Chief of Staff
People & HR, Operations
New York, NY, USA
About the Position
JustFix is seeking a full-time Chief of Staff to serve as a strategic partner to the Executive Director and help lead the organization’s core operations. This role combines strategic thinking with hands-on execution to ensure the organization operates effectively while advancing its mission and organizational priorities.
Reporting directly to the Executive Director, the Chief of Staff will oversee organizational functions spanning human resources, finance, communications, and cross-functional operations and contribute significantly to fundraising. They will partner closely with staff, consultants, funders, government agencies, and community organizations to strengthen JustFix's organizational effectiveness and support its continued growth.
The ideal candidate is an agile, systems-minded nonprofit professional who thrives in a "wearer of many hats" environment, enjoys solving complex organizational challenges, and is equally energized by high-level strategic planning and detail-oriented administrative execution.
JustFix’s staff is represented by a union under a collective bargaining agreement. This position is part of the organization’s leadership team and is exempt from the bargaining unit.
Key Responsibilities
Organizational Leadership & Governance
- Serve as a strategic thought partner to the Executive Director on organizational priorities and key decisions.
- Direct internal planning and execution across operational domains (e.g., overseeing benefits selection while forecasting budget implications).
- Lead coordination with JustFix's Board of Directors in partnership with the Executive Director, including meeting preparation, drafting governance documentation, and supporting board action items.
Human Resources
- Lead employee lifecycle operations, including onboarding, benefits administration, compensation updates, leave administration, and performance management.
- Oversee recruitment and hiring of new staff and contractors.
- Manage monthly payroll updates, compensation adjustments, and union dues processing (via Justworks PEO).
- Serve as the primary management liaison for day-to-day implementation of the collective bargaining agreement with unionized staff, including coordinating communications with union representatives on personnel and operational matters.
- Partner with the Board and Executive Director to lead labor-management meetings, bargaining preparation, and implementation of negotiated agreements, as needed.
- Ensure HR policies, practices, and organizational procedures remain consistent with the collective bargaining agreement and applicable employment laws.
- Foster a healthy, inclusive, and high-performing organizational culture through thoughtful people practices and effective internal communication.
Finance
- Lead audit preparation in partnership with the organization's accountant and auditor.
- Conduct and present monthly reviews of revenue, expenses, cash flow, and financial performance with the Executive Director.
- Reconcile monthly bank and credit card statements and maintain clean financial tracking systems.
- Lead annual budgeting, revenue projections, and long-term financial planning.
Fundraising & External Partnerships
- Lead contract management, reporting and compliance for government grants.
- Support strategy and relationship management for City, State, and institutional funding opportunities.
- Lead the drafting and assembly of grant proposals, reports, briefing materials, and fundraising collateral.
- Maintain systems to track funding opportunities, proposal deadlines, reporting requirements, and funder relationships.
- Partner with the Executive Director on funder communications, cultivation, and stewardship.
- Design and facilitate collaborative planning and working sessions with community partners, legal service providers, government agencies, and other external stakeholders to advance organizational priorities.
- Represent JustFix at partner meetings, conferences, and external events.
Organizational Operations
- Own, administer, and continuously improve the organization's operational technology stack, including Google Workspace, Slack, Justworks, QuickBooks, Zoom, and other business systems.
- Lead vendor and consultant management, including procurement, contracts, onboarding, and payment processing.
- Identify opportunities to improve organizational processes, documentation, and internal systems to increase efficiency and effectiveness.
Product Operations
- Coordinate product development and launch activities with product team and external partners (e.g., recruiting and reimbursing users for research).
- Oversee external communications related to product launches, including newsletters and social media.
- Manage the Google Ad Grant for products, including hiring and directing external marketing agencies when necessary.
- As needed: Support the product team with project timeline management, milestone tracking, risk identification, and launch coordination.
- As needed: Participate in the review of product features, content, and user experience.
Other duties may also be assigned.
Must Have
- 5+ years of experience in nonprofit operations, organizational leadership, finance, fundraising, or a related field.
- Hands-on experience managing foundational administrative functions such as HR, finance, and/or operations.
- Strong project management and systems-building skills, with a proven ability to balance high-level strategy with meticulous attention to administrative detail.
- Excellent writing and communication skills, with experience drafting external-facing materials like grant proposals or board memos.
- Labor relations awareness, or the demonstrated maturity and judgment required to operate effectively within a unionized environment.
- Commitment to JustFix's mission of advancing housing justice.
Nice to Have
- Experience working in civic technology, legal technology, or mission-driven software organizations.
- Experience supporting digital product development or product operations.
- Experience working with government contracts and public funding.
- Experience facilitating workshops and multi-stakeholder meetings.
- Familiarity with AI-enabled productivity tools and project management software.
Why Work for JustFix
- Fully covered health plan. 100% of medical, vision, and dental benefits are covered for staff.
- Support for the future. 401(k) option (we match up to 2%, plus an annual non-elective company contribution), and 16 weeks paid Parental Leave for those eligible.
- Comprehensive Paid Time Off with a generous and inclusive holiday schedule. We have a culture of community care and encourage each other to take time to rest with 20 vacation days, 15 sick days, and 5 personal days.
- Frequent tenant engagement opportunities. Spend time and learn with the communities with whom we build and update our tools.
- Technology and WFH stipend. You choose what type of computer and accessories you need to do your best work, and we cover up to $1,000 of that cost through our technology stipend. Additionally, we offer a $170/month WFH stipend.
- Small and collaborative work culture. We are a small, tight-knit team that values every staff member's unique contributions and emphasizes deep collaboration to achieve our shared goals.