Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.

Operations Manager

Posted Date 2 days ago(10/28/2025 12:11 PM)
Job ID
2025-5819
# of Openings
1
Group
Office of Strategy & Results

Overview

NRDC is a non-profit environmental advocacy organization. We use law, science, and the support of 3.1 million members and online activists to protect the planet's wildlife and wild places and to ensure the rights of all people to clean air, clean water, and healthy communities. NRDC was founded in 1970 and our people helped write some of America's bedrock environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act and many of the implementing regulations. Today, our team of more than 700 lawyers, scientists, economists, policy advocates, communications experts, and others work across the United States and the globe from our offices in Beijing; Chicago; New Delhi; New York; San Francisco; Santa Monica; and Washington, D.C. 

 

NRDC is seeking an Operations Manager to work with the Green Finance and Science Office teams in our New York or Washington D.C offices. 

POSITION SUMMARY  

Reporting directly to the Senior Director, Strategy, Planning & Operations, the Operations Manager is responsible for overseeing and coordinating the day-to-day operations of the Green Finance & Science Office’s processes to ensure effective resource allocation, financial management and compliance with NRDC-wide policies and procedures 

 

The Operations Manager will provide formal supervision of the Administrative Coordinators, ensuring effective and consistent resource allocation and expectation-setting.  

Responsibilities

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the following essential functions: 

 

Operations Management: 

  • With guidance from the SP&O Lead, oversee team processes and tracking related to day-to-day budget and finance tasks, including but not limited to, grant spending, overseeing contract development and management, overseeing the invoicing processes and approvals, overseeing setting up vendors, and matching expenditures to grants. 
  • Oversee grants management including proposals, tracking, and reporting , liaising with Finance, Development, and team members. 
  • With guidance from the SP&O Lead, the Operations Manager leads the team’s annual budgeting processes, including gathering data, training on templates and other tools, and preparing reports to drive a consistent system of budget management 
  • Work with SP&O Lead to implement methods to communicate goals and activities, such as team retreats, within the team and across the institution. 
  • Act as point of contact for selected internal HR, IT, and Workplace processes, reporting, and compliance relating to recruitment, hiring, onboarding, performance management, professional development, office visits, and off-boarding 
  • Support the set-up and maintain centralized file management system for department using Sharepoint and Google Drive and guidelines for project management workflows using Asana. 
  • Provide train-the-trainers instruction to, or direct training of, SP&O Associates, Administrative Coordinators, and Solves 1-4 individuals on budget, expense, finance tracking, reporting, and other fiscal work to ensure consistent budgeting and tracking throughout the team.  
  • Create, implement, and maintain processes and process improvement to drive operational efficiency across the team.  
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams and stakeholders to align efforts and achieve organizational objectives 

 

Oversight of Administrative Coordinators: 

  • The Operations Manager will provide day-to-day management to the department’s Administrative Coordinator(s), fostering a positive and inclusive work environment.  
  • Set clear expectations, goals, and objectives for Administrative Coordinator(s) in collaboration with their dotted line managers, provide regular feedback and coaching to support their professional development. 
  • Regularly review associates’ workloads, ensuring work is distributed evenly. 
  • Monitor team performance and productivity, identifying areas of improvement and implementing strategies to enhance efficiency and effectiveness.  
  • Manage performance, addressing performance expectations, including conducting goal setting meetings and feedback sessions in collaboration with their dotted line managers 
  • Promote a safe and inclusive environment, ensuring compliance with relevant policies, procedures, and regulations. 

 

The above list of duties is not comprehensive but generally demonstrates the types of matters under this position’s responsibility. Other duties may be assigned.  

Qualifications

Minimum Education & Experience:   

  • Bachelor’s degree in a related field or equivalent combination of education and experience required. 
  • Minimum 3-5 years’ directly related experience in project management, operations management, or a related discipline, or equivalent combination of education and/or work experience. 

 

Skills, Abilities, Competencies  

  • Experience successfully managing budgets, including prioritizing and reallocating funds to make the best use of limited resources for strategic purposes. 
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills.   
  • Outstanding problem-solving skills, including the ability to proactively identify obstacles and propose solutions or recommendations to overcome them.  Strong organizational skills and proven ability to manage projects and relationships in a complex/matrixed organizational structure. 
  • Deep commitment to incorporating and growing the use of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion principles in team culture, and operations.   
  • Ability to foster a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement within team. 
  • Ability to effectively train, onboard, set expectations, and give clear feedback to team members.   
  • Demonstrated ability to execute projects involving multiple people and deliverables, and to perform or quickly learn new tasks, systems, and technologies.  
  • High proficiency with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, Power Point) or transferrable skills from Google Suite 
  • Strong understanding of NRDC’s accounting and finance systems, legal review/corporate counsel, and budgeting processes, as well as workplace strategies processes.  
  • Experience working in Communications-related fields is desirable. 
  • Demonstrable alignment and deep commitment to NRDC’s mission and purpose with an ability to communicate this passion to others with a positive and high-energy attitude, integrity, and a commitment to working collaboratively with peers and colleagues.  
  • Ability to travel to NRDC U.S. based or international offices, estimated at less than 10% annually. 

 

PHYSICAL DEMANDS   

 

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position within the described work environment. 

Frequently: Perform desk-based computer tasks 

Frequently: Ability to interact and communicate with employees and others as necessary 

Frequently:  Attend planned meetings and collaborate with management and coworkers 

Occasionally: Ability to attend events and activities in the office or offsite  

Work is sometimes performed primarily in officeThe noise level in the work environment is usually quiet in office settings and moderate in other situations.  Hours of employment may sometimes require working flexible and/or longer hours, including nights and weekends, when necessitated by projects. The job includes work-related situations such as those involving challenging, important, urgent, time-sensitive, or multiple matters. 

 

NRDC is committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion, both in our work and in our workplace. We believe that celebrating and actively welcoming diverse voices and perspectives is essential to solving the planet's most pressing environmental problems, and we encourage applications from candidates whose identities have been historically under-represented in the environmental movement. 

 

We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.  

 

We offer competitive salaries, excellent benefits, and a supportive working environment. Salary is based on a nonprofit scale and is commensurate with skills and experience. Internal equity will be reviewed and considered to determine a final offer. For this position, the salary range is $90,000 to $100,000 

 

NRDC operates under a hybrid work model. Employees are required to come to the office 8 days per month. 

 

As a science-based organization, NRDC aims to do our part to help contain the COVID-19 public health crisis. For the sake of health, safety, and equity, we ask that people be vaccinated unless they have an approved medical or religious accommodation or other exemption in accordance with state and local law. We consider a person to be vaccinated two weeks after receiving one full course of a CDC-approved vaccine. In accordance with state or local law, new hires will be asked to attest to vaccination, those wishing to do so may request medical or religious accommodations or other exemptions via NRDC Employee Relations. NRDC treats all vaccine-related data confidentially, in keeping with local, state, and federal laws. 

 

To apply, visit www.nrdc.org/careers and upload your résumé and cover letter. Please mention where you saw this posting and upload any additional materials that showcase your abilities. Due to the high volume of applications, we will contact only those candidates we would like to interview. Please no phone calls, emails, or in-person résumé drop-offs. 

 

If you experience technical problems while applying or if you are a person with a disability and need assistance applying online, please reach out to iCIMS Customer Care at 1-800-889-4422. 

 

For more about NRDC, visit www.nrdc.org. 

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