Chief Operating Officer

Overview

The Chief Operating Officer (COO) at U.S. Hunger plays a pivotal role as the primary operational leader, translating strategic enterprise goals into effective daily practices. This position holds full responsibility for the profit and loss performance across several business units — Full Cart, Hunger Projects, and the Data/Intelligence engine — ensuring the organization's earned-income revenue model operates efficiently, reliably, and can scale.

Operational Leadership

The COO balances entrepreneurial insight with disciplined corporate management by identifying crucial connections, posing challenging questions to foster clarity, and designing systems that optimize leadership performance. Operational excellence is integrated harmoniously with the mission’s impact.

• Oversee P&L execution for all business segments, ensuring targets for margins, revenues, and impact are achieved.
• Implement and maintain operational rhythms such as monthly reviews, quarterly reporting, and accountability mechanisms across departments.
• Make prioritized decisions on resource distribution including personnel, funding, and strategic focus.
• Report operational outcomes, capacity, and growth efforts directly to the Board of Directors.
• Collaborate with the CEO on scenario planning and structural strategies for organizational growth.

Program Oversight

• Lead executive oversight for Full Cart and Hunger Projects, ensuring delivery quality, tangible outcomes, and scalability.
• Work closely with program directors to continuously refine, adapt, and scale programs according to partner needs, market conditions, and operational considerations.
• Facilitate integration among program design, data systems, and client services to align mission impact with revenue goals.
• Supervise supply chain and logistics operations guaranteeing consistent, quality delivery of programs at scale.

Revenue and Partnerships

• Drive enterprise revenue management through health plan partnerships, corporate engagement, and strategic business development, consistently meeting acquisition and retention targets.
• Formulate strategies to enhance partner relationships and broaden engagement across service lines to maximize long-term value and sustainability.
• Serve as an external representative to payors, partners, and key stakeholders, translating operational insights into persuasive market differentiators.
• Utilize buyer-side corporate social responsibility experience and established networks in food access and social impact sectors to enhance partner acquisition and engagement.

Cross-Functional and Executive Collaboration

• Coordinate with the Chief Technology Officer on defining business requirements and operational inputs to guide technology and data roadmaps supporting all business lines.
• Manage senior executives including the VP of Finance & Enterprise KPIs and VP of People & Culture to align fiscal, analytic, and workforce strategies with operations.
• Participate actively in governance, strategic decisions, and enterprise-wide initiatives as the CEO’s operational partner.

Team Building and Development

• Construct and lead a results-driven operational leadership team by setting clear expectations, enforcing accountability, and mentoring future executives.
• Create and monitor performance metrics that link individual and team achievements to the organization's financial and social impact goals.
• Cultivate a workplace culture emphasizing critical thinking, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Ensure staff recognize both the business imperatives and transformative social mission of U.S. Hunger’s work.

Additional Requirements and Physical Demands

• A minimum of 10 years in progressive operations leadership, business management, or revenue accountability, including P&L ownership.
• Proven track record in building or scaling enterprises with responsibilities for sales growth, client retention, and financial results.
• Experience coaching directors and VPs into executive-level talent while ensuring accountability.
• Demonstrated capacity to integrate perspectives across operations, finance, personnel, and programmatic functions.
• Board-level experience presenting operational data, defending business strategies, and engaging executive stakeholders.
• Experience in mission-focused organizations blending market discipline with social impact objectives.
• Strong, polished communication skills tailored for corporate, nonprofit, healthcare, and community engagements.
• High emotional intelligence with confidence to ask difficult questions, provide constructive challenges, and envision future possibilities.
• Must successfully complete a background check.
• Physical requirements include repetitive computer use motions, extensive screen time, frequent bending and lifting light objects, with Hunger Projects involving heavy lifting up to 50 lbs, pushing, pulling, bending, and kneeling.
• Willingness and ability to travel up to 50% of working time.