Chief Administrative Officer

Job Description

Job Description

Are you interested in improving the quality of life for the people in your community? Do you have a passion for ensuring that those with mental health and substance use disorders receive the services they need? Are you looking for a place to work that is committed to the development of staff and matching people to work they love? A place that values a diverse workforce that strives for excellence while maintaining a healthy work/life balance?

Then come join us!

Position Description :

Position Title: Chief Administrative Officer

Department: Operations

Reports To: Chief Executive Officer

Southwest Michigan Behavioral Health (SWMBH) is a $350 million governmental entity managing behavioral health services for Medicaid beneficiaries under contract with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) in an eight-county region in Southwest Michigan.

SWMBH is seeking a Chief Administrative Officer. The Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) reports to the Chief Executive Officer and serves as a key member of the senior leadership team. This role is responsible for the organization's overall infrastructure and the daily, efficient functioning of its operations. The CAO oversees the organization's Facilities, Human Resources, and Operations functions, ensuring each is run effectively and in alignment with organizational goals. Working closely with fellow senior leaders, the CAO ensures that the PIHP's business operations are well-documented, effective, and efficient. The CAO also serves as a strategic partner to the CEO, helping to develop, achieve, and sustain the highest-quality mental health programs and services throughout the region.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Executive Leadership and Organizational Management
  • Serves as a senior executive leader and strategic partner to the Chief Executive Officer, contributing to organizational strategy, priorities, and operational decision-making.
  • Provides executive leadership, direction, coaching, and accountability for assigned administrative, human resources, facilities, and operations functions.
  • Develops, manages, and monitors budgets within assigned functional areas, ensuring resources are aligned with organizational priorities and used effectively.
  • Promotes a culture of collaboration, accountability, innovation, flexibility, responsiveness, quality, and continuous improvement across administrative services.
  • Ensures compliance with statutory, regulatory, contractual, and accreditation obligations within the CAO’s sphere of accountability.
  • Participates on state-level committees and represents the organization in external forums as requested.
  • Performs other duties as assigned by the Chief Executive Officer.

• Human Resources
  • Provides executive oversight of the Human Resources function and serves as the senior leader responsible for human capital strategy, labor compliance, employee relations, and workforce planning.
  • Supervises and supports the HR Generalist, ensuring timely, accurate, and compliant execution of recruitment, onboarding, benefits administration, personnel records, employee relations support, and other HR operations.
  • Oversees HR practices, objectives, and systems that support an employee-oriented, high-performance culture emphasizing empowerment, quality, productivity, engagement, accountability, and professional development.
  • Provides strategic direction on recruitment, retention, performance management, succession planning, compensation practices, employee development, and organizational culture.
  • Oversees the Employee Engagement Committee and supports initiatives that improve employee morale, internal communication, recognition, inclusion, and cross-department collaboration.
  • Leads benefits selection and management in collaboration with benefit vendors, brokers, consultants, and other partners; evaluates benefit offerings, renewal recommendations, cost impacts, employee needs, and compliance requirements.
  • Participates in retirement account oversight in collaboration with fiduciaries, vendors, finance leadership, and other designated stakeholders, supporting plan administration, vendor performance review, employee education, and compliance responsibilities.
  • Works with outside counsel, consultants, and other contractors as needed to mitigate organizational risk and ensure HR compliance with applicable employment laws, regulations, policies, and contractual requirements.
  • Ensures staff and leadership awareness of and adherence to leadership principles, human capital management expectations, and related organizational requirements.
• Facilities Maintenance and Workplace Operations
  • Provides executive oversight of facilities management, maintenance, safety, security, space planning, and related workplace operations.
  • Negotiates, schedules, and monitors facility maintenance activities to ensure work areas are safe, secure, comfortable, accessible, and fully functional.
  • Oversees facility-related vendor relationships, service levels, maintenance schedules, repairs, inspections, and compliance with applicable safety and operational requirements.
  • Ensures facilities planning and maintenance activities support business continuity, employee productivity, and the organization’s ability to deliver high-quality services.
  • Reviews, revises, and maintains the organization’s Business Continuity Plan, ensuring preparedness for weather events, natural or man-made disasters, pandemics, technology interruptions, and other operational disruptions.

• Administrative Operations
  • Oversees the organization’s administrative operations, ensuring business processes are well-documented, efficient, compliant, and aligned with organizational goals.
  • Manages administrative vendor procurement and contract processes, including solicitation, negotiation, execution, monitoring, performance accountability, and compliance with procurement requirements prior to contract finalization.
  • Manages purchasing and procurement of goods and services for CAO areas of oversight.
  • Leads the organization’s policy and procedure process, ensuring departments maintain current, comprehensive policies, procedures, and standard operating procedures when indicated.
  • Ensures all policies, procedures, and practices comply with federal, state, local, contractual, and regulatory requirements applicable to the organization and the PIHP.
  • Provides executive review, quality assurance, approval, and oversight for external marketing and brand communications, including newsletters, brochures, social media, templates, publications, and other public-facing materials.
  • Establishes and maintains written brand, format, and content guidelines and oversees an annual publication calendar and communication schedule as appropriate.
  • Identifies policy directives from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and partners with subject matter experts to develop technical bulletins or other internal and external communications as needed.
  • Oversees operations specialists, including responsibilities for front desk coverage, customer service standards, administrative workflow, scheduling support, documentation, and day-to-day operational coordination.
• Project Management and Cross-Functional Deployment
  • Provides project management leadership for complex, cross-functional, and inter-regional initiatives involving multiple stakeholders, timelines, priorities, and deliverables.
  • Deploys project management resources and operations specialists to support organizational priorities, executive initiatives, process improvement efforts, and special projects assigned by the CEO.
  • Leads and completes special projects that may fall outside normal operational responsibilities or require additional executive leadership, coordination, or implementation support.
  • Monitors administrative service performance and intervenes as needed to ensure key objectives, timelines, quality expectations, and operational outcomes are achieved.

Essential Functions:

• The Chief Administrative Officer provides executive leadership and oversight of all Operations and Administrative functions for assigned portfolio of responsibilities.
• Works in conjunction with outside counsel and other contractors to assure compliance and mitigate risk to the organization around Human Resources.
• Responsible for ensuring corporate adherence to Federal and State contractual requirements, in addition to ensuring accreditation standards, as applicable.

Leadership Responsibilities:

• Supervises the Administrative and Operations functions. Provides leadership and direction for the employees.
• As a member of the senior leadership team, is responsible for working with the team to ensure the ongoing effective operation of the organization.

Working Environment and Physical Requirements:

• This position primarily works in an office environment. It requires frequent sitting, standing and walking. This position may be required to stand for extended periods when facilitating meetings and/or training programs. Regular regional travel is needed, so the ability to travel as needed is required. May occasionally be required to travel outside of the area to attend conferences or other related events.
• Ability to occasionally lift up to 20 lbs.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Business Administration, Human Services or related disciplines required, Master’s preferred.
• Minimum of eight (8) years of leadership experience and a track record in executive non-profit administrative management preferably in the healthcare industry.
• Excellence in organizational management with the ability to coach mid-level staff to manage and develop high-performance teams and develop and implement strategies.
• Track record of effectively leading through complex change with the ability to leverage strengths across departments to effectuate excellent project management skills.
• Analytic and decisive decision maker with the ability to prioritize and communicate to staff key objectives and tactics necessary to achieve organizational goals.
• Demonstrated experience having led organizational transformation projects and administrative development.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills; a positive, persuasive and passionate communicator with proven experience cultivating a positive and collaborate work culture while managing change.
• Action oriented, entrepreneurial, flexible and innovative approach to operational management.
• Business and contract background required; previous experience in the healthcare industry is preferred.
• Proven success in complex multi-organizational systems and positive stakeholder relations.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office 365 including: Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint applications.
• Life experiences with diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds, including experience with behavioral health issues is preferred.
• Must be supportive of culturally competent recovery-based practices and person-centered planning as a shared decision-making process.
• Must support a trauma informed culture of safety to aid consumers in their recovery process.

Individuals of diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds including those with lived experience with behavioral health issues along with bilingual candidates are encouraged to apply.

Please apply through the Southwest Michigan Behavioral Health website at Emailed resumes will not be accepted.

Position includes a full benefit package and salary is commensurate with experience.

SNAPSHOT

Job Title : Chief Administrative Officer

Experience : 8 years

Position Type : Exempt

Industry : Healthcare

Required Travel : Minimal

Manages Others : Yes