Very well-rounded, fulfilling, and interesting operations leadership role with a not-for-profit organization. Fantastic opportunity for someone who wants to be part of a high-performance, values-based, and extremely collaborative Executive Leadership Team.  This is a crucial role, and the new Director of Operations will have plenty of opportunity to contribute directly to a shared vision for how to continue to improve operations in the years to come. Full-time permanent job, based in Surrey.

Our client is a well-established NPO (non-profit organization) located in Surrey that is known for doing very good work in the community. The organization is very well-resourced, reputable, and asset-rich, with a bright future and an exciting vision. SWIM can provide more insight into the organization’s culture, values, history, and leadership.

SWIM is looking for a new Director of Operations for this wonderful organization. This role is open due to an upcoming retirement. The Director will oversee and lead teams facilities (1 Sr Mgr direct report and 6 indirect), food services (1 Mgr direct report and 6 indirect), IT administration (outsourced 3rd party IT services vendor), and communications (1 direct report).  Total team size of 3 direct reports and 12+ indirect reports. The organization has over 200 employees, with approximately 20 of those folks working at the corporate office and the rest of the team working in operations and services at various sites/facilities. The employee population will grow further in 2026, perhaps hitting or even exceeding the 300 mark.  

The Director of Operations reports to the C-suite team to support alignment with organizational operations and service delivery priorities. The new Director of Operations will provide organization-wide leadership to support the effective delivery of services across all sites and programs. This leader will ensure the organization has the operational infrastructure, systems, and supports required to meet strategic, regulatory, and service delivery objectives.

The Director oversees facilities and asset management, food services, capital planning, procurement, contracts and leases, risk management, business continuity planning, emergency preparedness and key operational projects. Working closely with the Executive Team and community partners, the Director of Operations supports operational excellence, organizational sustainability, and alignment with the mission and values of the NPO.

We are seeking a candidate with 10+ years’ relevant and progressive operations experience in large and multi-site organizations, including at least a few years as a member of a senior leadership team in a Director capacity.

• Experience overseeing facilities, including significant experience with design, construction and maintenance of facilities projects and operations, preferably in a community setting.
  • Experience overseeing construction projects is very valuable, with a demonstrated ability to lead projects of various sizes and see them through to completion.
  • Experience in food services is required, preferably for 2+ kitchens with dedicated chefs and kitchen staff.
  • Experience leading internal communications and IT services is preferred.
  • Experience in a unionized workforce is highly preferred as most of this organization’s employees are unionized (this role and all direct reports into the Director are exempt).
  • Experience working for a mid-size NPO is a significant asset.
  • Experience working in the health sector (mental health and/or physical health) is highly preferred, but not required for a quick learner who is personally interested in/passionate about the valuable health services that this organization provides.
  • Post-secondary education is required, ideally a Master’s degree in a relevant area.
    • Project Management Professional (PMP) certification is beneficial, with a strong understanding of formal project management methodologies.
    • Proficiency in MS Office suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) is required.   
      • Understanding of Enterprise Resource Planning systems (ERPs)
      • Budget management experience.

Beyond the “on-paper” skills and experience, we are looking for a long list of soft skills and personality attributes- the new Director will be authentic, genuine, humble yet confident, highly collaborative, competent, resourceful, ethical, compassionate, hardworking, and transparent. We’re looking for folks who have a great sense of humour, and who are having fun and keeping it real even when the going gets tough. The C-Suite and ELT at this NPO enjoy working together, and have a shared passion for the meaningful, important services the organization provides to hundreds of people in the Lower Mainland. The Director of Operations will be highly accountable to the functions that they lead, and will do all they can to foresee and then eliminate/reduce risks to the organization from an operational perspective.

This is a full-time and in-office Monday to Friday role, working from the corporate office in Surrey as well as from a few facilities/sites elsewhere in Surrey and the Fraser Valley. The Director will need to have their own vehicle and a clean, valid driver's license.

Very generous compensation package, especially for an NPO! The leadership team and the Board at this organization believe in compensating well for the top talent that they hire and retain. Base salary for this role is in the range of $115,000 to $140,000- but please note the high end is reserved for candidates who have not only the required qualifications but also all of the nice-to-have pieces. The salary sweet spot is more like $120,000 to $126,000. Additionally, the Director of Operations will receive robust health, dental, and vision benefits, a municipal pension plan (which can be transferred if the hired individual happens to already be on the same pension plan), professional development support, and an impressive 5 weeks of paid vacation (plus a couple personal days). Please discuss your compensation expectations in more detail with SWIM.

SWIM is conducting initial interviewing and will be presenting shortlisted candidates directly to the hiring team for review. The selection process will involve a panel interview, a behavioral assessment, a follow-up interview, reference checks and background checks, etc.  Swim Recruiting can share plenty more information to than what we have covered here.

If you already have a Recruiter at SWIM, please reach out very soon. If you do not yet have a contact at Swim Recruiting, please hit 'APPLY NOW' to send us your resume (preferably in MS Word format as it works best with our internal systems). Thank you!