The Opportunity

Essie Justice Group (Essie) is building grassroots power to dismantle the US incarceration system, the most egregious creator of racial and gender injustice of our time. We are a loving and powerful community of women with incarcerated loved ones. Our community includes cisgender women, transgender women, formerly incarcerated women, gender-expansive people, elders, and young people.

After ten years of building an active membership across California and beyond, Essie is deepening its base-building and leadership development strategies with the 1 in 4 women with incarcerated loved ones to propel bold decarceration agendas across the nation. We seek to transform the criminal legal system and create a Black feminist future rooted in care, equity, community safety, and liberation. In the midst of significant organizational growth, we are seeking an enthusiastic, mission-driven, and financially savvy Manager/Senior Manager of Operations & Finance to join our team.

At Essie, our values are foundational to how we operationalize our work. Building innovative approaches to nonprofit functions that push us closer to a society free from race, gender, and class inequality will be a compelling challenge for this person. The Manager/Senior Manager of Operations & Finance is a strategic professional who thrives on thoughtfully sustaining a solid infrastructure from which our ambitious and visionary movement-building organization can be successful.

The Manager/Senior Manager of Operations & Finance builds and coordinates systems that strategically allocate Essie’s resources in line with our core values. This role is responsible for identifying and implementing operational and administrative solutions, with a strong focus on optimizing our systems, managing vendors, and ensuring smooth day-to-day operations.This person will be a collaborative leader, capable of developing training for the team, deeply listening to staff needs, and continuously identifying gaps in current processes. They should be adept at taking ownership of various system components, from writing policies and building processes to creating spreadsheets that streamline workflows.

Core Responsibilities

Operations Management

• Directly manage 1-2 staff and oversee day-to-day operations, systems/technology, and financial processes.
• Identify operational needs and oversee the implementation of new systems, including database customization or upgrades as needed.
• Oversee the implementation and maintenance of security systems, facilitating the integration process of software and technical systems while providing support during the rollout to ensure seamless adoption and functionality.
• Serve as a resource on technological tools and software usage.
• Ensure effective management of resources, vendors, technology, and tenant-landlord matters across Essie’s offices.
• Train staff on operational procedures, including budgeting processes, and identify gaps or areas for improvement.
• Create effective systems that allocate resources to women with incarcerated loved ones and mitigate barriers to their engagement in organizing or programs aligned with Essie’s values.

Accounting and Financial Management

• Oversee the monthly financial close process, ensuring accuracy and timely completion of financial reports.
• Oversee project-specific budgets and collaborate with team members to develop a budget that aligns with the overall departmental budget.
• Assist in managing financial resources, budgets, and expenditures to support Essie’s teams in making values-driven decisions.
• Support the operations team in maintaining accurate financial processes, including internal controls and audit preparations.
• Help develop organizational budgets and provide regular cash flow projections and management reports.
• Prepare financial reports and budgets for funding proposals.
• Support in the management of relationships with the accounting team, IT vendors, and office design and financial vendors, including banks and accounting firms.
• Conduct research on credit card processors and banking options to identify the best resources for the organization, ensuring alignment with operational goals.
• Assist Directors in managing their financial resources and assessing internal financial policies.

Training and Development

• Develop and implement training programs for staff on operational processes and budget management.
• Provide ongoing support and guidance to staff regarding operational best practices and budgetary constraints.
• Work closely with department heads to ensure operational strategies align with budgetary constraints.
• Develop and scaffold staff in the process of creating budgets to enhance their financial management skills and ensure alignment with organizational goals.

Who We’re Looking For

Ideal Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in operations and finance, with at least 1-2 years in a management role within the nonprofit sector.
• Solid understanding of finance and its relationship to nonprofit operations.
• Knowledgeable in various operational functions, including finance, risk management, data management, and system change management.
• Experience with movement-based organizations and their fiscal implications.
• Proven ability to design and implement systems aligned with organizational values.
• Demonstrates strong technical ability and is highly tech-savvy, understanding the importance of technology in enhancing operational efficiency over traditional budgeting methods.
• Process-oriented mindset, with a strong focus on developing and implementing efficient systems and procedures
• Strong attention to detail and ability to connect details to the bigger picture.
• Effective communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Experience supervising staff and supporting colleagues with direct experience of incarceration.
• Collaborative leader with experience managing multiple projects in a fast-paced environment.
• Proficiency with Mac OS, Google Suite, Xero, and MS Office Suite.

Qualities

• Knows good ideas requires great systems. Every time you see something beautiful or impactful you marvel for a moment—but then spend most of your time imagining what was at work behind the scenes. You see great systems as key to brilliant execution. You love “the how.” What’s more, you foster excitement among a team for systems that in your view have been misunderstood as mundane, boring, or unimportant. You find fulfillment in creating the kind of systems that build confidence, effectiveness, organizational efficiency and programmatic reach.

• Thrives in the weeds and in challenge. You approach building and problem solving with curiosity, creativity, and an obsessive attention to detail. You also enjoy the challenge of balancing many responsibilities well with high-volume and high-pressure projects.You are passionate about work planning to ensure that you have adequate time devoted to both and figuring out how to make it all work.
• Discernment and honesty we can trust. You are a thoughtful team member who acts in alignment with your integrity and are unfailingly trustworthy. You make frequent critical decisions and move with a deep understanding of the implications and opportunities in every project.
• Committed to evolution. You are committed to continuously deepening and evolving your own understanding of systems of oppression through study, openness, and humility. And you easily recognize your own relationship to privilege and power, examining and shifting your behaviors as appropriate.
• Uplifting and additive. You see mistakes as opportunities for growth; problems as catalysts for solutions, and inspire others along the journey. You carry a positive approach, can-do attitude, and authentic kindness wherever you go.

The Position

The Manager/Senior Manager of Operations & Finance is a full-time, salaried, exempt position, supervised by the Deputy Director. The salary for this position is between $85,000-$105,000 depending on experience, with full medical, dental, and vision benefits, optional 401(k), a substantial vacation package, and a monthly personal wellness stipend. The position is based in one of Essie’s offices in Oakland or Los Angeles, California. All Essie staff are required to be vaccinated against Covid-19, with limited exceptions for medical or religious reasons.

To Apply

Please prepare (1) a personal, specific, and thoughtful cover letter to the “Essie Hiring Committee” addressing why you would like to work for Essie and (2) a resume. Submit both items through our hiring portal (https://essiejusticegroup.bamboohr.com/jobs). Your resume should outline your qualifications, and your cover letter should convey your passion for working with Essie and your fit for the role.

Essie Justice Group provides equal employment and advancement opportunities to all staff members. Employment decisions are based on merit, qualifications, and skills. Essie does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, immigration status, socioeconomic status, ancestry, age, size, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, familial status, veteran status, disability, AIDS/HIV status, medical condition, prior conviction, arrest history, traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Essie values and specifically seeks applicants who are people with incarcerated loved ones; formerly incarcerated people; people of color; women; queer, transgender, gender nonconforming (GNC), and gender fluid people.

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, performance assessment, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

About Essie Justice Group

Essie Justice Group is a nonprofit organization of women with incarcerated loved ones taking on the rampant injustices created by mass incarceration. Our award-winning Healing to Advocacy Model brings women together to heal, build collective power, and drive social change. Essie is Great Place to Work-Certified™ and a recognized leader in Black feminist institution building.

Learn more at www.essiejusticegroup.org.