Director of Operations

Hilltop Wealth Advisors, LLC • Chapel Hill, NC

12d • $145,000 - $185,000 • Onsite

About The Position

Hilltop Wealth Advisors is scaling toward a $50M revenue future and needs an operations function that is reliable, visible, accountable, and not dependent on the President stepping into daily operational firefighting. The Director of Operations will build and lead that function. This is a hands-on operational builder role for someone who can create order while leading the work. Reporting to the President, who currently serves as Hilltop’s interim COO/CCO, the Director of Operations will own day-to-day operational performance, client-service execution, workflow discipline, team accountability, and operational capacity. This person will not inherit a fully built operations department. They will establish the rhythms, standards, documentation, reporting, and team structure required to support Hilltop’s next stage of scale. The Director supports compliance execution but does not serve as Hilltop’s CCO. CCO responsibility remains with the President, supported by Comply, until Hilltop makes a future decision to establish a dedicated COO/CCO or CCO seat.

Requirements

• 10+ years of operations, client service, or business-process leadership experience in wealth management, financial services, or a similarly regulated professional-services environment
• 3+ years leading or supervising teams
• Demonstrated experience improving workflows, service delivery, accountability, and operational capacity
• Experience managing CRM, workflow, documentation, reporting, and process-improvement efforts
• Strong people leadership, communication, problem-solving, and follow-through
• Ability to lead in a scaling, changing, and resource-conscious environment
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent relevant experience

Nice To Haves

• RIA or wealth-management operations leadership experience
• Experience with Advyzon, Orion, Tamarac, Salesforce, Redtail, Wealthscape, or comparable systems
• Experience supporting compliance operations in a regulated environment
• FPQP®, CFP®, operations certification, or comparable credential

Responsibilities

• Build the Operations Function: Assess Hilltop’s current operations, client-service workflows, CRM usage, task management, service capacity, and operational risks. Establish clear ownership, service standards, workflows, and escalation paths for recurring operational work. Build the operating cadence for the department, including daily workflow visibility, weekly team meetings, KPI review, and issue escalation. Create and maintain practical documentation for core workflows, including client onboarding, account maintenance, transfers, billing support, service requests, and custodian interactions. Identify the highest-leverage process, technology, staffing, and capacity improvements required for Hilltop to scale. Recommend the future structure and timing for an Operations Manager and Office Manager as the function matures.
• Lead Daily Operations and Client Service: Directly lead the current client service and operations team until an Operations Manager is in place. Assign, prioritize, track, and follow up on operational work, client requests, workflow backlogs, and cross-functional handoffs. Ensure client service requests, account paperwork, transfers, onboarding, billing support, and other core workflows are completed accurately and within defined standards. Monitor operational workload, capacity, errors, rework, overdue tasks, and service failures; intervene quickly when standards are not met. Serve as the escalation point for complex client-service, workflow, and operational issues. Partner with advisors to improve service handoffs, advisor support, and client experience.
• Systems, Data, and Process Discipline: Drive consistent use of Hilltop’s CRM, workflow tools, documentation standards, and task-management systems. Improve CRM data quality, operational reporting, workflow visibility, and accountability. Partner with the President and other leaders on the Advyzon CRM transition, related process changes, and data cleanup. Identify recurring friction, redundant steps, and bottlenecks; implement practical improvements. Ensure the firm has reliable operational data to make decisions about staffing, capacity, service levels, and priorities.
• Team Leadership and Development: Set clear expectations, scorecards, development plans, and accountability for direct reports. Coach and develop the Client Services Team Lead/Senior CSA in technical leadership, quality control, training, and future management readiness. Build cross-training and coverage plans so critical workflows do not depend on one person. Hire, onboard, and develop future operations and client-service talent as approved. Address unclear ownership, missed commitments, and sustained underperformance directly.
• Compliance and Risk Execution: Ensure operational compliance workflows, recordkeeping, documentation, and follow-up tasks are completed accurately and on time. Partner with the President and Comply on audits, compliance requests, operational evidence, and remediation activity. Escalate material client-service, process, documentation, or compliance risks promptly. Reinforce adherence to established compliance policies and procedures across the operations and client-service function. This role executes and manages compliance-related operational workflows. It does not independently interpret regulations, establish compliance policy, or replace the President as the CCO.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director