Operations Manager

Operations Manager for small non-profit

Cascadia Research Collective, a small, 41-year strong, Olympia-based non-profit and leader in scientific research and education on marine mammals (whales, dolphins, and pinnipeds) in Puget Sound, the West Coast, and Hawaiʻi is seeking an Operations Manager. We are looking for an individual to inaugurate the operations manager position at Cascadia and to work closely with our founder, John Calambokidis, senior staff, and the Board of Directors to co-develop an efficient and sustainable operations model that will take Cascadia into the next forty years.

We are looking for someone who is comfortable in a collaborative management model, with high attention to detail, excellent customer service, and an entrepreneurial spirit. We operate from a small main office in Olympia, Washington with staff based primarily in Olympia, but with some field staff based elsewhere and others traveling frequently for field work and as projects require.

You should have the ability to work well both in a team and independently and to be successful with limited oversight on a wide variety of human resources, bookkeeping, office management, grant/contract oversight and reporting, and fundraising tasks. You will be responsible for tracking and meeting multiple deadlines, anticipating and raising potential problems or risks in a timely way, and working well with a variety of scientific research, project, and management staff and styles often on quick-turnaround requests.

Note: This position could be either part- or full-time. 

Anticipated Responsibilities:

• Leadership and day-to-day responsibility for human resources including ensuring understanding and compliance with applicable human resource requirements, keeping personnel policies current, and processing and tracking benefits enrollment paperwork
• Management and accounting support for numerous state and federal contracts and grants including related financial tracking and reporting
• Payroll management including maintaining compliance with payroll tax requirements in multiple states (bi-monthly payroll services currently provided by PayChex)
• Day-to-day bookkeeping including maintaining a QuickBooks Pro ledger and producing quarterly and annual reports
• Cash management and banking
• Assistance and support to staff who may need help with project budgeting and management, and other requirements
• Procurements and subrecipient monitoring as required for federal grant management
• Records and data management and stewardship related to contracts, grants, finances, bookkeeping, and personnel
• Interaction with the Board of Directors and scheduling and preparing financial and other reports for quarterly Board meetings
• Assistance in preparation of the annual budget, budget tracking, and organization financial reporting
• Preparation of Indirect Cost proposals for provisional and final rates
• Federal non-profit tax filings (990)
• Document preparation for A-133 audits
• General organization and office management

Qualifications

Required:

• Demonstrated capability in bookkeeping using QuickBooks Pro including job costing
• Demonstrated understanding of personnel and human resources requirements and standards of practice and ability to serve as an HR manager
• Demonstrated capability and success in financial reporting and tracking for contracts and grants
• Strong verbal communications skills and collaborative orientation
• Experience with Microsoft Excel, MS Word, and Outlook
• Ability to work with overlapping, time-sensitive deadlines
• Ability to work and learn independently, as well as part of a team
• Desire to improve personal skills and company systems as part of our team
• Experience with federal grants

Desirable:

• Familiarity with Federal grant/contract management, procurement requirements, and subrecipient monitoring
• Fundraising, outreach and membership or similar skills oriented at diversifying our funding portfolio
• Communications and graphics/website design and maintenance oriented at increasing our visibility
• Experience/familiarity with state payroll/tax reporting (Washington, California, and Hawai‘i)
• Working with Paychex payroll service

Compensation and Benefits:

Depending on range of duties performed, the position could range from ½ to full time and compensation would be $50-80K. Cascadia provides a full range of benefits including sick and vacation pay, medical and dental coverage, and retirement matching.

Timing and Application:

• Please click "Apply" below to email a letter of interest and CV that includes level of experience with the required and desirable qualifications.
• Please apply before May 19, 2021.
• Our goal is to hire for this position by early June with a start shortly after that to take maximum advantage of overlap with our current bookkeeper who can work with us through 30 June 2021.

Additional information about Cascadia:

Cascadia is a tax-exempt (501c3) non-profit primarily research organization with 15-20 employees (some working seasonally or part-time). Our specialty is scientific research on marine mammals (mostly whales and dolphins) conducted under contracts and grants from federal agencies (mostly NOAA and Office of Naval Research).

Our goal is conducting research that helps in conservation and management of marine mammals especially for endangered populations or those subjected to human impacts. Cascadia puts a premium on conducting scientifically sound research and publishing results in scientific journals. Cascadia owns three vehicles and three rigid-hull inflatable boats used in the research.

Our offices are in downtown Olympia and overlook Budd Inlet at the southern end of Puget Sound.

Hiring practices and diversity:

Cascadia is an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. Cascadia Research is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive community.

We see the long-standing injustices imposed on Black people, Indigenous people and other People of Color and are working in ways that we can learn about and promote anti-racist policies and practices that will hopefully start to repair the damages that these communities have suffered. We intend to reduce the barriers to all people in hopes of making our research accessible to as many people as possible through more focused programming and collaborations and helping to make this career seen as a viable option to all. We welcome individuals of all backgrounds, including but not limited to ethnicity, race, religion, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, socioeconomic status, experience, and training to work with us.

We strive to provide equal opportunities and to create an environment where all staff feel truly valued, are respected and supported by creating a culture that ensures all Cascadia community members feel a common sense of belonging within the organization. Cascadia's home office is located on the second floor of a historical building in downtown Olympia with only stair access to the offices but we encourage those with physical disabilities to apply and we will find ways to make this work.