Program Operations Associate

About Lead For America

Lead For America (LFA) is dedicated to providing place-based service opportunities to local individuals to help mission-driven organizations advance solutions that are informed by place and responsive to community. The American Connection Corps (ACC), launched by LFA in 2021, is an AmeriCorps service program focused on closing the digital divide in digitally disconnected communities. Supported by a broad coalition of partners including AmeriCorps and major corporations, ACC has members serving in 30+ states across the country. 

Department Context:

The Programs Department at Lead For America is dedicated to designing, implementing, and evaluating impactful programs that align with the organization's mission. Our department plays a pivotal role in ensuring that Lead for America’s programs are thoughtfully developed, executed with excellence, and evaluated for long-term impact. Through our work, we focus on staying committed to our core values of Connection, Innovation, Service, Stewardship, and Trust.

The Programs Department is responsible for aligning each initiative with Lead For America’s mission. Through the thoughtful management of program budgets, oversight of execution, and rigorous evaluation, we measure the effectiveness of our work, ensuring that it meets both the immediate needs of the communities we serve and long-term goals.

Role Expectations:

The Program Operations Associate is responsible for researching, developing, and supporting the implementation of Lead for America programs from start to completion throughout each Program Year. This role requires a deep understanding of organizational workflows, multi-sectoral project management, in-person and virtual convening logistics, and program operations.

The Program Operations Associate gathers and curates key Member and Host Site resources, training materials, events, and opportunities to support their service experience. This role reports to the Director of Program Operations and partners closely with the Program Coordinators (PCs), who serve as critical feedback conduits between program design and on-the-ground realities. This role requires occasional travel within the U.S. and its territories.

What You’ll Do:
Process Improvement & Project Tracking Throughout Program Year Calendar (40%):

• Build and update templates and project tracking tools in core systems (Asana, Google Sheets, Google Forms, Campground) to establish, refine or revise Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and regular analysis of critical workstreams.
• Document processes, regulations, and resources for all LFA Program operations to increase efficiency, consistency, and program implementation.
• Conduct needs assessments of existing programs, support feedback loops, and gather data to identify implementation improvement opportunities (especially regarding workflows and SOPs).
• Assist with Program Operations Feasibility Tests for LFA’s programmatic growth and expansion.
• Provide "retro" (retrospective) support for the Program Implementation and Program Operations-specific retros following program milestones by creating templates, supporting notetaking, and tracking team commitments via project management platforms.
• Coordinate task assignments in Campground (Program CRM and LMS platform).
• Ensure the task completion of Host Site Supervisor and Member transitions—from recruiting to onboarding, orientation, and throughout their service term.
• Support program wrap-up activities, including building out "Member Exit" project boards and reviewing and organizing final files (e.g., Member SOS content).
• Stay current on tools and best practices for process improvements, including automation and AI.

Cross-Functional Collaboration & Compliance (25%)

• Collaborate with Monitoring & Evaluation and Program Coordinators on tasks and logistics associated with data collection, data quality, data monitoring, and grant compliance.
• Understand and support compliance with evaluation and audit needs, as well as programmatic requirements, in support of the Director of Program Operations and the Compliance and Grant Manager.
• Coordinate with Marketing & Communications, Program Coordinators, and Team Leads to collect member service highlights and pipeline via internal platforms (Slack, site visits) for internal Member communication and external communication to stakeholders (e.g. Host Sites, marketing).
• Partner with Recruitment and Grant Management/Compliance teams to problem-solve and ensure the details of requirements are met in an effective and streamlined manner.

Convening Logistics and Member Community Building (15%):

• Serve as a core team member to organize and support logistics related to the development and execution of virtual and in-person convenings, training sessions, and PC Pods.
• Manage comprehensive event logistics for Host Site Orientations and Program Launches, including Zoom meeting setup, RSVP tracking, and attendance management.
• Provide convening planning support by building out project boards (e.g., Asana), creating Google Drive folders, and preparing foundational logistics and planning documents using organizational templates.

Support data input, maintenance, and analysis in CRM, communication, and relevant project management systems (10%):

• Work closely with the Program Coordinators (PCs), Monitoring and Evaluation, and other cross-department teams to support effective data input, flow, and accuracy, and use in core systems and record management for achieving program goals and grant compliance.
• Execute data migrations and platform updates, such as exporting and uploading data between systems (e.g., America Learns to Campground).
• Serve as administrator for Member Slack channel to curate conversations and resources, promote peer to peer support and networking, strengthen a sense of community, and technical support is coordinated with the COO and IT Manager.
• Manage cohort onboarding by building out orientation task assignments within CRM and tracking platforms (e.g., Campground).
• Track, analyze, and report host and member progress (including weekly member highlights and exit counts) using CRM and project management tools (e.g., Workable, Campground, Asana) to ensure accurate, real-time reporting.
• Understand and integrate data analysis needs for various workstreams and operational components to align with organizational priorities.

Organizational Requirements (10%): 

In addition to the responsibilities unique to the Role described above, all Team members devote a portion of their time to supporting strategic and operational efforts across our teams that advance the organization:

• Compliance for org-wide administration - expense reporting, benefits, KPI tracking
• Taking part in additional organizational initiatives, priorities, and responsibilities, as needed.

Qualifications:

2–5 years of experience in the NGO, government entities, philanthropies, or corporations — with relevant experience in program management, data analysis, process development, and program operations support. You bring hands-on experience supporting complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives and ensuring they run smoothly, on time, and with impact. You are motivated and willing to roll up your sleeves to get things done. 

Proven team work experience — you’ve worked independently and in a team environment both in-person and remotely, proactively seeking and creating clarity around duties and expectations. You value accountability, empathy, directness, and a commitment to shared goals.

Operational and project management knowledge — you have a strong foundational knowledge on building systems, processes, and tools that support high-quality program implementation. You excel at keeping things organized, breaking down complexities into simpler manageable tasks, coordinating logistics, timelines, and workflows, and know how to support multiple initiatives simultaneously.

Strong problem-solving and feedback orientation — you constantly thrive for excellence and improvement by identifying implementation challenges, gathering input, finding innovative solutions, and testing them in an effective, collaborative manner. You support closing the loop between program design, delivery, and improvement.

Detail-oriented and data-driven — you are detail oriented and comfortable working with numbers for a variety of tasks including budget support, performance and progress against goals, data preparation and analysis to inform senior leadership decisions, and contribution to a culture of accountability and learning.

Clear, confident communicator — you excel at communicating expectations, timelines, and next steps with clarity and professionalism. 

Cross-functional collaborator — you work effectively across functions and departments (e.g., Program Design, Recruitment & Selection, Finance, Marketing & Communications, Development) and know how to align resources and information to support program success.

Commitment to equity and inclusion — you integrate equity principles into operational systems and team management, and you’re attentive to how processes impact diverse stakeholders.

Mission alignment — you care deeply about the power of national service and civic leadership, and you’re motivated to support the people and systems that make community-rooted change possible.

Salary and benefits:

Below is the anticipated minimum and maximum salaries we can provide at this time. Starting salary is dependent on role and experience level. Based on these factors, the below salary range is subject to vary considerably. Note that salaries are expected to rise over time with increased experience, inflation, and the growth of the organization, and that for most roles there is ample opportunity for promotion.

Salary Range: $50,000-$65,000