Deck and patio chief financial officer job description
A deck and patio chief financial officer plans the money for a company that collects deposits in spring and builds through fall. The CFO tracks margin by deck type, protects prices when lumber and composite costs move, and sets the terms of any consumer financing sales offers.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, other specialty trade contractors · BLS, May 2025
The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is a strategic leader responsible for overseeing all financial aspects of our deck and patio building operations. This role directs budgeting, cost controls, and financial planning to optimize profitability and support sustainable growth. The CFO will shape financial strategies that align with the company’s objectives, ensuring efficient financial management and contributing to overall business success.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Develop and implement financial strategies to support business objectives and drive sustainable growth.
Oversee budgeting, forecasting, and cost control measures to maintain financial discipline.
Monitor financial performance and provide actionable insights to management.
Ensure compliance with all regulatory and legal financial requirements.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Review and analyze financial statements and key performance data to track company performance.
Collaborate with department heads to align budgets and spending with strategic goals.
Lead regular financial meetings to update senior leadership on financial status.
Manage relationships with banks, auditors, and external financial advisors.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Gross Margin Optimization: Achieve at least a 30% gross margin.
Budget Variance: Maintain a variance of less than 5% between forecasted and actual figures.
Cost Control Efficiency: Reduce operational costs by 10% year-over-year.
Financial Reporting Timeliness: 100% of financial reports delivered on schedule.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, or Business Administration.
Minimum of 10 years of progressive financial management experience.
Proficient in financial software, ERP systems, and advanced Excel skills.
Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience within the construction, home services, or building industry.
Proven track record in managing financial operations for small to mid-size companies.
Familiarity with deck and patio building cost structures and project financing.
Experience working in dynamic, growth-oriented environments.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to work in an office setting with prolonged periods of sitting.
Occasional travel required for meetings with vendors or site visits.
Capability to manage work in a fast-paced environment with multiple priorities.
No heavy lifting or strenuous physical activities required.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Standard office hours with flexibility during peak financial periods.
Occasional evenings and weekend work during fiscal deadlines.
Minimal travel required within the region for business meetings.
On-call availability during critical financial review periods.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Salary Range: $150,000 - $200,000 per annum.
Performance-based bonus structure available.
Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance.
401(k) plan with company match available.
Additional fringe benefits including paid time off and professional development opportunities.
10. Company Culture and Overview
Our organization is built on a foundation of integrity, collaboration, and innovation. We strive to create an environment where every team member feels empowered to contribute to our collective success and grow professionally. Our inclusive culture emphasizes transparent communication, continuous improvement, and a commitment to excellence, inspiring our employees to succeed and lead in their roles.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
Deck companies get paid early and spend late, and their two main materials are priced in different ways. The CFO keeps the bank balance from telling a happier story than the books.
Spring deposits, fall costs
A deposit taken in April may not meet its lumber, labor and permit fees until September, and a slow permit or HOA approval stretches that gap. Cash runs high in late spring and low in winter. The CFO plans on that curve, ties later payments to clear build steps such as a passed framing inspection, and keeps spring cash from being spent as if it were profit.
Two kinds of material price
Treated lumber follows the framing lumber market, so ask your yard how long a quote holds. Composite and PVC boards come from makers' price lists, so ask your distributor when the next change is due. The CFO decides whether quotes carry an end date or a lumber clause, and how much composite to buy ahead of an increase, weighed against yard space and colors that may not sell.
Deferred interest comes back to you
The CFPB explains that a card plan with no interest if the purchase is paid in full by a set date is deferred interest. A buyer who hasn't paid the balance by then can owe all the interest back to the original date of the charge. A homeowner hit with that bill may blame the deck company. The CFO compares each lender's fee and plan type and decides whether sales may offer deferred interest at all. Source: CFPB: What is a deferred interest plan?.
Margin by what was built
A ground-level wood deck, a composite deck with lighting, a roofed patio cover and a screen room carry very different material, labor and subcontractor costs. One company-wide gross margin hides that. The CFO reports margin by product line and by crew, so the CEO knows which work to sell harder and which to price up.
Winter payroll on a credit line
Keeping your best carpenters through the slow months protects next season, but it means payroll with little revenue behind it. The CFO sizes the credit line for that stretch, knows which covenants the bank will test, and shows the owners the cost of keeping a crew against hiring and training a new one in spring.
How much deck and patio chief financial officers make
The closest BLS group for deck and patio chief financial officers is chief executives. Chief executives who work for other specialty trade contractors earned a median of $151,900 a year ($73.03 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s below the $213,990 median for chief executives in all industries. About 490 of the 204,350 chief executives in that survey work for other specialty trade contractors.
A salary with a performance bonus on top, per the template. The median shown is for chief executives at these contractors, the BLS group that includes CFOs, and the template's range brackets it.
Other specialty trade contractors
$151,900$151,900 median Middle half $113,900–$319,020 10th–90th $83,500–$392,040
All industries
$213,990$213,990 median Middle half $129,540–$356,200 10th–90th $75,700–$507,730
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Other specialty trade contractors
$83,500
$113,900
$151,900
$319,020
$392,040
All industries
$75,700
$129,540
$213,990
$356,200
$507,730
BLS doesn’t publish pay for deck and patio builders on their own. These figures cover other specialty trade contractors, which include them. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Has run finance for a seasonal contractor or home improvement company
Builds a cash forecast by build month from a signed backlog
Job costs by product line and by crew
Has sized and drawn a credit line to carry winter payroll
Shows designers how a discount or an add-on changes a job's margin
Teach these on the job
Your deck, cover and screen room lines and how each is priced
Your lumber yard and composite distributor terms
The consumer financing programs you offer
Your estimating tool's cost tables
Manufacturer rebate and incentive terms
The CFO works in your books and the job costing tied to them, plus the estimating tool sales uses to price decks. Name both in the ad, along with the consumer financing lenders you work with.
Deck and patio chief financial officer interview questions
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Material price swings
Lumber prices jump between contract signing and the build. How do you protect margin on future contracts?
A strong answer: Shorter quote validity, price-adjustment terms where lawful, buying materials at signing, supplier price agreements and updated price lists.
Behavioral · Cost control
Tell me about a cost control you put in place that stuck, such as purchase approvals or weekly job cost reviews.
A strong answer: Names the control, why it was needed, how they got managers to follow it, and the savings it produced.
Set each target with the CEO from your last few closed years, before spring quotes go out.
Gross Margin Optimization
Gross margin on built jobs each month, split by wood decks, composite decks, covered patios and screen rooms. Charge change orders and warranty trips to the job they came from.
Budget Variance
Forecast against actual by line each month, with material price moves shown apart from volume, so a lumber spike doesn't hide a sales shortfall.
Cost Control Efficiency
Spending per built job against the prior year's matching months. Look closely at rental equipment, dumpsters, fuel, permit fees and return trips.
Financial Reporting Timeliness
Monthly statements and the backlog and deposit reports delivered on the agreed day, with each close date logged. Late reports during the fall build months cost the most.
Career path
Staff accountant at a builder or lumber dealerLearns job costing and seasonal cash in the building trades.
ControllerCloses each month and matches deposits to the signed backlog.
Chief financial officerPlans cash around the spring-to-fall cycle and the bank.
Should a deck company take a bigger deposit to cover fall costs?
Ask a lawyer what your state allows before work starts, since some states cap deposits. Where the law leaves room, tie the deposit to special-order material bought for the job, such as composite boards and railings in the homeowner's color, rather than to your cash needs. A bigger deposit also raises the stakes if the job cancels or stalls on a permit.
How much does a deck and patio chief financial officer make?
Chief executives who work for other specialty trade contractors earned a median of $151,900 a year ($73.03 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $113,900 and $319,020 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and bonus terms.
How should change orders be billed on a deck job?
Price each change before the crew builds it: a bigger landing, more lights, an upgraded rail. Get the homeowner's signature, then add it to the next progress payment rather than the final bill. Track change order margin on its own line, since rushed field pricing often runs thinner than the original quote.
What does a deck CFO work on in winter?
Winter is planning season. The CFO checks supplier price lists before spring quotes go out, resets the price book with sales, rolls the cash forecast forward through the first spring payrolls, and closes out last season's job costs so the CEO sees which kinds of builds earned their keep.
Should the CFO sign off on manufacturer rebate programs?
At least on the math. Volume rebates and full-system incentives can lower material cost, but they steer sales toward one brand and may require buying at set levels. The CFO models each rebate against the margin on the jobs it changes, and books it only once it's earned.
