Jerry Wolf is a senior executive, financial strategist, educator, consultant, and board leader whose career spans five decades of helping public, nonprofit, healthcare, human services, and mission-driven organizations make better decisions through disciplined financial analysis. A licensed Certified Public Accountant with deep expertise in public and nonprofit finance, Jerry has built his career around the principle that sound financial information should do more than document past performance—it should help leaders understand their choices, anticipate challenges, allocate resources effectively, and create sustainable outcomes. His ability to connect financial realities with strategic priorities has made him a trusted resource to executives, government leaders, boards, and organizations navigating complex financial and operational environments.
Jerry began his professional career with Ernst & Young in Chicago, where he served as a consultant and manager from 1976 to 1983. Working primarily with state and local governments, including the State of Illinois, City of Chicago, and Cook County, he developed an early understanding of the financial, operational, and policy challenges facing large public institutions. That experience established the foundation for a career characterized by analytical rigor, practical problem-solving, and an ability to translate complicated financial issues into actionable recommendations. It also gave Jerry a perspective on the important relationship between government, business, public policy, and the communities these institutions ultimately serve.
From 1983 through 2003, Jerry held senior consulting and executive positions with David M. Griffith & Associates and MAXIMUS, Inc. His responsibilities expanded considerably during this period, encompassing financial analysis, revenue enhancement, organizational improvement, financial modeling, litigation support, fee setting, transportation, public works, human services management, and project feasibility. He assumed responsibility for profit-related activities involving more than 600 consulting clients, with his region consistently ranking among the firm’s strongest performers. Jerry also negotiated the acquisition of two subsidiaries and participated in their integration, adding transaction and organizational leadership experience to an already broad financial and consulting background.
Jerry continued his career at Public Consulting Group, where he served as Regional Manager from 2004 to 2013. Leading the development and delivery of consulting engagements across the Midwest, he worked extensively with major government health and human services agencies in Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, Minnesota, and Ohio. His projects focused on increasing federal revenues and improving the operational effectiveness of federally funded programs, contributing to approximately $1.5 billion in revenue enhancements and savings. This work required more than technical financial knowledge; it demanded an understanding of government regulations, reimbursement structures, organizational operations, stakeholder priorities, and the practical realities of implementing change across large institutions.
In 2013, Jerry co-founded Fiscal Choice Consulting, further demonstrating the entrepreneurial dimension of his career. The firm focused on strengthening the financial management of large governmental organizations and ultimately merged with MGT Consulting in 2019. Jerry subsequently became a Director with MGT Impact Solutions, part of The Vistria Group portfolio, where his work has continued to center on financial analysis, rate setting, reimbursement methodologies, fiscal sustainability, and operational improvement for governments and nonprofit organizations. His career progression—from major professional services firms to senior executive leadership, entrepreneurship, and specialized advisory work—reflects a consistent commitment to solving complex financial problems with practical, evidence-based solutions.
The scope and impact of Jerry’s consulting experience are substantial. He has designed reimbursement methodologies for hundreds of public and private agencies, developed cost-allocation and rate-setting systems, evaluated government reorganizations, advised on major capital programs, supported litigation and mediation, and created long-term financial models designed to preserve fiscal sustainability. His engagements have included helping human service agencies secure and optimize federal reimbursements, evaluating proposed government department mergers, redesigning cost models for shared public services, analyzing statutory expenditures in litigation, and developing a 15-year cash-flow model for a government-regulated enterprise fund. Across these assignments, Jerry has repeatedly demonstrated an ability to move from complex data and regulatory requirements to recommendations that leaders can understand, defend, and implement.
A particularly important dimension of Jerry’s professional identity is his ability to combine finance with policy and organizational strategy. His expertise encompasses strategic initiatives, strategic planning, financial policies, financial modeling, budgeting, financial reporting, project finance, cash-flow analysis, performance management, government accounting, nonprofit management, and financial oversight. He is especially experienced in environments where financial decisions carry broader social, operational, or public-policy consequences. This perspective makes him well suited to small and mid-cap organizations seeking board or advisory leadership that combines financial discipline with an appreciation for organizational mission, stakeholder needs, governance, and long-term sustainability.
Jerry has also dedicated a meaningful portion of his career to education and developing future leaders. Since 2020, he has served as a Lecturer at the University of Chicago’s Crown School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice, teaching public and nonprofit finance to students in the Social Sector Leadership Program. His instruction addresses financial statement analysis, identification of financial and operational problems, revenue and expense budgeting, capital budgeting, grants management, and endowment management. Drawing upon decades of real-world consulting and executive experience, Jerry brings financial concepts into a practical context, helping students understand not simply how financial systems operate, but how strong financial management can improve organizational decision-making and mission effectiveness.
Jerry’s academic background reinforces the multidisciplinary perspective he brings to leadership. He earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, concentrating in Accounting and Finance, as well as a Master of Arts from the University of Chicago’s Crown School, with a concentration in Social Policy. He earned his Bachelor of Arts from Washington University in St. Louis, where he studied Economics and Political Science. This combination of finance, accounting, economics, policy, and social-sector education has enabled him to approach organizational challenges from multiple perspectives rather than viewing financial performance in isolation. He has been a licensed CPA in Illinois since 1976 and has written numerous articles and professional reports throughout his career.
Board and civic service have been natural extensions of Jerry’s professional experience. He has served on several boards across different industries and continues to participate actively in board and advisory work. His involvement has included service with the Civic Federation of Chicago Board of Directors, where his committee work has addressed areas including budgets, pensions, healthcare, infrastructure, state government, and municipal transitions. He has also served the SelfHelp Home of Chicago as Chair of the Finance and Operations Committee and as a member of its Executive Board, participated as a project volunteer with Civic Consulting Alliance, and maintained longstanding involvement with Washington University in St. Louis through its Chicago Regional Cabinet and Eliot Society.
Jerry is particularly interested in contributing his experience to organizations in financial services, human services, and healthcare, while remaining open to opportunities across industries. He is especially drawn to small and mid-cap companies where an experienced board member or advisor can have a meaningful and visible impact on strategy, financial stewardship, governance, and organizational development. After approximately 50 years of professional experience, his interest in board service is driven by the opportunity to apply the knowledge accumulated across consulting, executive leadership, public finance, nonprofit management, education, and governance to help organizations address challenges and capitalize on opportunities.
At the center of Jerry’s leadership philosophy is a belief in informed decision-making. Throughout his career, he has used data not merely as a reporting mechanism but as a means of clarifying choices, challenging assumptions, testing strategies, and strengthening accountability. His experience has shown him that sustainable organizations require both financial discipline and an understanding of the people, policies, and operating conditions behind the numbers. Whether advising a government facing a major fiscal decision, helping a nonprofit strengthen its financial position, teaching future social-sector leaders, or contributing in the boardroom, Jerry brings a thoughtful combination of analytical depth, practical judgment, independence, and perspective.
Beyond his professional responsibilities, Jerry enjoys cycling and traveling, interests that complement a career defined by curiosity, endurance, and continued learning. He also speaks German. His professional journey reflects a willingness to remain engaged, contribute his expertise, and continue learning after decades of accomplishment. For Jerry, board service represents another opportunity to put experience to work—not simply by reviewing financial performance, but by asking important questions, helping leadership evaluate alternatives, strengthening organizational resilience, and contributing to decisions that can produce lasting value.
Character:
Jerry brings integrity, accountability, intellectual curiosity, and a strong sense of responsibility to his professional and board relationships. His decades of service to public, nonprofit, educational, consulting, and civic organizations demonstrate a sustained commitment to using his expertise in ways that strengthen institutions and the communities they serve.
Knowledge:
He offers approximately five decades of experience spanning financial management, public-sector consulting, healthcare and human services, nonprofit finance, government accounting, reimbursement strategy, budgeting, financial modeling, and organizational improvement. His CPA credential, multidisciplinary University of Chicago education, executive experience, and teaching role provide him with both technical depth and an unusually broad understanding of how finance intersects with policy and organizational performance.
Strategic:
Jerry approaches complex challenges by combining rigorous financial analysis with an understanding of operational realities, stakeholder priorities, and long-term consequences. His record of designing financial methodologies, evaluating organizational structures, improving reimbursement strategies, supporting major capital and policy decisions, and developing long-range sustainability models demonstrates his ability to turn analysis into practical strategic direction.
Communication:
Skilled at translating sophisticated financial and policy issues into information that executives, boards, government officials, students, and other stakeholders can understand and use. His consulting leadership, extensive professional writing, client-facing responsibilities, and university teaching experience demonstrate an ability to communicate complex ideas with clarity, credibility, and purpose.
