Operations Director

Job Description

Job Description:\n\nOperations Director\nAnimal Friends Humane Society\nReports To: Board of Trustees\nPrimary Board Liaison: Board President\nStatus: Full-Time, Exempt\n\nPosition Summary\nAnimal Friends Humane Society is seeking an experienced, hands-on Operations Director to provide senior leadership for the day-to-day operation of the shelter and ensure that programs, employees, resources, facilities, and animal-care practices operate safely, efficiently, compassionately, and consistently.\nThe Operations Director leads shelter operations, animal care and welfare, staffing and workforce deployment, intake and adoptions, foster and rescue activities, customer care/front desk operations, facility operations, veterinary and medical operations, safety, capacity management, and operational performance.\nThe Operations Director works collaboratively with the Business Director, who leads the organization’s business, financial, administrative, fundraising and development, human-resources systems, volunteer and event, compliance, and community-relations functions. Neither Director supervises the other; each has clear areas of accountability and decision-making authority while working together on matters that affect the organization as a whole.\nThe Operations Director has decision-making authority within assigned operational responsibilities and is expected to manage routine matters within established authority, act promptly when animal welfare or safety requires it, and escalate matters requiring Board governance or approval through the established Board liaison process.\nThe ideal candidate is an experienced animal-welfare operations leader who combines strong shelter-management knowledge with hands-on people leadership, sound judgment, disciplined execution, data-informed decision-making, and compassion. This individual must be comfortable making difficult and time-sensitive decisions in a fast-paced and emotionally demanding environment.\n\nKey Responsibilities\nDaily Shelter Operations\n\nDirect and oversee daily shelter operations and maintain an active, visible leadership presence throughout the shelter.\nEnsure appropriate staffing, resources, workflows, equipment, and facilities are available to operate the shelter safely and effectively.\nEstablish clear operational priorities and coordinate activities across shelter departments to prevent gaps, duplication, and communication failures.\nEnsure shelter policies, procedures, sanitation standards, safety requirements, and animal-care protocols are consistently implemented.\nOversee customer care/front desk operations and coordination with intake, adoptions, and other shelter functions.\nAddress operational problems promptly and improve workflows and systems within established authority.\n\nAnimal Care, Welfare & Population Management\n\nProvide leadership for high standards of animal health, safety, enrichment, behavior, sanitation, humane treatment, and overall welfare.\nMonitor shelter population, capacity, available resources, length of stay, and animal flow, and take appropriate operational action.\nDevelop and implement strategies related to intake, adoption, foster care, transfers, rescue partnerships, placement, and length of stay.\nUse animal-welfare and outcome data to identify trends, risks, and needed corrective action.\nEnsure AFHS’s approved multi-person process for identifying and reviewing potential euthanasia candidates is consistently followed. The Operations Director is accountable for process adherence and operational follow-through but does not make unilateral euthanasia decisions outside that approved process.\n\nVeterinary & Medical Operations\n\nProvide administrative leadership and organizational oversight for veterinary and medical operations, including staffing, scheduling, workflow, resources, budget integration, facility needs, and coordination with shelter operations.\nEnsure the veterinary/medical team has the resources, information, staffing support, and organizational coordination necessary to provide appropriate animal care.\nRespect and uphold the independent clinical authority of licensed veterinary professionals over diagnosis, treatment, prescribing, and other matters requiring professional veterinary judgment.\nEnsure clinical and operational leaders coordinate effectively when medical recommendations affect capacity, staffing, placement, resources, or shelter workflow.\nMonitor medical-service demand, access, costs, outcomes, and operational impact and address system-level issues within assigned authority.\n\nStaff Leadership & Workforce Management\n\nExercise direct supervisory and personnel authority for employees assigned to Operations, including hiring, onboarding, scheduling, coaching, performance management, development, discipline, and termination within established policies and authority.\nProvide managers and employees with clear expectations, direction, feedback, coaching, and accountability.\nPromote a workplace culture based on professionalism, teamwork, accountability, respect, compassion, and effective communication.\nIdentify staffing, training, leadership-development, and succession needs and implement appropriate solutions within Operations.\nEvaluate staffing levels and deploy employees based on shelter population, workload, operating hours, safety requirements, service expectations, and available resources.\nMonitor overtime, attendance, vacancies, turnover, workload, and staffing risks and take appropriate corrective action.\nPartner with the Business Director for HR systems, documentation, compliance guidance, compensation and benefits administration, and organization-wide workforce practices. HR process support does not replace the Operations Director’s supervisory authority over Operations employees.\n\nOperational Performance, Customer Care & Volunteer Integration\n\nEstablish and monitor operational performance measures consistent with Board-approved goals and professional sheltering standards.\nTrack and evaluate shelter capacity, intake, adoptions, foster placements, transfers, rescue outcomes, length of stay, animal outcomes, staffing, customer care, medical-service integration, and safety.\nUse operational data to identify problems, resource needs, and opportunities for continuous improvement.\nEnsure customer care/front desk employees provide professional, compassionate, consistent, and efficient service.\nLead the operational response to difficult customer situations involving shelter services, animal care, intake, adoptions, safety, or other Operations responsibilities.\nWork with the Business Director and Volunteer & Events function to ensure volunteers are safely and effectively integrated into shelter operations and receive appropriate operational training, supervision, safety, animal-handling, confidentiality, and animal-welfare guidance.\nMaintain positive operational relationships with veterinarians, animal-control agencies, rescue organizations, foster partners, and other shelter-service partners.\nProvide operational data and context needed for budgeting, fundraising, grants, donor communications, community relationships, and Board reporting.\n\nBudget, Safety, Compliance & Emergency Leadership\n\nParticipate in development of the annual operating budget and manage operational expenditures within the approved budget and delegated financial authority.\nMonitor staffing costs, overtime, supplies, medical costs, equipment, facilities, purchasing, and resource utilization, and identify efficiencies without compromising animal welfare, safety, or service quality.\nDevelop and implement operational procedures, protocols, workflows, and management practices consistent with Board-approved policies, applicable laws, professional requirements, and organizational standards.\nMaintain a safe environment for employees, volunteers, visitors, and animals, and ensure significant incidents are appropriately addressed, documented, reviewed, and reported.\nProvide operational leadership during emergencies and critical incidents, maintain appropriate emergency-preparedness plans, and take reasonable and timely action within organizational policy and delegated authority to protect animals, people, facilities, and continuity of shelter operations.\nCoordinate with the Business Director when operational decisions or emergencies create material financial, HR, insurance, contractual, external-communication, donor, community, or reputational implications.\n\nLeadership, Collaboration & Board Partnership\nThe Operations Director reports directly to the Board of Trustees and works with the Board President as the primary management-to-Board communication liaison. The Operations Director and Business Director serve as collaborative senior leaders with distinct areas of responsibility and authority. They are expected to share information, consult when decisions cross functional boundaries, resolve routine management matters at the management level, and maintain an organization-wide perspective.\nThe Operations Director is accountable for leadership of animal care/kennel, cat care, intake and adoption, customer care/front desk, foster/rescue, facility operations, veterinary/medical operations, and other shelter-operational functions assigned through the organizational chart. The veterinarian and veterinary/medical function report administratively through Operations while licensed veterinary professionals retain independent clinical authority for professional medical judgment.\nFor sensitive incidents arising within Operations, the Operations Director leads the factual and operational assessment and response, provides the Business Director with timely and accurate operational information needed for external communications, and helps ensure operational facts and animal-welfare considerations are accurately represented.\nThe Operations Director regularly provides the Board with accurate information and recommendations related to shelter operations, staffing, animal outcomes, capacity, safety, customer care, operational budget performance, significant incidents, accomplishments, risks, and corrective actions.\n\nRequired Qualifications\n\nMeaningful management experience in an animal shelter, humane society, rescue organization, veterinary operation, or closely related animal-welfare environment, with responsibility for employees and day-to-day operations.\nDemonstrated knowledge of animal-sheltering operations, population and capacity management, animal-care standards, intake, adoption, foster/rescue, safety, and related shelter programs.\nProven ability to supervise employees, managers, supervisors, or department leaders and establish accountability.\nStrong organizational, leadership, communication, prioritization, conflict-resolution, coaching, and problem-solving skills in a fast-paced operating environment.\nAbility to make difficult and time-sensitive decisions professionally, compassionately, and within defined authority.\nAbility to develop, implement, and improve operational procedures, protocols, and performance systems.\nAbility to use operational data and performance measures to guide decisions and corrective action.\nAbility to manage staffing, schedules, resources, and departmental budgets responsibly.\nAbility to work effectively with licensed veterinary professionals while respecting independent clinical judgment and organizational policy.\nAbility to work collaboratively with another senior organizational leader and a Board of Trustees while maintaining clear management accountability.\nCommitment to animal welfare and the mission of Animal Friends Humane Society.\nAbility to maintain confidentiality and appropriately handle sensitive personnel, animal, medical, customer, and organizational information.\nAbility to work a flexible schedule based on shelter needs, including emergencies and nontraditional hours.\n\nPreferred Qualifications\n\nBachelor’s degree in animal science, business or operations management, nonprofit management, organizational leadership, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.\nExperience managing managers, supervisors, or multiple shelter departments.\nExperience overseeing veterinary or medical operations in collaboration with licensed clinical professionals.\nExperience with adoption, foster, intake, rescue, transfer, customer-service, and animal-care programs.\nExperience with shelter data, capacity management, length-of-stay improvement, or outcome-focused performance systems.\nExperience with employee scheduling, performance management, training, and leadership development.\nExperience managing departmental budgets, purchasing, facilities, equipment, and organizational resources.\nExperience with emergency planning, critical incidents, risk management, or safety programs.\nExperience working with a nonprofit Board of Trustees and cross-functional business, HR, finance, fundraising, or administrative leadership.\n\nWork Environment & Schedule\nThis position operates primarily in an animal shelter environment and may involve frequent exposure to animals, noise, cleaning products, odors, animal waste, zoonotic risk, and emotionally challenging situations.\nThe Operations Director is expected to maintain an active presence throughout shelter operations and may periodically assist employees with operational responsibilities for which they are appropriately trained. The position requires the ability to perform reasonable physical activities associated with shelter operations, with or without reasonable accommodation.\nA flexible schedule is required, including occasional evenings, weekends, holidays, emergencies, Board meetings, and special events.\nThis posting summarizes the primary responsibilities and qualifications of the role. The full Board-approved position description provides additional detail regarding delegated authority, governance, professional requirements, and cross-functional responsibilities.