Chief Financial Officer

At Ellis Porter, our goal is to improve the immigration experience for employers and individuals so they can thrive in a smaller world. To do this, we've built a team of dedicated immigration professionals (we call ourselves Porters) who believe passionately in the economic and cultural benefits that immigration provides to America, and who excel at providing our clients with refreshingly clear guidance, uniquely creative strategies, and remarkably responsive service, all with genuine empathyand a personal touch.

Immigration law is very complex and full of constant challenges, but the Ellis Porter team embraces the grind because we love what we do, and who we do it with, and we find great satisfaction in knowing that our work positively, and intimately, impacts our clients lives and companies.

Our Culture:

We're also immensely proud of (and protective of) our culture at Ellis Porter. It's not what you would expect from a typical law firm, because we're not a typical law firm. We take our work seriously, but not ourselves. We don't tolerate drama, and jerks are not allowed. And weve built a wonderfully diverse team of Porters who reflect the diversity of the clients we serve.

As our team continues to grow, weve remained committed to cultivating an inspiring, authentic, comfortable, and flexible work environment where you are respected, encouraged to bring your whole self to work, and challenged to continue your growth as a professional in the immigration legal field.

Position Summary:

As Ellis Porter continues to expand rapidly, we are seeking an experienced and innovative Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to join our leadership team. This pivotal role will oversee our financial operations, developing strategies to support our exciting growth plans and ensure financial integrity within the unique context of immigration law. Our CFO will also function as a thought leader, interfacing closely with the business to advise on strategic insights and growth opportunities, collaborating with our Managing Partners and Practice Leaders to align financial strategies with operational goals, and supporting our culture and mission of providing exceptional immigration legal services to our clients.

The Unique Opportunity: Were a mature firm (founded in 2003), but we still embrace a startup mentality. Weve experienced considerable growth over the past five years, and weve become the fifth largest immigration law firm in the US - but we dont plan on stopping there. Our people-centric culture and service delivery philosophies are revolutionizing our industry, and demand for our services continues to skyrocket.

Its an exciting time at Ellis Porter. And this is an exciting opportunity for you to join us as our first CFO, and play an impactful role in helping to shape our strategic path forward.

What youll be doing:

• Assess and evaluate Ellis Porters current business and financial landscape. Develop and implement comprehensive, scalable, financial initiatives to support continued growth and development.
• Prepare and present detailed and transparent financial reports to leadership, providing insights and recommendations to support strategic decision-making.
• Supervise accounting operations, while leading and mentoring the accounting team, including accounts payable and receivable, payroll, credit card expenses, and general ledger activities.
• Prepare and manage cash flow to maintain liquidity and financial stability, including managing/optimizing installment payment plans offered to clients.
• Establish and leverage banking relationships, negotiate financing arrangements and lines of credit, and monitor banking activities to ensure compliance and cost-effectiveness.
• Develop and oversee the budgeting processes for all business lines, ensuring efficient resource allocation.
• Conduct detailed financial forecasting and modeling to anticipate future financial trends and inform decision-making.
• Analyze financial data to identify trends, variances, and opportunities for improvement.
• Develop and analyze pricing models to help drive pricing strategies that reflect the value of services, align with market trends, meet client needs, and ensure profitability.
• Lead M&A activities, from identifying opportunities to integration, including due diligence, deal structuring, and post-merger integration.
• Ensure compliance with federal, multi-state, and local financial regulations, accounting standards, tax laws, and reporting requirements.
• Identify and mitigate financial risks associated with operations and client engagements.
• Implement and monitor internal controls to safeguard assets and ensure accurate financial reporting. Oversee internal and external audits, addressing any findings promptly, while maintaining strong working relationships with accounting firms.
• Develop and support digital transformation projects to help modernize processes and technologies within the accounting and finance function, and across the firm, including reassessing vendor usage, identifying various business levers, and evaluating opportunities for AI deployment.

What skills you'll bring:

• Bachelor's in Finance, Accounting, Business Admin, or a related field; MBA, CPA, CFA highly preferred.
• 10 years of progressive financial management experience, including 5 years in a leadership role, preferably within a professional services environment.
• Possess experience and desire to work in a progressive, high growth environment with a startup mentality.
• Ability to distill and communicate complicated financial concepts with clarity and educate leadership on recommended decision making.
• Proficiency using financial systems/ERP software (Ex. Accounting Seed).
• Strong analytical, strategic planning, and communication skills.
• Strong Microsoft Excel skills, as well as other Microsoft Office products.
• Detail oriented, organized with a high focus on accuracy.
• Passionate proponent of immigration and global mobility.
• Strong cultural competence in working with international clients.
• Valuing kindness, empathy, diversity, and inclusion as key strategic drivers of business success.

What we'll provide to you:

• The opportunity to do challenging, meaningful, and highly rewarding work at a fast-growing firm with an inspiring mission.
• The opportunity to work with fellow Porters who are smart, creative, dedicated, and supportive immigration professionals.
• The ability to spend your work life with genuine, quality human beings who are kind and compassionate, unique and interesting, and truly enjoyable to be around.
• A firm culture that passionately embraces diversity, equity, and inclusion, and celebrates international cultures.
• People-centered workplace policies and flexible work schedules, including remote work opportunities.
• Competitive compensation and bonus package, health/dental/vision/life insurance benefits, and a 401(k)-retirement savings plan with employer-matching contributions.
• Generous paid-time-off policy and casual attire.

Does this position, and our culture, seem like a good fit for you? Are you ready to take on an important strategic role in supporting Ellis Porters continued growth? If so, we would love to speak with you about joining the Ellis Porter team as our new CFO!

Ellis Porter provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

NON-SOLICITATION STATEMENT:

No agencies please. Ellis Porter (EP) recruits candidates exclusively utilizing our internal Talent Acquisition team. EP does not accept any liability for fees for resumes from recruiters or employment agencies (Agency), without a binding, written recruitment agreement between EP and Agency describing the services and specific job openings (Agreement). EP may consider any candidate for whom an Agency has submitted an unsolicited resume and explicitly reserves the right to hire those candidate(s) without any financial obligation to the Agency, unless an Agreement is in place. Any email or verbal contacts with any person within EP is inadequate to create a binding agreement. Agencies without an Agreement are requested not to contact any employees of EP with recruiting inquiries or resumes.