Five questions for Chad Marturano
Chad Marturano’s career began in government and public policy, with roles in the Colorado Department of Higher Education, the Colorado Department of Education and the Governor’s Office of State Planning and Budgeting. He developed a front-row perspective on how financial decisions shape outcomes for communities across the state.
Marturano joined CU system administration in 2014 and has served as CU vice president and chief financial officer since 2022. He advises system leadership, campus CFOs, state agencies and the Board of Regents on complex choices that influence CU’s mission of educating students, advancing research and delivering life-changing health care.
Marturano also is serving as co-chair of the systemwide strategic planning process, which is developing CU’s second Strategic Plan. It’s due for arrival in the summer.
A Colorado native, Marturano earned a master’s degree at CU Denver. He also has family ties to CU Boulder, where his dad was one of the original handlers of Ralphie.
1. What originally brought you to CU, and what has kept you here?
I came to CU because I had the chance to work for someone I admired: University of Colorado President Todd Saliman. At the time, he was CU’s CFO and was already known as an incredible leader in higher education and state government. I thought, “If I get the opportunity to work for him and at a place like CU, why wouldn’t I take it?” And I’m glad I did, because this really is the best CFO job in higher ed in Colorado.
What keeps me here is the impact. CU isn’t just an institution. We educate more than 68,000 students, employ over 33,000 people, conduct groundbreaking research and provide health care that literally saves lives. Being part of something bigger than myself matters deeply, and CU gives me that every day.
2. How would you describe your leadership style?
My leadership philosophy is summed up by a simple principle: “Nothing about us without us.” Before making decisions, I want to understand the perspectives of the people who will be affected by them. I don’t want anyone waking up to a surprise announcement and thinking, “No one talked to me about this.”
I also see CU as a network of subject matter experts, not a hierarchy. My job is to bring smart people together, listen and collaborate so that decisions reflect collective wisdom, not one person’s point of view. When people feel included, they feel ownership. That’s how progress happens.
3. What does it mean to serve as CU’s system CFO, and what do you find most meaningful about the role?
There’s plenty of analysis, of course, but the biggest surprise is how relationship-based the job is. Half, if not more, of my day is spent talking with campus CFOs, chancellors, regents, state agencies, legislators and others. My work often looks more like diplomacy than math.
Budgets aren’t just numbers — they’re value statements. Every dollar we spend reflects who we are and what we stand for. I regularly ask a simple question that is simultaneously the easiest and hardest one: What are we getting with the dollars we’re spending? If the answer doesn’t connect to our mission, we need to rethink it.
That’s where the meaning comes in. CU changes lives, sometimes in dramatic ways. Our faculty generate new knowledge, solve problems that have existed for generations and push humanity forward. Our graduates transform communities. Our health providers save lives. Being part of that ecosystem is humbling, and it reinforces why the work matters.
4. With the state Legislature reconvening next week to tackle a tight budget – including higher education funding – what are you watching most closely, and how is CU preparing?
We’re watching everything, because all state agencies and programs are competing for the same General Fund dollars that support essential services across Colorado. State support is critical for CU. It affects our ability to provide compensation increases for faculty and staff, as well as our ability to keep college within reach for Colorado students and families by keeping tuition in check.
We’re preparing the way we always do, by planning for multiple budget scenarios through the budget process with the CU Board of Regents.
5. Who are you outside the CFO role? How do you unwind?
I’m a husband and a dad to three kids, which means many evenings resemble the invasion of Normandy – staging backpacks, lunches and clothes for the next day. During the workday, I try to block my lunch hour so I can take a walk and make calls. It’s the perfect mix of productivity and stress relief.
I love running and hiking, especially at Mount Falcon in Jefferson County. It’s a low-key hike with incredible views and a quirky backstory: A wealthy landowner once planned to build a “White House of the West” there. It burned down, but the ruins make the hike unforgettable.
I also have a strange superpower: I can quote “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and “Caddyshack” line for line. I don’t know why my brain stores that instead of something more useful.
Once a year, I reread “Man’s Search for Meaning.” It flips the question of life’s purpose back onto you: What meaning are you going to create? It’s a powerful reminder, both professionally and personally.
