June 21, 2022 – Executive recruitment firm SearchWide Global has been enlisted to find a chief financial officer for the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau in Ohio. Senior vice president Kellie Henderson is spearheading the assignment. The organization’s CFO serves as the principal financial advisor and strategic partner to the chief executive officer, said the search firm. The CFO directs and oversees all financial activities, including financial strategy, cash management, investments, insurance, payroll, budgeting, accounting and financial reporting, annual audit, and related activities. The incoming leader will direct and oversee the organization’s HR function, coordinating with external service providers (payroll, benefits, and general HR) and internal staff responsibilities for various aspects of HR. Direction and oversight of legal, administration, and information technology and security also falls under the CFO’s purview.
The Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau’s CFO is responsible for creating and overseeing systems and procedures to ensure effective internal control over financial reporting, expenditures, and operations, said the search firm. This leader must also coordinate the development of the annual operating, capital, and program budgets, and report against the same. The CFO also researches revenue opportunities and risks given economic or other trends, analyzes internal operations, identifies areas of cost reduction and process enhancement.
This position calls for the CFO to: manage business complexity while minimizing risk as the non-profit executes on its strategies and initiatives; gain business alignment to successfully identify, evaluate, and execute strategies by partnering with senior management; and develop and maintain strong relationships with legal advisors, banks, investment managers, benefit providers, insurance providers, and information technology and security partners.
Key Qualifications
The ideal CFO will have a record of proven business acumen and be able to catalyze behaviors across the organization and other community stakeholders to execute strategic and financial objectives while at the same time creating a risk intelligent culture, said SearchWide Global. Candidates should also have the ability to execute high quality work and manage multiple projects simultaneously. Prospects should further be technology savvy and understand the vital role a CFO with a keen, futuristic mindset can play in driving the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau’s strategy forward.
Candidates must have a bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, or business economics; an MBA or CPA is preferred, said SearchWide Global. Ten-plus years of finance and management experience with a non-profit, 501 (c) (6), or in a corporate environment is also required. A demonstrated record of organizational and community leadership is essential.
It is also important that candidates have a record of leading key initiatives, strategy, and implementation. They should also have proven business acumen, relationship management, communication, and public speaking skills. A cohesive ability at interpersonal and communication skills, both verbally and written, is essential.
The Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau is a sales, marketing, and service organization whose primary mission is help grow the vibrancy and economic prosperity of Hamilton County and the City of Cincinnati by promoting the Greater Cincinnati region as a convention, trade show, and leisure destination. Travel and tourism is a $5.3 billion industry in Cincinnati, employing more than 80,000 people in a variety of fields and bringing 26.6 million visitors to the region annually. Established in 1945, the organization is supported by nearly 500 businesses who invest in the efforts of the bureau and help make Cincinnati an appealing destination by offering their services, attractions, and facilities to visitors, meeting planners, and convention delegates.
Experienced Recruiters
SearchWide Global, based in St. Paul, MN, is a full-service executive recruitment firm primarily for companies in the travel, tourism, hospitality, convention, trade association, venue management and experiential marketing industries. The firm specializes in C-level and director-level executive searches for companies ranging in size from Fortune 500 corporations to mid-sized public and private companies and associations.
Ms. Henderson works in all sectors of hospitality, travel and tourism. She has experience recognizing clients’ needs, identifying best-in-class talent. She also leads SearchWide Global’s industry-wide diversity initiative. She serves on the Destinations International Foundation board of trustees is involved in several other industry organizations. Previously, Ms. Henderson worked in the destination marketing organization and hotel industry.
Related: SearchWide Global Recruits Chief Diversity Officer for Destinations International
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
