Finance board member

1. The Opportunity

MDF is recruiting the Treasurer for its founding Board of Trustees — one of the small number of seats, alongside Chair and Company Secretary, that complete the legal minimum required to incorporate as a CLG.
 

This is a genuine co-founding role: the Treasurer joining now helps build MDF's financial governance from a blank page, rather than stepping into an established set of systems and controls.
 

Term and commitment
- Initial term: 12 months, renewable — a deliberately short first commitment, designed as a mutual trial period for both MDF and the Treasurer, rather than a standard 3-year trustee term.
- Meeting load: quarterly Board meetings (approximately 4 across the year).
Location: Dublin, with remote/hybrid participation expected for some meetings.
- Remuneration: this is a voluntary trustee role, in line with standard practice for an Irish charity Board.
 

Beyond the four formal quarterly meetings, it would be honest to say that MDF is, right now, very much in build mode — incorporating the CLG, shaping its governance, developing its network, and progressing funding and premises workstreams in parallel. In practice, the founding Treasurer's involvement is likely to include informal exchanges between meetings too — advice, sounding-board conversations, and hands-on support on the issues above — not just the four formal sessions.

What MDF is looking for is someone who believes in this project as much as its founder does, and who is willing to bring their energy, expertise and network to help build it — not simply attend meetings.
 

2. Key Responsibilities
 

Founding-phase priorities (Year 1)
- CLG incorporation support — review the financial provisions of MDF's governing document ahead of filing with the Charities Regulator.
- Founding financial model — stress-test the early-stage budget and business plan as it is built.
- Financial controls from day one — set up bank mandates, approval processes and a reserves policy designed to scale as MDF grows.
- Funder credibility — in early conversations with statutory and philanthropic funders, a credible Treasurer is itself a trust signal for MDF.
 

Statutory responsibilities of the Treasurer
As a founding Board member of a CLG being registered with the Charities Regulator, the Treasurer carries specific fiduciary responsibilities in addition to the general duties of any director. 

Under the Charities Governance Code, these typically cover:
- Financial oversight — ensure sound financial management of the organisation and protect its assets on the Board's behalf.
- Reporting to the Board — present regular, clear financial reports and ensure every director understands the organisation's financial position.
- Budget — oversee preparation of the annual budget and track performance against it.
- Controls and risk — ensure appropriate financial controls, bank mandates and risk-management procedures are in place from the outset.
- Statutory compliance — ensure annual accounts are prepared, independently examined or audited where required, and filed on time with the Companies - Registration Office (CRO) and the Charities Regulator.
- External interface — act as the Board's main point of contact with accountants and auditors.
- Financial sustainability — bring the Board a critical perspective on funding strategy and reserves policy, without taking on day-to-day operational execution of fundraising.

General trustee duties (shared with the full Board)
- Ensure MDF complies with its governing document, company law and charity law.
- Ensure MDF pursues the objects set out in its governing document, and applies its resources accordingly.
- Contribute to strategic direction, policy-setting and performance evaluation as a Board member.
- Safeguard MDF's good name and values.
 

3. Person Specification
 

Hard skills — essential
- Qualified accountant or equivalent senior finance background (e.g. CFO-level), ideally trained at a Big Four firm or a comparable institution.
- Strong grasp of budgeting, financial modelling and financial controls.
- Comfortable reading and challenging financial statements, and explaining them clearly to a non-financial Board.
 

Hard skills — desirable
- Familiarity with not-for-profit/charity financial reporting (Charities SORP) — a plus, not a prerequisite.
- Prior experience on a board or committee, charity or corporate.
 

Soft skills
- Independent judgement and integrity — able to ask difficult questions and challenge constructively.
- Genuine motivation for MDF's mission — this is a founding role, built from a blank page, not a CV line.
- Comfortable with ambiguity and an early-stage, largely voluntary environment, as a collaborative Board-level partner to MDF's founder rather than a hands-on operator.
- Willing to open their professional network in service of MDF's funding and institutional relationships, and based in Ireland with an established local financial and institutional network.