Role
Chief Financial Officer
Defined
The Chief Financial Officer has primary responsibility for financial planning, management, and reporting of the agency.
Challenges and Opportunities
In your role, what are the most critical challenges and opportunities? Looking across the agency, what capabilities are required to successfully take them on? How can you help build the necessary capabilities? The first step is to understand these challenges and opportunities in terms of the major change forces that are driving them.
Change ForcesChallenge/OpportunityYour Responsibility
Legislation, Regulation, and FundingFunding instability and uncertainty impact the agency’s ability to fund
maintenance and construction
program at current levels.

If the long-term solvency of the highway trust fund is not resolved, there could be additional pressure to find new ways to fund infrastructure.		Agility and Resilience. Identify ways to make better use of available funding and seek out alternative funding and financing options.

Transparency. Establish reporting processes that enable the agency and its stakeholders to understand how funds are used and the implications of funding changes.
Shift in Role and FocusShift to public-private partnerships and other alternative finance
Mechanisms.

Shift toward multi-modal
focus may require new approaches for partnering across agencies on funding.		Agility and Resilience. Facilitate use of alternative financing arrangements through changes to processes and systems.
Technology AdvancementTechnology advances such as automation, predictive analytics and blockchain may offer new opportunities for achieving efficiencies and providing new business insights.Technology Adoption. Monitor the state of the practice and identify opportunities for the agency to benefit from emerging technology.
Strategies and Resources

What strategies can you apply now to meet today’s challenges and prepare for future opportunities? What resources are available to help support these efforts?

Where to Begin

  • Monitor federal and state legislation related to funding and finance and assess risks and opportunities for the agency
  • Track emerging technologies that could enhance efficiency or effectiveness of financial management processes and work with the information technology lead to integrate these into the agency’s IT strategic plan.
  • Identify financial management strategies to leverage new opportunities to improve the use of funds and maximize investments.
  • Facilitate the agency’s use of P3s and other alternative funding mechanisms, including tolling.
  • Investigate options for transportation pricing and value capture to support investments.

Strategies

Information and Data Management

  • IT Strategic Planning – to plan for upgrades to financial management systems and anticipate longer term impacts of other technologies on financial management operations

Organizational Management

  • Change Management - to help the agency adjust to changes in financial management processes and systems

Workforce Management

  • Succession Planning – to ensure a seamless transition for key financial management roles

Knowledge Management

  • Knowledge dissemination – to ensure consistent understanding of agency financial management practices and systems

Partnerships

  • Public/private partnerships – to implement innovative financing strategies

Resources

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