation; OR
• A Certified Public Accounting certificate with four (4) years Public Accounting experience with supervisory experience; OR
• Experience in higher education community college or university setting in similar role.

Knowledge & Abilities

Knowledge of:

• Budget development and oversight of restricted and non-restricted funding.
• Contract development, negotiation and oversight.
• Mission, procedures, and operations of California Community Colleges.
• Leadership and managerial techniques.
• Laws, rules, regulations, and codes related to assigned activities.
• Interpersonal skills using tact, patience and courtesy.
• Personnel management.
• Modern office practices, procedures, and equipment.
• Title 5 regulations on funding.
• Fiscal reporting.

Ability to:

• Exercise leadership and maintain good working relationships with faculty, students, and staff.
• Effectively organize and supervise assigned areas.
• Develop, implement, and assess program goals and outcomes.
• Perform short and long-range planning.
• Learn and use Banner software system with high proficiency.
• Use Microsoft Office software with high proficiency, specifically Excel & Outlook.
• Perform high level professional accounting work in the analysis, maintenance and auditing of accounts affecting college wide operations.
• Work under standard research limitations for expenditures and help budget managers and staff to work within regulations specific to their grants.
• Maintain accurate financial records to balance budget and accounts.
• Perform short-and-long range budget, financial and operational planning.
• Effectively work with academic, occupational, developmental, and Entrepreneurial programs in a multi-campus environment.
• Demonstrate sensitivity to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.
• Establish and maintain cooperative and effective working relationships with others.
• Explain bookkeeping and financial regulations to staff.
• Analyze situations accurately and adopt an effective course of action.
• Facilitate change in a productive and positive manner.
• Foster teamwork and establish consensus.
• Effectively represent the college in the community.
• Work independently with little direction.

Benefits

• Health: Full-time permanent employees (20+ hours per month) are eligible for health, dental, vision, life insurance, and long-term disability benefits.
• Voluntary Benefits: Flex 125, additional products and services through American Fidelity, Supplemental Voluntary Life Insurance, and Tax Shelter Annuities.
• Retirement: The District participates in CalPERS Retirement System and Social Security benefits for Classified and Management employees. Employees covered under CalPERS are vested 100% after five years of full-time service credit. The District participates in the State Teachers Retirement System (STRS) for faculty. Employees covered under STRS are vested 100% after five years of full-time service credit.
• ACA Health Benefits: The following classifications are eligible for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) health benefits at the employee expense offered through SISC: Permanent Employees (19 hours or less), Adjuncts, Temporary Hourly, and Professional Experts.
• All coverages begin on the first of the following month after the hire date.

Special Instructions

• Complete application packets will be accepted until the position is filled. However, applications received by April 9, 2026, are assured consideration.
• The District and/or College reserves the right to extend time limits or re-initiate the recruitment/selection process at any point.
• Completed application packets must include the following:
• Completed online application for employment
• Current resume
• Letter of interest (cover letter)
• List of 5 (five) professional references (entered in online application)
• Copy of legible transcripts
• It is the applicants responsibility to redact or remove any personal information from all documents prior to uploading. This includes Social Security Numbers, Date of Birth, and any photos of the applicant.
• International or Foreign Degrees: Applicants with international or foreign degrees from colleges or universities outside of the United States must have their coursework evaluated by a professional association that is a member of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) or Academic Credentials Evaluation Institute, INC. (ACEI). A copy of the evaluation must be submitted with your online application.
• Accommodations: Applicants who require reasonable accommodation to participate in the selection process should contact Human Resources to make the necessary arrangements.

Discrimination Free Work Environment The District and College are strongly committed to achieving staff diversity and the principles of equal employment opportunity. The District and College encourages a diverse pool of applicants and does not discriminate on the basis of national origin, religion, age, gender, gender identity, gender expression, race or ethnicity, color, medical condition, genetic information, ancestry, sexual orientation, marital status, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, or because he/she is perceived to have one or more of the foregoing characteristics, or based on association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law, in any of its policies, procedures or practices.

Work Authorization Kern Community College District does not provide sponsorship for authorization to work in the United States. Work authorization should be established at the time of application submission.

E-Verify The Kern Community College District participates in the U.S. Department of Homeland Securitys E-Verify program to verify the identity and employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, please visit e-verify.gov.

Employer Information

• Employer: Kern Community College District
• Address: 2100 Chester Ave, Bakersfield, California, 93301
• Phone: 661-336-5141
• Website:https://www.kccd.edu/human-resources/index.html