Chief Operating Officer, Groundwork Collaborative

POSITION OVERVIEW

Title: Chief Operating Officer

Company: Groundwork Collaborative

Reports to: Executive Director

Location: Washington D.C. This is a hybrid workplace, with Mondays and Wednesdays in the office and three days remote, as well as the occasional need to work in person for events and special projects.

Overtime Status: Exempt

ABOUT GROUNDWORK COLLABORATIVE

Launched in 2018, Groundwork Collaborative is driven by the idea that We Are The Economy: when all of us are doing well, that is when our economy thrives. We fight for progressive economic policy and narrative change that builds accountable public power, breaks up concentrations of private power, and affirmatively centers people too long left out of prosperity. We understand that taken together, these actions will lead to a stronger and more resilient economy.

Groundwork’s unique structure – part strategic communications, part think tank, and part issue advocacy organization – allows us to drive narrative and policy change with credibility, expertise, and impact. We work with four core audiences – the media, policymakers, economic policy experts, and grassroots organizations. We use targeted policy campaigns, timely research and messaging to build a community across the progressive movement to advance a truly inclusive economic worldview.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Chief Operating Officer is a new executive role at Groundwork. They will serve as a key partner to the Executive Director (ED), working closely with the executive team to advance Groundwork’s mission and strategic plan. The COO will be Groundwork’s in-house subject matter expert on compliance, with experience in 501(c)(3)/501(c)(4) management, advocacy, and lobbying activities. They will also manage Groundwork’s budget and finances and ensure operational excellence in a dynamic moment of Groundwork’s organizational evolution. This role is ideal for a collaborative, mission-driven leader with strong business acumen and substantial experience in non-profit management. This individual will be both a strategist and an executor, translating high-level vision into practical steps.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

The Chief Operating Officer’s responsibilities will encompass several primary areas:

Strategic Planning, Execution, and Organizational Culture

• Lead the design and implementation of the organization’s operating infrastructure ensuring sound governance, regulatory readiness, and efficient systems that set the foundation for future expansion. Ideally, candidates would have an up-to-date understanding of the landscape of service providers, regulatory requirements, and legal considerations.
• Lead the Operations Team, managing key staff members that run the day-to-day operations processes like contracting and building management, ensuring smooth and efficient functioning.
• Serve as a visible and engaged leader who actively shapes and reinforces the desired organizational culture through all staff meetings, retreats, and other full team events.
• Oversee hiring and performance management, ensuring alignment with organizational culture and values, and work closely with teams to attract, evaluate, and onboard top talent effectively.
• In collaboration with the Chief of Staff, introduce necessary structures, processes, and tools to improve alignment and facilitate information sharing.

Financial Oversight

• Oversee the Director of Operations on budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting, providing timely updates to the Executive Director.
• Ensure operational activities align with financial goals.
• Support resource development by providing financial and operational inputs on fundraising strategies, grant proposals, and reporting.
• Oversee grant requirements, and manage the proposal and reporting process for a mature funding portfolio.
• In collaboration with the Director of Operations, oversee preparation for annual financial audits, liaising with external auditors and ensuring accurate documentation and compliance with audit standards.

Compliance and Board Governance

• Establish and oversee operational and governance practices that support the organization’s evolution and long-term institutional strength.
• Exercise oversight of all work touching IRS requirements and reporting, LDA limits and reporting, and all associated regulatory issues of non-profit compliance.
• Ensure compliance with all federal, state, and local financial regulations, as well as accounting standards.
• Ensure compliance with all federal, state, and local employment regulations.
• Serve as staff lead for the Board of Directors, managing board operations, preparing materials, coordinating board meetings and committees, and ensuring effective governance practices.

People & HR Administration

• In partnership with the Director of Operations, guide the development and implementation of personnel policies and human resources functions, ensuring consistency with organizational culture, values, and long-term strategic goals.
• Support and oversee, in collaboration with the Director of Operations, relationships with external HR service providers, including Professional Employer Organizations (PEO), benefits administrators, and legal advisors, to ensure high-quality service delivery and operational efficiency.
• Oversee the design, evaluation, and administration of employee benefits programs, ensuring competitiveness, equity, compliance, and alignment with organizational values.
• Ensure compliance with all federal, state, and local employment regulations and oversee implementation of equitable and competitive compensation and benefits programs.
• Establish and maintain systems for performance management, professional development, and employee engagement in collaboration with the Chief of Staff.

About you:

• You are committed to creating a just, inclusive, and robust economy that delivers opportunity and dignity to all.
• You are incredibly detail oriented, and have a strong sense of duty to ensure we are effectively shepherding foundation funds, meeting or exceeding our legal obligations, and carrying out our mission to the greatest ability.
• You are a senior expert with proven expertise on the administrative and compliance side of non-profit management.
• You have experience developing, managing, and mentoring a team, and value a collegial work environment.
• You’re experienced in hiring and performance management.
• You are comfortable with platforms like Slack and Monday.com to ensure smooth communication and collaboration.
• You enjoy planning, coordinating, and overseeing cross-departmental projects.
• You have strong communication skills and experience applying them in a fast-paced environment with varied modes of communication.

Bonus qualifications:

• Formal education in accounting, finance, or law.
• Experience in investment management.
• Experience on Capitol Hill, campaigns, at the White House, or in a related agency.
• Experience working and managing in a unionized workplace.

Compensation

The salary for this position is $180,000 - $210,000 annually. We offer a generous Benefits Package including five weeks of vacation and personal leave, two week-long office closures, additional time off for floating and federal holidays, zero-premium health insurance, a generous HRA, a retirement match of up to 6%, up to 16 weeks parental leave, and health club and cell-phone reimbursements. We are a hybrid workplace, with two days a week in the office and three days remote, as well as the occasional need to work in person for events and special projects. Groundwork is a unionized workplace and is represented by the Nonprofit Professional Employees Union (NPEU). This position is not in the bargaining unit.

How to apply

To begin the application process, please submit an application on our career page, including your resume and a cover letter detailing your interest in this role.

This announcement will remain posted until the position is filled.

Hiring Statement

Groundwork Collaborative is a project of New Venture Fund (NVF), a 501(c)(3) public charity that incubates new and innovative public-interest projects and grant-making programs. NVF is committed to attracting, developing and retaining exceptional people, and to creating a work environment that is dynamic, rewarding and enables each of us to realize our potential. NVF’s work environment is safe and open to all employees and partners, respecting the full spectrum of race, color, religious creed, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, and all other classifications protected by law in the locality and/or state in which you are working.

The individual holding this position will work part-time for a coordinated project, Groundwork

Action, in Sixteen Thirty Fund, a 501(c)(4) organization, under a resource sharing agreement between New Venture Fund and Sixteen Thirty Fund.

E-Verify

NVF participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with employees’ Form I-9 information to confirm authorization to work in the United States. Job candidates and employees authorized to work may not be discriminated against on the basis of national origin or citizenship status.