Chicago deputy Chief Financial Officer Jack Brofman will join the University of Chicago’s finance team next month.
Brofman will start at the university July 17 as executive director of global treasury operations reporting to Jee He Kim, associate vice president for finance.
“He will play a critical role in all treasury-related decisions of the university,” Kim said in an email.
Brofman’s portfolio of responsibilities will include leading the strategic management and planning of university’s treasury and cash operations, overseeing commercial bank relationships, dynamic receipt and disbursement services, treasury IT systems, daily cash positioning and long-term forecasting, partnering with various stakeholders within the university to support growing international banking activity, and overseeing the business continuity plan for the department.
“And more importantly for the university’s global treasury/cash management, ensuring it is up to date and critical operations are accounted for,” Kim said. “Given the depth and breadth of financial knowledge that Jack will bring to UChicago, there is no doubt that his responsibilities will grow over time. The University of Chicago is extremely excited for him to join the team.”
Brofman was among a shortlist of candidates being considered last month for the city’s CFO post, after then-CFO Jennie Huang Bennett decided to move on when the administration of Mayor Brandon Johnson took office. Johnson offered the CFO job to financial advisory professional Jill Jaworski, who started earlier this month.
Brofman said he’s proud of the city’s fiscal progress on structural balance, pensions, and other fiscal and social issues during his tenure, including the $1 billion, 100-year contract to begin supplying Joliet with treated Lake Michigan water as part of an expanding water service footprint that helped draw upgrades to the city’s water revenue bonds. He also named moving the city toward structural balance and implementing supplemental pension contributions that helped draw rating upgrades as signature accomplishments.
The university position offered a “really interesting opportunity to take on a new role at a prestigious and dynamic institution in the city and nationally,” Brofman said in an interview Wednesday.
Brofman joined the city more than seven years ago as a senior fiscal policy analyst after completing graduate work at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy with a master’s degree in public policy. He was elevated to debt manager in 2017 and promoted to deputy CFO in 2019, serving as the point person on financings and other fiscal issues. He previously worked as a valuation analyst at Griffing Group.
Brofman said he leaves the city in good fiscal hands under Jaworski’s leadership as well as the new budget director Annette Guzman, who previously managed Cook County’s budget.
“They are both well-positioned to hit the ground running,” Brofman said. Brendan White, who was recently promoted to debt manager, remains on the finance team.
Brofman jumps to a sector and university that struggled through the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown and temporary shift to remote learning, but the school held on to its ratings, which benefit from its prestigious reputation.
The University of Chicago carries a AA-plus rating from Fitch Ratings, a Aa2 from Moody’s Investors Service, and AA-minus from S&P Global Ratings with all assigning a stable outlook.
“The AA-minus rating reflects our assessment of the university’s extremely strong enterprise profile, which is supported by exceptional student demand and quality metrics despite pandemic pressures and impressive market position and fundraising,” said S&P analyst Jessica Goldman said in a report earlier this year.
The stable outlook reflects its expectation the university will maintain financial resources consistent with the rating category, sustain at least stable patient utilization and healthy student enrollment, and work to offset revenue and expense pressures, S&P said.