Sr. Director, Foundation Operations

Central Health•Austin, TX

8d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Sr. Director, Foundation Operations leads the operational systems, processes, controls, and administrative infrastructure supporting the Central Health Foundation. Reporting to the Foundation Chief Executive Officer, this role serves as the Foundation’s senior operational leader and translates approved strategies and leadership decisions into practical workflows, procedures, systems, controls, and service expectations. The position represents the Foundation in operational, financial, compliance, technology, procurement, and administrative processes, and coordinates with Central Health shared-service partners. The Sr. Director is directly responsible for Foundation-owned operational functions, including donor and gift administration, pledge and fund accounting coordination, grant accounting and monitoring, donor records, Foundation CRM ownership, Board administration, operating procedures, and related controls and reporting. The role also leads the Foundation’s work in budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, audit readiness, contracts, procurement coordination, and shared-service management. It leads the Foundation Operations function and maintains and strengthens the infrastructure, workflows, systems, controls, and team capacity needed to support long-term growth. This is a hybrid position. Individuals may work at an approved off-site location and onsite at one or more primary locations based on business needs. Estimated travel is 10%. Regular local travel may be required for Central Health meetings, Board and committee activities, vendor meetings, operational coordination, and Foundation events. Occasional regional travel and periodic evening or weekend commitments may be required.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in public policy, public health, business, nonprofit management, healthcare administration, finance, accounting, or a related field; a higher degree is accepted.
At least 8 years of progressively responsible experience in foundation operations, advancement operations, nonprofit administration, healthcare administration, finance, accounting, business operations, grants administration, or a related field.
At least 5 years of experience leading complex operational functions involving finance, accounting coordination, controls, systems, data, compliance, governance, gift administration, grant administration, or shared services.
At least 5 years of experience developing and improving policies, procedures, workflows, controls, systems, and operational reporting.
At least 5 years of experience partnering with executive leaders and cross-functional departments such as Finance, Legal, Compliance, Human Resources, Information Technology, Procurement, and Internal Audit.
Experience managing complex projects, vendors, contracts, systems, budgets, or organizational resources.
Experience using operational and financial information to identify risks, resolve issues, and improve processes.
Experience leading employees, consultants, vendors, project teams, or other resources and establishing clear goals and accountability.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in public policy, public health, business, nonprofit management, healthcare administration, finance, accounting, or a related field.
Experience within a healthcare foundation, health system, public-health organization, public hospital district, or similarly complex nonprofit organization.
Experience with gift processing, restricted funds, pledge accounting, fund accounting, donor databases, grants administration, or fundraising operations.
Experience serving as a business owner for a donor CRM or comparable enterprise system.
Experience coordinating shared services between an affiliated foundation and a parent or supported organization.
Experience supporting a governing Board or Board committee.
Experience coordinating audits, compliance reviews, financial reviews, or corrective-action activities.
Knowledge of Central Health systems, policies, departments, and operating processes.

Responsibilities

Lead the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of Foundation operating procedures, workflows, calendars, controls, and administrative processes.
Translate approved strategies and leadership decisions into coordinated operational plans, timelines, responsibilities, and implementation requirements.
Establish workflows, decision pathways, service expectations, and escalation processes among Foundation staff, Central Health departments, consultants, vendors, and external partners.
Identify operational barriers, dependencies, risks, resource needs, and process gaps; recommend solutions to the Foundation CEO; and maintain current operational documentation and reference materials.
Coordinate implementation of systems, policies, processes, controls, and operating practices, and support consistent execution across Foundation functions and Central Health partners.
Lead and strengthen the Foundation Operations function in line with organizational needs and approved staffing plans.
Lead the Foundation’s role in budgeting, forecasting, expense monitoring, financial reporting, and long-term operational planning with the Foundation CEO and Central Health Finance.
Serve as the Foundation’s primary operational lead for financial workflows, reporting requirements, issue resolution, and coordination with Central Health Finance.
Direct Foundation processes for pledge accounting, fund accounting, grant accounting, restricted and unrestricted funds, gift administration, and related documentation.
Establish and maintain operational controls for revenue, expenditures, purchasing, contracts, gifts, grants, delegated approvals, and financial reporting.
Coordinate timely and accurate reconciliation of gifts, pledges, grants, funds, donor records, and financial information; maintain processes supporting donor intent, restrictions, grant agreements, fund requirements, and stewardship obligations.
Partner with Finance, Legal, Grants, Advancement, and program leaders on the establishment, administration, and reporting of restricted and unrestricted funds.
Coordinate supporting documentation for audits, tax filings, financial reviews, regulatory reporting, and corrective actions; identify, investigate, and escalate material financial or control concerns.
Support administration of approved gift-acceptance, spending, investment, procurement, and financial-control policies, and recommend process improvements.
Own operational processes for gift processing, donor-record administration, acknowledgments, documentation, reconciliation, and reporting.
Set standards for donor records, gift documentation, restricted funds, pledge tracking, and stewardship-related information.
Coordinate donor and funder commitments with Advancement, Grants, Finance, Legal, and program leaders; monitor grants, restricted funds, agreements, reporting requirements, and compliance obligations.
Partner with the Director of Foundation Grants Strategy on integrated grant workflows, monitoring, reporting, and issue resolution.
Maintain appropriate gift, grant, donor-restriction, fund-agreement, and reporting documentation and controls; identify and resolve administration gaps, inconsistencies, or risks.
Lead administrative operations for the Foundation Board and its committees, including calendars, meetings, agendas, materials, action logs, minutes, resolutions, approvals, and follow-up records.
Maintain Board rosters, terms, attendance, orientation materials, disclosures, policies, charters, and related records; coordinate with the Foundation CEO, Board leadership, Legal, and staff to ensure materials and records are complete, accurate, and timely.
Coordinate Foundation compliance activities with Central Health Legal, Compliance, Finance, Internal Audit, Information Security, and other subject-matter experts.
Maintain an inventory and review schedule for policies, procedures, agreements, delegated authorities, required filings, and governance documents; support audits and reviews and track corrective-action follow-up.
Ensure Foundation records are organized, retained, secured, and accessible as required, while preserving the Foundation CEO’s responsibility for Board strategy, relationships, and executive accountability.
Serve as business owner for the Foundation CRM and donor-management systems; establish priorities, workflows, access controls, documentation, data standards, reporting requirements, integrations, and governance expectations.
Lead CRM implementation, configuration, testing, training, vendor management, upgrades, security coordination, and issue resolution.
Ensure donor, gift, grant, fund, financial, and operational information is accurate, timely, secure, and appropriately accessible; coordinate systems with Foundation leaders and Central Health Information Technology as applicable.
Establish data-quality expectations, standard operating procedures, access controls, reporting practices, operational dashboards, and performance measures.
Maintain Foundation-owned systems and records separately from Central Health systems where required; evaluate technology needs and recommend systems, enhancements, integrations, or vendor support.
Serve as the primary operational liaison between the Foundation and Central Health shared-service departments, including Finance, Human Resources, Payroll, Legal, Compliance, Information Technology, Procurement, Internal Audit, Communications, and Facilities.
Clarify and document shared-service responsibilities, approval pathways, escalation processes, service expectations, contacts, and deliverables; monitor service effectiveness and recommend improvements.
Coordinate Foundation contracts, vendors, consultants, procurement activities, and delegated approvals through Central Health processes, except for approved Foundation-specific arrangements.
Directly manage Foundation-specific vendor and system relationships, including the Foundation CRM and donor-management infrastructure; maintain related contract, procurement, performance, service, and delegated-authority documentation.
Establish operational metrics, service standards, dashboards, reporting processes, and performance expectations; evaluate timeliness, accuracy, consistency, efficiency, compliance, and effectiveness.
Lead complex cross-functional operational projects, system implementations, and process-improvement initiatives, setting objectives, timelines, roles, decision rights, dependencies, risks, and accountability.
Coordinate assigned vendors, consultants, contracts, and temporary resources within delegated authority; prepare operational updates, issue summaries, financial and performance information, and recommendations for appropriate audiences.
Facilitate resolution of cross-functional operational issues, escalate significant concerns, and promote documentation, accountability, continuous improvement, and effective resource use.
Evaluate future staffing, technology, vendor, and resource needs and recommend investments to support Foundation growth.
Recruit, develop, coach, and evaluate assigned Foundation Operations employees; establish roles, performance expectations, priorities, and accountability.
Promote collaboration, professional development, cross-training, and operational continuity; ensure staff understand Foundation requirements, Central Health processes, controls, governance expectations, and shared-service relationships.
Evaluate organizational capacity and recommend staffing, role, and structure changes as responsibilities expand; lead employees, consultants, vendors, and temporary resources in accordance with policies and delegated authority.