CFO

A globally esteemed Swiss foundation operating at the forefront of climate and carbon market solutions is seeking a Chief Financial Officer to join its Executive Leadership Team in Geneva. The CFO will serve as a key strategic partner to the CEO and Board, ensuring financial resilience, governance excellence, and long-term sustainability in a dynamic global market.

This distinguished role offers the opportunity to shape the financial trajectory of a mission-driven yet market-facing institution, where commercial discipline, regulatory rigour, and strategic agility are equally essential. The organisation generates income through insurance-related mechanisms linked to projects, and operates within evolving macroeconomic and regulatory environments.

Responsibilities:

• Provide strategic financial counsel to the Chief Executive Officer and the Board, aligning financial strategy with mission, market positioning, and long-term sustainability objectives.

• Oversee all financial operations, including reporting, audits, and compliance with Swiss regulatory frameworks (Swiss Code of Obligations, Swiss GAAP FER/RPC), ensuring robust fiduciary governance within a foundation structure.

• Manage financial flows related to market-based revenue streams, including insurance mechanisms linked to relevant projects.

• Lead budgeting, forecasting, liquidity planning, and capital allocation in a non-donor-dependent, revenue-generating environment exposed to changing macroeconomic and carbon market conditions.

• Oversee investment strategies and reserve management to safeguard long-term financial stability.

• Drive finance system transformation and digitalisation initiatives to enhance efficiency, transparency, and data-driven decision-making.

• Strengthen enterprise risk management frameworks, balancing commercial opportunity with prudent risk oversight in a volatile climate finance landscape.

• Engage directly with the Board and relevant committees, ensuring high-quality reporting and governance transparency.

• Supervise procurement strategy and optimise resource allocation across the organisation.

• Collaborate closely with executive leadership to embed financial strategy into broader organisational and market objectives.

• Foster a high-performing, diverse finance team capable of operating in an international and technically complex environment.

Key requirements

• Master’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or related field; CPA or equivalent professional qualification preferred.

• Minimum 15 years’ experience in senior financial leadership roles, including at least five years as CFO or equivalent in complex, international organisations.

• Prior exposure to international NGOs, global foundations, climate finance institutions, or market-based sustainability organisations highly desirable.

• Fluency in English required; French highly desirable given the Geneva location. Must have the right to work and be present regularly in the Geneva office.

• Proven track record leading financial transformation and digitisation initiatives.

• Experience engaging with Boards and governance bodies in institutional settings.

• Sound judgement in navigating evolving regulatory landscapes and market volatility.

• Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence stakeholders at executive and Board level.

• Significant experience translating complex financial and market challenges into coherent strategies within commercially exposed organisations.

• Deep understanding of Swiss regulatory and foundation frameworks; prior experience in Switzerland strongly preferred.