Chief Operating Officer, Operation

About Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta

Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta is the first nonprofit legal advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the civil rights of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander (AANHPI) and Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian (AMEMSA) communities in Georgia and the Southeast. We envision a social movement in which communities of color are fully empowered, active in civic life, and working together to promote equity, fair treatment, and self-determination for all.

Founded in 2010 as the Asian American Legal Advocacy Center (AALAC), our organization became part of the Asian Americans Advancing Justice affiliation in 2014. Since then, we have re-organized our work into four major focus areas: Policy Advocacy, Organizing & Civic Engagement, Impact Litigation, and Legal Services.

Position Summary:

In response to significant organizational growth, Advancing Justice seeks to hire a Chief Operating Officer (COO). The Chief Operations Officer (COO) will play a critical role in overseeing and optimizing the operational functions of Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta (AAAJ-Atlanta). Reporting directly to the Executive Director.  The COO will be responsible for ensuring the organization's operational efficiency, financial sustainability, and strategic alignment with its mission.

This position will report directly to the Executive Director/ Chief Executive Officer and work collaboratively with the CEO, CFO, Deputy Director, and other C-suite as part of an executive management team. This is a new role on the Advancing Justice team. 

The COO will provide the leadership, management, and vision necessary to ensure that Advancing Justice-Atlanta has the right people in the right roles, along with exemplary protocols, industry leading operational controls and systems, and tightly-managed administrative and reporting procedures to effectively grow the organization and ensure our financial strength and operating efficiency. 

The ideal candidate will be a values-driven, seasoned, strategic, and process-minded leader with a commitment to the importance of the field. They will also have experience scaling an organization and developing a performance culture among a group of diverse, talented individuals.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Provide day-to-day leadership and management oversight of operations across the organization, enabling the CEO to allocate time to major external initiatives (e.g., fundraising, public relations, and partnerships).

• Collaborate with the leadership team to develop and implement plans for the operational

infrastructure of systems, processes, and personnel designed to accommodate the growth

objectives of our organization.

• Direct the measurement of effectiveness of all organizational processes. Provide timely, accurate, and complete reports on the operating condition of the organization for the CEO, local board, and national organization partners as needed.

• Lead insightful financial reporting, oversee the financial processes, and ensure fiscal stewardship through partnership with financial staff and an external accountant and auditor.

• Foster a success-oriented, accountable, ethical, and culturally competent environment within the organization.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Financial Leadership

• Develop and manage an operational budget for the organization each fiscal year. 

• Works with CFO, board, CEO and departments heads in the development of financial and budgetary plans for other departments. 

• Assist with the annual audit with external auditors and the Finance Department. 

• Serve as one of the key staff liaisons to the Board of Directors, presenting at Board of Directors or Committee meetings as directed by the CEO. 

Operational Leadership

• Diagnose critical operational areas for attention, build consensus with the executive leadership team about priorities, and implement decisive, clear strategies where needed.

• Analyze the current technology infrastructure and scope out the next level of information technology and financial systems that support the growth of specific programs and the organization overall.

• In collaboration with executive leadership, provide operational leadership and input for strategic plan implementation processes.

• Manages organization’s annual employee performance management process. 

• Manages and implements the implementation of Procurement & Purchasing process policies. 

• Leads contract/RFP management committees and works to identify preferred vendors. 

• Lead the organization’s accreditation, reaccreditation and data reporting. 

Programmatic Leadership 

• Serve as an enthusiastic leader and representative of the organization, bringing a positive spirit of collaboration, kindness, and accountability. 

• Lead all operational needs and planning for organization-wide programmatic events, including Annual Gala, SouthEats, All-Staff Retreats, etc. with Senior and Executive Leadership. 

• Provide meaningful support for large-scale departmental events, including Advocacy Day, Voting SZN Campaign, etc. in collaboration with Senior Leadership and Departmental Staff. 

• Manage operations department staff. 

What you’ll bring to the team:

The successful candidate will have had management experience with a not-for-profit organization. As noted, this is an organization driven by the values of its people, so experience in managing a “values-driven” organization will be highly prized. Additional requirements include:

• Leadership and Organization – exceptional capacity for managing and leading people; a team builder who has experience in scaling up organizations; ability to connect staff both on an individual level and in large groups; capacity to enforce accountability, develop and empower top-notch leaders, cultivate entrepreneurship, and learn the strengths and identify opportunities for growth of the team so as to put people in a position to succeed.

• Candidates should have a minimum of 6-9 years of experience in nonprofit operations, demonstrating expertise in supervising staff and progressively taking on leadership roles.

• Demonstrated Track Record of Results – history of exceeding goals and a bottom-line

orientation; evidence of the ability to make good decisions consistently through a combination of analysis, wisdom, experience, and judgment; the capacity to balance the delivery of programs

against the realities of a budget; and problem solving, project management, and creative

resourcefulness.

• Strategic Vision and Agility – ability to think strategically, anticipate future consequences and trends, and incorporate them into the organizational plan. Experience working in partnership with a CEO or Executive Director is a plus.

• Capacity Building – ability to effectively build organization and staff capacity, developing a top-notch workforce and the processes that ensure the organization runs smoothly.

• Communication – strong verbal and written communication skills, including having practical experience in change communication.

• Action Oriented – enjoys working hard and looks for challenges; able to act and react as

necessary, even if limited information is available.

• General Management – broad experience with the full range of organization’s functions and systems, including human resources, budgeting and finance, strategic development and planning, information systems, and marketing.

Why You’re Excited About Us:

• Impact: We are building the power for good in the South, and your contributions will matter

• Growth: We are invested in growing your leadership within the organization and beyond

• Our Team: We are a group of talented, passionate, and dedicated people who love our community and care about cultivating meaning, authenticity, and joy in our work.

• Flexibility: We follow a hybrid work model and invest to support remote work. We encourage and support work-life balance because you’re able to do your best work when you’re living a full life. 

• Benefits: We offer an attractive variety of healthcare plans, several come with a $0 employee premium, matching 100% of 401(k) contributions up to 4% of salary, paid time off and a generous holiday calendar, covering DACA/TPS renewal fees, and professional development opportunities

• Salary range is $120,000-$135,000, commensurate with experience, and is based on principles of internal equity.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• The Chief Operations Officer supervises the Office Manager and other staff as assigned. The Chief Operations Officer may delegate responsibilities to other operational staff members as necessary and appropriate. 

Physical Requirements: 

The candidate must be local to the Atlanta area, with access to reliable transportation. The position permits working from home but requires travel, as necessary, to the Advancing Justice-Atlanta office and to other local meetings and events. 

To Apply:

Please submit a resume and  cover letter to Angelette Guyton, Human Resource Manager at aguyton@advancingjustice-atlanta.org

Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified persons are encouraged to apply, regardless of race, color, creed, ethnicity,  national origin, ancestry, age, height, weight, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability,  HIV status, marital or domestic partner status, or religious affiliation. For any accommodations requests in the application process, please contact accommodations@advancingjustice-atlanta.org

Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until the position is filled