Operations Deputy

Operations Deputy
Center for Rural Strategies

The Center for Rural Strategies is seeking an operations person to join its Core staff. The Operations Deputy assists and reports to the Vice President – Operations who oversees the day-to-day administrative and operational functions within the organization.

Duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Assist with strategic planning of the business.
• Oversee operations as assigned.
• Help produce and monitor organizational and project budgets, prepare reports for staff and board.
• Work closely with senior management to provide workplace guidance and training (workplace policies, company culture changes, and more).
• Monitor contracts and agreements on behalf of the organization.
• Assist in developing strategic operational plans to achieve organization goals and performance metrics.
• Assist with special projects and initiatives as directed.

Desired Skills

• Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
• Complex Problem Solving: Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Management of Financial Resources: Determining how the money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
• Management of Personnel Resources: Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
• Communication: Able to convey information effectively, especially on the financial health of the organization.
• Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others’ actions.
• Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Negotiation: Bringing others together to build consensus and reconcile differences.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Management, Marketing, or Communications or equivalent lived experience.
• Three years’ experience in senior level nonprofit operations.
• Familiarity with non-profit accounting requirements and procedures.
• Must have a demonstrated commitment to rural communities.
• A strong track record of driving programmatic, operational, and development goals within an organization.

Location

Our staff and contributors are in numerous places around the country. We rely on a distributed, remote workforce. The Operations Deputy can work from anywhere in the United States but a location near one of our in-person locations is strongly preferred. For in-person work options, we have offices and core staff in Whitesburg KY and Minneapolis-Saint Paul MN. The job requires some regional and national travel. Additional travel will be necessary for those not working in the places above.

Compensation

• Rural Strategies is committed to offering competitive pay with generous benefits including opportunities for advancement and professional development.
• The salary range for this position is based on qualifications and experience. The base salary for one who meets the minimum above qualifications is $65,000.
• Health insurance reimbursement account.
• 401K plan with employer contribution.
• Flexible work environment and room to grow.
• Annual paid time off begins with a total of eight weeks, including vacation, healthcare leave and holidays.
• We provide a home office and cell phone stipend, a computer and other needed equipment and furniture as applicable.
• Rural Strategies would welcome someone looking to develop their experience and skills with us but is open to hiring someone directly into a senior level position.

Organizational Background

The Center for Rural Strategies is a nonprofit, nonpartisan 501(c)3 organization founded in 2001. Its work is national and focuses on supporting prosperous rural communities and better rural policy. Rural communities are diverse and complex, not homogenous. We seek to reflect this diversity in our programs, partnerships, and staffing. We work through strategic communications, coalition building, public information campaigns, journalism, and strategic partnerships to advance the vision of a stronger, greener, more inclusive rural America.

Organizational Structure and Values

• Rural Strategies values inclusion and encourages candidates from diverse backgrounds to apply.
• Rural Strategies maintains a small core staff and works collaboratively with a wide range of partner organizations, independent contractors, and other allies to accomplish its mission.
• Rural Strategies uses a collaborative style of program and staff management. Our staff works closely with each other and with outside entities. The ability to maintain good professional relationships and to represent the organization appropriately in a variety of settings are attributes we value in all staff.