Chief Operating Officer - COO

Who we are:

Situated at the forefront of the national stage in the racial justice movement, Advancement Project is a cutting-edge, no-holds-barred national organization dedicated to building local power in communities of color. Centered on a movement lawyering approach, defined as community-centered racial justice lawyering, Advancement Project supports power building in grassroots organizations working to eliminate oppressive structures in our laws and institutions and shift narratives towards transformative change. From ending the school-to-prison pipeline to the fight to expand the right to vote, from calling for a complete overhaul of how we view the police and carceral state, to fighting for immigrant justice, Advancement Project impacts real change from the ground up. Building on more than 20 years, we continue to evolve our strategic thinking and creativity to imagine a more just world in which people of color can thrive, be safe, and free.– and we are excited to bring on new talent to forward our vision.

The Advancement Project’s track record of success includes:

• Pioneering the school-to-prison pipeline movement, winning significant victories in several school districts nationwide to reform disciplinary policies and practices and remove police from schools entirely, including building and nurturing a grassroots movement of parents and youth. This work led to federal guidance on racial discrimination in school discipline.
• Launching the National Police Free Schools Campaign with the Alliance for Education Justice, supporting local youth-led campaigns to end policing in their schools and calling for national demands for change for safety in public schools.
• Serving as legal counsel in the 2000 presidential election case in Florida, successfully challenged North Carolina’s voter suppression law, and was the founding member of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition that won the ballot initiative to strike down the state’s ban on voting for those with felony convictions. Supported legislative efforts to pass the Virginia Voting Rights Act, the first voting rights anti-discrimination law in the South.
• Supporting Close the Workhouse Campaign in St. Louis, led by Action St, Louis, secured the city’s agreement to close a jail and reinvest money into the community.
• Working with survivors of Hurricane Katrina from New Orleans to ensure their voices were heard in the reconstruction process.
• Partnering with Ben & Jerry to launch a new flavor of ice cream, Justice Remix’d, the first time the company put an organization’s name on its containers.

Position Overview:

Advancement Project is seeking an experienced Chief Operating Officer to oversee the organization’s human resources, operations, and financial management. The COO will be a leader and a change agent in driving best practices in support of the organization’s mission. This role will be an advocate for staff experience, organizational agility and creating a learning culture. The COO will have deep experience with operational best practices and up-to-date online tools.

This is an outstanding opportunity for a senior executive with top-level operational skills and a proven track record of creative problem-solving and change management. They will join a successful mission-driven advocacy organization and help lead it to become even more efficient, effective, and nimble.

This position reports to the Executive Director.

This position is hybrid and requires the ideal candidate to work 3 days in the office and 2 days from home

What you’ll do:

Strategy, Vision, and Leadership:

• In support of the Advancement Project mission, promote a culture of high performance and continuous improvement that values learning feedback, and a commitment to quality throughout the organization.
• Be a champion of staff experience at Advancement Project, and ensure that all internal systems are efficient, easily accessible and transparent.
• Contribute to the development of Advancement Project strategic goals and objectives as part of the executive team and leadership team, and help guide the overall management of the organization.
• Provide analytical support to the Advancement Project management including development of internal reporting capabilities.
• Maintain a continuous line of communication with the Executive Director to support strategic decision-making on all critical issues.
• Report to the board of directors on organizational performance metrics as required by the Executive Director.

Lead Operations, Finance, and Human Resources:

• Oversee, direct, and organize the work of the Operations, Human Resources, and Finance teams, which includes responsibility for personnel, benefits, recruitment/hiring, onboarding, staff development, management training, internal communications, logistical support, facilities, compliance, travel, security, computer hardware, and events
• Mentor and develop staff using a supportive and collaborative approach that prioritizes equity, inclusion and racial justice.
• Establish and monitor staff performance and development goals, assign accountabilities, set objectives, establish priorities, and monitor and evaluate results.
• Be accountable for implementing best practices in organizational policies and procedures to ensure compliance, maximize efficiency, and enhance staff experience.
• Provide leadership in establishing a strategic role for human resources, and execute a long-term vision for staff development, support, and skills building.
• Foster and strengthen strong communication and coordination within the organization. Stay a step ahead on team questions and concerns and find ways to increase communication and streamline the coordination of our work.
• Leverage technology to ensure that Advancement Project operations and HR tools are best-in-class.
• Represent Advancement Project management with the staff union, and cultivate a collegial, problem-solving relationship with the union based on partnership and trust.
• Manage departmental budgets of the Finance, HR, and Operations teams

Financial oversight and guidance

• Supervise the Director of Finance.
• Guide strategic financial planning and budgeting, and ensure the organization has efficient and effective financial systems that support the organization’s mission.
• Ensure transparent reporting that strategically informs decision-making, and be accountable for best practices in controls.
• Advise the Executive Director and other key members of senior management on financial planning, budgeting, cash flow, growth priorities, and policy matters.
• Serve as the management liaison to the board and audit committee; and effectively communicate and present critical financial matters at select board of directors and committee meetings.
• Ensure that all Operations, HR, and Finance systems are optimized for financial management, controls, and audit compliance.

What you need to be considered:

• 15 years experience in a similar position
• Proven track record of success leading organizational change and development within a growing organization
• Superior personnel management ability, with strong mentoring and coaching experience on teams with diverse levels of expertise. Experience managing in organizations with unionized staff preferred.
• Senior-level experience in strategic financial leadership, including financial reporting, budgeting, operations leadership, controls, and compliance.
• Excellent judgment and creative problem-solving skills including the ability to lead a range of stakeholders in establishing a shared vision and executing it together
• Entrepreneurial, flexible team player who can think experimentally and can take a learning approach to our work.
• Organized, detail-oriented, and experienced in managing complex projects
• Exceptional written, oral, interpersonal, and presentation skills and the ability to effectively interface with management, boards of directors, and staff
• Passion for racial justice and the mission of Advancement Project
• Ability to periodically work on weekends and evenings, as needed.
• Confidentiality, integrity, and a sense of humor.

Keywords

Chief Operating OfficerCOOhuman resourcesoperationsfinancial managementchange managementstrategic planningpersonnel managementfinancial oversight