Director of Operations

Exalt • New York, NY

21d • Hybrid

About The Position

exalt is a 20-year-old nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming outcomes for court-involved youth through an integrated model of education, paid internships, court advocacy, and alumni support. Serving hundreds of young people annually across NYC—and expanding statewide to Syracuse—exalt is entering its next phase of growth, infrastructure building, and national field leadership.

The Director of Operations is a strategic, senior operational leader responsible for ensuring that exalt’s internal systems, processes, and infrastructure effectively support a growing, multi-site organization. This role partners closely with executive leadership and department heads to translate strategy into efficient, compliant, and sustainable operations.

This role goes beyond day-to-day execution—it builds organizational capacity by strengthening systems, clarifying workflows, improving compliance and risk management, and enabling teams to deliver excellent programming at scale.

Requirements

• 8–12+ years of operations, administration, or organizational leadership experience
• Experience in complex, mission-driven organizations (nonprofit, public sector, education, workforce development, or healthcare preferred)—ideally in a scaling environment
• Strong systems thinker with the ability to move fluidly between strategic planning and detailed execution
• Trusted partner to senior leaders—maintaining a calm, steady, and solutions-oriented presence, and highly collaborative approach
• Proven experience managing growth and organizational complexity, particularly in a multi-site or scaling environment
• Excellent project management, documentation, and follow-through; able to build durable processes others can use

Responsibilities

• Lead and continuously improve core operational systems across HR operations, facilities, IT coordination, compliance, and internal processes
• Build and maintain scalable operational infrastructure to support multi-site growth (both in NYC, through real estate acquisition, and Syracuse, through rental or lease agreement)
• Develop dashboards, routines, and operational cadences that improve decision-making and accountability
• Oversee organizational policies, internal controls, and operational risk management practices
• Ensure operational compliance across key areas (e.g., safety protocols, HR-related process compliance, vendor/contract requirements, site readiness)
• Identify operational risks early and implement preventive systems and standard operating procedures
• Strengthen cross-functional workflows and promote collaboration between departments (Program, Finance, Development, People/HR, etc.)
• Lead process improvement initiatives (mapping processes, simplifying approvals, documenting standard operating procedures, training staff)
• Support organizational change management during periods of growth, new systems adoption, and evolving structure
• In partnership with the Development team, support planning and execution of events hosted at exalt’s office and the annual gala, including logistical coordination, vendor management, and day-of operational support.
• Partner with Finance and executive leadership on budgeting, forecasting, and resource allocation tied to operational needs
• Own day-to-day vendor management: selection, contracts coordination, performance monitoring, renewals, and issue resolution
• Manage consultants and external partners supporting operations (facilities, IT, security, office services, etc.)
• Ensure operational readiness for Syracuse expansion, including systems, vendors, site setup, and ongoing support
• Serve as a key operational partner in planning for real estate initiatives (e.g., office relocation or acquisition), coordinating logistics and internal planning

Benefits

• Health insurance: medical, dental and vision
• Other insurance: life and long-term disability
• 401k matching plan: 50% matching of employee's contribution up to 5% of salary
• 4 weeks of total paid time off (2 weeks for personal use and 2 weeks for vacation)

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed