Director of Operations

Director of Operations - San Francisco, CA

Full-Time, Exempt, On-site

5 minimum days/week in office

About Us:

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” - Nelson Mandela

We believe that even the biggest problems can be broken down into small, achievable steps. Poverty and access to justice are part of the same problem. And we’re solving this problem together. At Open Door Legal (ODL), we’re pioneering the country’s first system of universal access to civil legal representation to dramatically reduce poverty and prove that the law really can belong to all of us. We’ve grown 150x in 10 years, and in the next 2 years, we hope to finish scaling across San Francisco. To achieve this goal, we’ve created an award-winning and best-in-class legal aid organization full of passionate, motivated, gritty, thoughtful, and team-oriented people. We believe that injustice is the heart of poverty, and we're looking for someone to join us in ensuring justice for all.

Overview of Position:

Delivering on the promise of making San Francisco the first city in the US with universal access to legal services requires high-touch operations with many moving parts, including at least four physical office locations centrally located within our communities of service, and addressing complex and sometimes competing needs. The Director of Operations’ main goal is to make sure we keep our doors open to serve our communities effectively and excellently. This role will be involved with delivering our community legal services, project managing cross-functionally in order to meet all of our grant and funding deliverables, and nurturing staff morale and culture. You will be responsible for casting and executing the vision for how our physical presence in our communities is crucial to successful universal legal services and ensuring our physical office spaces feel hospitable and safe to clients, guests, staff, and donors. In this role, you will manage professional vendors, contractors, and contracts, as well as arrange and set up each of our offices, so when anyone walks into our offices, they will recognize it as a place for them. You will identify and champion opportunities for streamlining and improving technology, systems, and facilities by creating and driving project and change management processes across the organization while maximizing morale. As it will be important to have an intimate understanding of the inner-workings of our program model, all program deliverables, “pain-points”, and procedures to ensure any project or change management process centers on our Program team’s experience, all grant reports and deliverables are accurate, submitted on time, and met, and all documentation and training across the Program team are standardized and easily transferable, a good amount of your training and onboarding will be actively observing our program model. You will also help foster collaboration and encourage a positive organizational culture by planning and executing team events throughout the year.

A successful candidate must be biased toward action and decision, and able to manage multiple complex projects autonomously while leading through influence and inclusivity. Success in this role requires grit, dynamism, teamwork, care, and passion (our five values as an organization). You will report directly to our Director of Talent & Culture.

Responsibilities:

• Collaboratively lead and project manage a team consisting of cross-functional leaders from finance, programs, innovation & strategy, and development to design, implement, and evaluate systems that serve the strategic needs of Open Door Legal.
• In partnership with the Director of Innovation & Strategy, plan and execute process or system changes that improve productivity or reduce burnout.
• Plan and execute complex projects, including grant management, office/facilities build-outs and maintenance, vendor management, and office use.
• Identify and champion opportunities for streamlining and improving technology, systems, and facilities by creating and driving project and change management processes across the organization while maximizing morale.
• Partner with all teams to ensure events are inclusive and reflect ODL values.
• Create culture-building opportunities through “ODL-sponsored” events, or through ODL attending external events, owning event logistics, including catering, space setup, scheduling, and vendor coordination.
• Work closely with the Programs team to have an intimate understanding of the inner-workings of our program model, all program deliverables, “pain-points”, and procedures to ensure any project or change management process centers on our Programs team’s experience, all grant reports and deliverables are accurate, submitted on time, and met, and all documentation and training across the Programs team are standardized and easily transferable.
• Work closely with the Finance team to coordinate on grant billing, accounts payable, and invoicing to ensure all grants are always billed down, and all vendors are paid on a timely basis.
• Work closely with the Development team to ensure fluid and prompt communication and nurturing ongoing relationships with external funders and grantors as appropriate for grant implementation.
• Order and manage food/snacks and ensure kitchens and common areas are well-stocked.
• Oversee office maintenance, ongoing facilities supply and material ordering, and respond to day-to-day and emergency facilities issues.
• In close partnership with the T&C team and Frontline team, ensure all offices are safe, clean, and compliant with all city, state, and federal laws.
• Responsible for the build-out, functional, and capital improvements of all our current and future office spaces, and act as the primary contact with our landlords when necessary. Currently, these are located in the Excelsior, Western Addition, Sunset, and Bayview neighborhoods of San Francisco.
• Oversee the build-out of future office spaces, including managing the general contractor and securing permits.
• Embrace and embody our values of teamwork, grit, caring, passion, and dynamism.

Requirements:

• Passion for the mission of Open Door Legal
• Minimum of three (3) years of experience managing org/company-wide operations
• Minimum of three (3) years leading complex projects or project management across multiple teams
• A high degree of character and integrity
• Strong problem-solving skills
• Demonstrated prior experience working with a high degree of autonomy
• Excellent communication skills, verbal and written
• Meticulous attention to detail, with the ability to prioritize, flexibly switch gears, and multi-task in a fast-paced environment
• Must live within San Francisco, or be willing to commute regularly to and between our four offices (Bayview, Excelsior, Western Addition, and Sunset).

Bonus Points:

• Experience managing construction or renovation projects
• Experience managing facilities or offices
• Experience working with low-income and vulnerable populations
• Experience working in a human services nonprofit
• Having lived a significant period of your life in San Francisco proper

Starting compensation is $125,500 to $141,500 annually based on experience.

Perks:

• Loan Repayment Assistance - for staff pursuing 10-year public interest debt forgiveness, we will pay the minimum payment on all qualifying loans so that you don’t need to worry about student loan debt (this is a conditional benefit).
• Medical/Dental/Vision Plan offerings at 100% coverage
• Generous paid time off (four weeks vacation and two weeks sick/care)
• Flexible work hours
• Generous paid parental leave
• 401K/Retirement Account
• Strong organizational culture
• We believe everyone is always learning. We financially invest in individual professional development for each staff member and provide many internal and external mentorships, coaching, and learning opportunities (conferences, workshops, etc.).
• We are a fun and hard-working office with best-in-class technology solutions for anyone who’s passionate about making a meaningful and measurable difference.

Apply online at: https://open-door-legal.breezy.hr/p/f8872500ce89-director-of-operations

Applications received before March 20, 2026 will receive priority consideration.

Ideal start date: April 20, 2026

Open Door Legal is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, sexual stereotypes, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or any other applicable legally protected characteristics. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state, and local law including the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities in our recruiting process. If you need any assistance or accommodations due to a disability, please let us know at whitney [at] opendoorlegal [dot] org.