Senior Director, Budget Office

Union/Affiliation: Administrative Professional Excluded Staff
Pay range: $142,552 to $184,473 annually SFU Department Descr: Budget Office
Position Grade: 16
# of openings: 1
Biweekly Hours: 72

Who We Are

Simon Fraser University is a leading research university, advancing an inclusive and sustainable future. Our purpose – the essence of SFU – is to create and connect knowledge, learning and community for deeper understanding and meaningful impact. We are committed to fostering excellence, innovation, belonging and community in all that we do.

The Budget Team leads the development and coordination of the university’s consolidated annual budget, supporting both core operations and long-term strategic planning. Reporting to the Provost and Vice-President Academic, and working closely with the Vice-President, Finance and Administration, the team provides financial planning, analysis, monitoring, and forecasting services to academic and administrative units across the university.
Through this work, the Budget Team enables sound decision-making, responsible stewardship of resources, and the long-term financial sustainability of the institution. By aligning financial planning with institutional priorities, the team plays a key role in advancing SFU’s strategic objectives.
Our team culture is collaborative and analytical, with a strong service orientation and a shared commitment to transparency, continuous improvement, and evidence-based decision-making.

About the Role

Reporting to the Provost and Vice President, Academic and Chief Budget Officer, and working in close partnership with the Vice President, Finance and Administration, this role serves as the University’s senior authority on integrated budget strategy and long-range financial planning. The role’s primary purpose is to ensure that SFU’s financial resources are allocated in a sustainable and transparent manner, and in direct alignment with academic priorities, enrolment strategy, and relevant government policy. The position is central to advancing institutional resilience, translating complex funding environments, compensation pressures, and policy changes into clear, actionable financial models that inform executive level decision making. Through the development of robust financial frameworks and effective risk mitigation strategies, the role enables the institution to confidently pursue strategic initiatives while maintaining long term financial stewardship.

The ideal candidate is a strategic financial leader with deep expertise in complex budget modeling, long-range financial planning, and public-sector funding environments. They bring strong executive presence and the ability to translate financial complexity into clear, decision-ready insight. Success in this role requires advanced analytical capability, sound judgment, and political acuity, along with a collaborative leadership style that builds trust across academic and administrative units. The candidate demonstrates experience leading high-performing teams, strengthening financial systems, and managing risk in dynamic, multi-stakeholder environments, ideally within post-secondary or similarly complex institutions.

Qualifications

Master's degree in accounting, professional accounting designation (CPA), with ten years of progressive experience in financial planning, analysis, and budgeting, preferably within post-secondary education and five years of supervisory experience, preferably in a complex, multi-stakeholder environment or an equivalent combination of education, training and experience.

• Ability to anticipate and analyze the budget implications of operational changes in administrative systems, compensation strategies, collective agreement negotiations, government policy changes, and funding mechanisms.
• Ability to develop and implement university-wide budget models.
• Ability to provide leadership in the budget planning process, to establish and maintain credibility and strong collaborative working relationships with the University’s executive and senior- level decision makers.
• Ability to develop relationships and partnerships and to work collaboratively at all levels and areas within the organization.
• Knowledge of financial analysis and best practices.

What We Offer

At SFU, our goal is to ensure our people are valued and supported by promoting a healthy work-life balance, professional growth and development, as well as a safe and respectful workplace. We offer continuing employees who belong in the Administrative Professional Excluded Staff group (APEX):

• 4 weeks’ vacation (prorated for the first year)*
• Hybrid-work program for eligible positions
• Employer paid defined benefit pension plan
• On-campus tuition waiver for employees and their immediate family members*
• Off-campus tuition reimbursements and professional development funds*
• And more!

*Prorated for part-time employees

Additional Information

The pay range is the span between the minimum and maximum base salary for the position. The midpoint of the range is approximately halfway between the minimum and the maximum and represents an employee that possesses full job knowledge, qualifications and experience for the position. In the normal course, employees will be hired, transferred or promoted between the minimum and midpoint of the pay range.