Operations Officer

About Us

Legal Advocates for Safe Science and Technology (LASST) is a small team of dedicated professionals who use legal advocacy to make advances in science and technology safer for people and the planet. We believe that preventing man-made pandemics, AI-induced catastrophes, or other global calamities resulting from unsafe or misused science and technology is vital to empowering people everywhere to live fulfilling lives. We are a fully remote team with employees and contractors across multiple states. We are also a family-friendly organization, offering flexible schedules and significant autonomy.

Started in 2024, Legal Advocates for Safe Science (LASST) is a rapidly evolving organization. We are looking for an operational generalist to help grow our impact in the courts and via public advocacy and to help educate legal professionals about the risks unsafe science and technology can pose and how the legal profession can help mitigate those risks.

How you’ll make a difference:

LASST is a small, fast-moving organization doing legal advocacy and litigation on some of the highest-stakes risks of our time. The Operations Officer makes that work possible: keeping the back office running smoothly so our legal team can stay focused on impact. This is a build-it role: you'll inherit some systems, improve others, and create the ones we don't have yet.

Position Description:

• Manage day-to-day financial operations, including accounts payable, expense reimbursements, credit card reconciliation, and coordination with our bookkeeping and accounting service
• Support the annual audit and Form 990 preparation by organizing documentation
• Track spending against budget and flag variances early, giving leadership the information needed to make good resource decisions
• Administer the full employee and contractor lifecycle: offer letters, contractor agreements, onboarding, payroll, benefits enrollment, and offboarding, for a distributed team across multiple states
• Maintain grants and development operations: tracking funder deadlines and reporting requirements, and maintaining donor records
• Provide administrative support for our whistleblower legal defense fund program, including intake tracking, disbursement logistics, and recordkeeping
• Support LASST's digital infrastructure
• Handle nonprofit compliance and governance administration, including state charitable registrations, insurance renewals, board meeting logistics, and minutes
• Identify recurring friction points and build lightweight processes and documentation to eliminate them, so the organization can scale without adding bureaucracy

Who We’re Looking For

We're looking for someone who genuinely enjoys making things run well; the kind of person who notices a broken process and fixes it before being asked. You don't need to have done every part of this job before. You do need to be resourceful, organized, and comfortable being the only person responsible for a given thing.

Essential

• Two or more years of operations, administrative, business management, or similar experience, ideally at a small organization where you wore several hats
• Comfort with numbers and financial processes — you don't need to be an accountant, but you should be able to reconcile a credit card statement, track a budget, and spot when something doesn't add up
• Strong organizational instincts and genuine attention to detail, especially with deadlines, records, and documentation
• Clear, proactive written communication and the ability to work independently in a fully remote environment
• Fluency with everyday business tools (Google Workspace, SharePoint or similar, spreadsheets) and a willingness to learn new systems quickly
• Sound judgment about confidential and sensitive information
• Comfort with ambiguity and a bias toward action — at a young organization, the answer often doesn't exist yet, and you'll need to propose one

Preferable

• Nonprofit experience, particularly with 501(c)(3) compliance, audits, Form 990, or grants administration
• Experience supporting a legal team or working in a law firm environment
• Demonstrated interest in AI safety, biosecurity, or science and technology policy

We want the best people, and we don’t want biases holding us back. We strongly encourage people of all races, ethnicities, ages, gender identities, orientations, origins, and abilities to apply. If you feel you meet most of the above qualifications but not all, we encourage you to apply. There is no perfect candidate because everyone brings something different to the role, and our differences make us a stronger organization.

The hiring process consists of the following steps:

1. Learn more and role Q&A: September 23, 2026 at 3pm Eastern (will be recorded). Email questions in advance to careers@lasst.org or ask live during the Q&A.
2. Submission of application materials
3. Interview with Operations Director (1 hour)
4. Paid working test (2 hours, $200 USD)
5. Meeting with LASST team (45 minutes)
6. References
7. Offer extended

We aim to have someone in place by the end of 2026, but we will communicate any updates to the timeline to candidates.

More Information

• Terms of employment: Full-time, exempt
• Salary: $120,000 - 140,000 per annum, depending on experience
• Reports to: Operations Director / Programs Director
• Location: Anywhere in the US, remote. Preference for candidates able to overlap most hours with U.S. Eastern time.
• Occasional domestic travel for team meetings or events (3–5 times per year).
• Benefits: Working from home, flexible working hours, home office stipend, $800 monthly in ICHRA, up to 5% matching 401(k) immediately vested, flexible paid time off plans, unlimited time off with a minimum of 15 days off each year, respectful manager, and supportive colleagues.

Working from home, flexible working hours, home office stipend, $800 monthly in ICHRA, up to 5% matching 401(k) immediately vested, flexible paid time off plans, unlimited time off with a minimum of 15 days off each year, respectful manager, and supportive colleagues.