Cleveland County Government Appoints New Finance Director

Finance Director
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 3, 2024
Cleveland County Government Appoints New Finance Director

SHELBY, N.C- Following a national recruitment effort, which included a comprehensive vetting process, Mr. Philip Steffen was selected from a highly competitive field of candidates to lead the Finance Department for Cleveland County Government.

Mr. Steffen has 17 years of local government finance experience serving the City of Anacortes, Washington. During his tenure with Anacortes, Philip served in progressively responsible roles culminating in his appointment as Interim Finance Director.

“It is my privilege to welcome Mr. Steffen to the Cleveland County team as our new Finance Director”, said David Cotton, County Manager. “He is an exceptionally well-rounded subject matter expert who has a demonstrated track record of successfully implementing complex financial and budgeting plans.”

Mr. Steffen recently led the City of Anacortes through the process of developing and adopting a $109 million annual budget along with a $252 million capital facilities plan, which is comparable to Cleveland County’s annual budget.

He has a Bachelor of Arts with majors in Accounting and Finance along with minors in Economics and Business Administration from Western Washington University. Philip will officially start his new role as Finance Director on January 29th, 2024.

1.3.24 PDF Press Release Link

Media contact:
Karyn Owens
Marketing and Communications Director
Cleveland County Government
704-484-4800
karyn.owens@clevelandcountync.gov