U.S. Digital Response

About U.S. Digital Response

U.S. Digital Response (USDR) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan effort that works with governments and organizations to ensure our digital services create more resilient communities.

Leveraging an amazing internal team along with a network of pro-bono technical experts, USDR addresses and uncovers solutions for common, systemic challenges that public servants are facing. We operate with humility and deep respect for our partners and believe that modern and resilient technology applied in the public interest can deliver people-centered services at the speed of need.

Since March 2020, USDR’s projects have impacted people in 42 U.S. states and territories. We've built deep partnerships with over 345 government and nonprofit partners, strong expertise across more than 425 projects, and repeatable processes to solve some of the most pressing challenges in order to help state and local governments meet the critical needs of people today, while building digital resilience to withstand the crises of tomorrow.

Learn more about our last year in our 2023 annual impact report.

About The Role

USDR is seeking a Chief Operating Officer to be an integrator, communicator, and a steward of the opportunities and challenges that USDR faces as it grows. USDR’s Chief Operating Officer will drive strategic enterprise-wide initiatives, identify and address enterprise-wide risks, and build operational excellence on the executive team and across the organization. You will play a pivotal role in streamlining operations, fostering a culture of continuous improvement, and ultimately helping the organization achieve its goals.

As Chief Operating Officer, you will own and lead the building of systems and operations within USDR that will contribute to long term sustainability and lasting impact, including operations, financial and grant reporting, compliance, budgeting, and success metrics. The Chief Operating Officer reports to the CEO, is part of USDR’s executive team, and also interacts with the Board of Directors on fiscal and audit matters. This position will work closely with the fundraising and development team to ensure they are supported in achieving their goals.

This full-time, remote position offers a unique opportunity to help governments keep up with the needs of their residents by advancing our nonprofit’s operations and enterprise strategy. We are looking for this person to start early in Q2 2024.

Primary Responsibilities

The responsibilities of the Chief Operating Officer span the realms of operational effectiveness, financial and compliance oversight, and driving organizational alignment. You will work closely with the CEO to facilitate effective decision making, coordination among leadership, and critical enterprise-wide initiatives. To deliver on this mission, some of USDR’s shared services leads will report to this role.

Acts as a strategic partner with the CEO on organization-wide planning, prioritization, decision-making, and executive team effectiveness. (30%)

  • Implement process improvements and operational best practices to drive cross-organization and executive team effectiveness and productivity
  • Identify risks, opportunities, and dependencies, and mobilize teams across organizational boundaries to address them
  • Unblock execution towards enterprise goals by coordinating dependencies and risk mitigation across organizational boundaries
  • Build strong relationships with stakeholders across the organization, as well as close funding partners, to better understand needs and enterprise-level challenges
  • Work closely with the CEO to ensure that the organization’s strategic goals are clearly communicated and understood across all levels; helping align programs, teams, and budgets with these goals

Manages the organization’s budget and compliance processes and relationships, including insurance, legal, finance vendors, and suppliers; ensuring that the organization complies with all legal and regulatory requirements. (50%)

  • Lead the budget development process, assisting the CEO with budgeting, forecasting, and financial monitoring
  • Serve as the primary liaison with accounting firm for bookkeeping needs, ensuring timely and accurate financial and grant reporting to internal and external stakeholders.
  • Serve as the primary liaison with legal counsel, ensuring timely review of contracts and other legal documents
  • Oversee accounting firm in supporting the annual audit process, and serve as the primary liaison between the audit firm and the board
  • Oversee document retention policies and manage disposal of records
  • Oversee organizational insurance policies and ensure organization is adequately covered
  • Oversee compliance with state and federal registration and reporting obligations, including state charity registrations
  • Ensure emergency and security policies and procedures are understood and followed, including cyber-security procedures

Drive enterprise-wide initiatives, ensuring alignment, clarity, and operational excellence, with a focus on engaging and enabling USDR’s remote workforce. (20%)

  • Plays a key role in managing organizational change initiatives, ensuring they are implemented smoothly, with clear change management that builds alignment and trust
  • Supporting the conceptualization and implementation of large, cross-functional and org-wide initiatives; bringing together multiple stakeholders and helping to drive towards decisions that build operational effectiveness and embody USDR’s values
  • Oversee critical projects, especially those that span multiple teams or programs, ensuring they are in line with organizational goals and plans
  • Oversee logistical support for the organization’s remote operations, such as mail forwarding or virtual office services
  • Embody and champion the values in our Volunteer Oath

Qualified candidates will have the following skills and experience:

  • 12+ years of professional experience, with a minimum of 8+ years of broad operations and finance management experience in technology, non-profit, government, start-up, or similar settings.
  • 6+ years executive leadership experience and a demonstrated ability to provide high integrity leadership to a distributed, fully remote and matrixed team.
  • Operational Excellence: Proven track record of leading and optimizing complex operations in a nonprofit, technology, or relevant sector. Strong operational acumen and an ability to drive impactful change across a fully-remote organization.
  • Analytical and Planful: Ability to question and challenge strategic thinking in ways that focus ideas into actions and plans.
  • Collaboration: Excellent interpersonal and communication skills. Experience working with cross-functional teams and building collaborative relationships. You default to curiosity over judgment and lead with “how can I help?”
  • Problem-Solving Skills: A proactive problem solver who can identify challenges and implement effective solutions.
  • Data Analysis: Working knowledge of data analytics and using insights to drive data-driven decision making.
  • Adaptable and Resilient: Demonstrated ability to thrive in a dynamic environment and manage multiple priorities.
  • Passion for Social Impact: A genuine passion for leveraging technology to create positive societal change.
  • Integrity and Ethics: Demonstrated commitment to upholding the highest ethical standards.
  • Or any combination of education, experience, and measurable performance that demonstrates the capability to perform the duties of the position.

What you’ll get:

  • A competitive salary, consistent with similar roles in other tech nonprofits in major U.S. metropolitan cities. The annual salary range for this role is $200,000 - $220,000 depending on experience.
  • Full health, dental and vision benefits (USDR pays 100% of the cost for our employees and 80% of the cost for their dependents).
  • 401K with a matching contribution of up to 3 percent of your pay with $1 for each dollar you contribute and for more than 3 percent and up to 5 percent of your pay with $0.50 for each dollar you contribute.
  • An equipment reimbursement for the purchase of a computer and peripheral devices of up to $2,000 along with a Work from Home allowance of $100 each month to support employees as they navigate working from home.
  • A discretionary budget of $500 per year per employee for learning and development along with an organization-wide L&D budget to support individuals and teams with work-related learning and development expenses
  • A supportive community where everyone can thrive and find a balance between working hard to make a difference and taking care of themselves. This means that we are committed to a fully remote work environment (for US-based employees) along with flexible schedules and time off policies that work with your life.

Equal Employment Opportunity

U.S. Digital Response is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer fully dedicated to achieving a diverse staff. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity and expression, and sexual orientation), disability status, protected veteran status, political party affiliation, or any other characteristic protected by law.

We encourage and welcome all interested potential applicants, regardless of background or prior experience volunteering with U.S. Digital Response, to apply.

All USDR staff members work remotely in support of flexibility, wellness, and work-life balance. At this time, USDR is only hiring candidates who have and maintain active U.S. Work Authorization.

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