Ascend CFO, Jim Bales, named Nonprofit CFO of the Year

Jim Bales has been with Ascend Nonprofit Solutions (formerly Children & Family Services Center), for the past 11 years and has served as CFO since 2016. During that time, Jim has worked with all of our finance partners in some capacity, whether it was as their Controller, liaison to their Boards, audit coordinator, trusted CFO advisor, and so much more. In recognition of all of his contributions, Jim was named Nonprofit CFO of the Year by the Charlotte Business Journal!

Jim’s nomination stood out as he effectively serves as CFO for 15 partner organizations and 14 Unite Charlotte grassroots organizations, and supports 12+ fiscally sponsored organizations. Under his leadership, our finance team manages nearly $80M in nonprofit revenue annually. As CFO, Jim helps partners understand their financial position and its impact on their organization. He provides clarity and guidance on complex financial matters and budget planning.

Jim also played a significant role in supporting our partners through COVID, helping them secure PPP loans and appropriately managing COVID relief and ARPA funds. These efforts ensured agencies could continue and/or ramp up services in response to rapidly increasing demand. Jim’s work has a profound impact on our community as the partners we serve are addressing housing stability, education and school readiness, health access, domestic violence and family stability, child advocacy and legal representation, and access to the arts. For all of these reasons, we are thrilled to see Jim receive this recognition!