Director, Operations Excellence

Success Academy's dual mission is to build world-class schools that empower children to thrive in college and in life, and to advocate for policies that expand access to educational opportunity.

The Director of School Operations plays a critical role in advancing that mission by ensuring every school has the operational foundation necessary to deliver an exceptional experience for scholars, families, and staff.

This leader is responsible for defining and executing the vision, strategy, talent model, and operating standards for School Operations across the network. They oversee a team of Regional Operations Managers (ROMs) and are accountable for developing leaders who can build high-performing operational teams, create outstanding school environments, and consistently execute at a high level.

The Director serves as the senior operational partner to network leadership, balancing immediate operational needs with long-term organizational strategy. They ensure School Operations has the talent, systems, resources, and accountability structures necessary to support school excellence at scale.

The Director ensures operational excellence is not simply a support function, but a strategic advantage that enables school leaders and teachers to focus on delivering extraordinary outcomes for scholars.

Success in this role is measured not by the performance of individual schools, but by the strength of the operating model, the effectiveness of the leaders within it, and the consistency of outcomes delivered across the network.

Summary of Key Responsibilities

Leadership of Regional Operations Managers

• Leads, develops, and manages a team of Regional Operations Managers.

• Builds leadership capability by coaching leaders of leaders.

• Establishes performance expectations, accountability systems, and development plans for ROMs.

• Drives succession planning and long-term talent strategy across School Operations.

• Creates a culture of ownership, follower-ship, and operational excellence throughout the organization.

• Ensures ROMs are effectively developing Business Operations Managers and school-based operations teams.

• Identifies, develops, and retains top operational talent across the network.

Strategic Leadership & Organizational Design

• Defines and executes the long-term vision and strategy for School Operations.

• Designs organizational structures, talent models, and operating systems that enable school success at scale.

• Anticipates future organizational needs and proactively builds capabilities to support growth.

• Evaluates the effectiveness of the operating model and continuously improves it.

• Leads large-scale operational transformation efforts and organizational change initiatives.

• Partners with senior leadership to shape network-wide strategy and priorities.

Operational Excellence

• Establishes operational standards and accountability measures across the network.

• Ensures schools consistently deliver strong outcomes across facilities, safety, compliance, enrollment, family experience, financial management, and operational execution.

• Uses data and performance metrics to identify trends, prioritize interventions, and drive continuous improvement.

• Creates systems that allow operational excellence to be measured, scaled, and sustained.

• Builds a culture of noticing, problem-solving, and accountability at every level.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Serves as the primary operational thought partner to network leadership.

• Builds strong partnerships across Schooling, Enrollment, Facilities, Technology, Finance, People, Family Engagement, Supply Chain, and other network teams.

• Influences organizational decision-making through operational expertise and insight from schools.

• Ensures cross-functional initiatives are designed with implementation realities in mind.

• Clarifies ownership and accountability across teams to improve execution and reduce complexity.

• Aligns stakeholders around priorities, resources, timelines, and expected outcomes.

Talent Strategy & Capability Building

• Develops long-term talent pipelines for School Operations leadership.

• Defines leadership competencies, performance expectations, and development pathways.

• Drives hiring strategy, succession planning, onboarding, performance management, and leadership development.

• Creates systems that strengthen management capability and leadership effectiveness.

• Ensures leaders have the skills, tools, and support necessary to succeed.

Systems, Innovation & Continuous Improvement

• Evaluates the effectiveness of operational programs, systems, and processes.

• Leads the design and implementation of tools, workflows, and standards that improve execution.

• Identifies opportunities to simplify work, eliminate inefficiencies, and increase consistency.

• Leverages data, technology, and innovation to improve operational outcomes.

• Ensures School Operations evolves to meet the changing needs of schools and the organization.

Financial Stewardship

• Oversees operational budget performance across the network.

• Ensures leaders understand financial expectations and manage resources responsibly.

• Partners with Finance to develop forecasting, reporting, and accountability systems.

• Aligns investments and staffing decisions to organizational priorities and school needs.

• Identifies risks, opportunities, and resource allocation strategies that strengthen operational performance.

Key Job Dimensions & Scope

• Strategic leadership of School Operations across the Success Academy network.

• Direct leadership and development of Regional Operations Managers.

• Leadership of leaders responsible for operational performance across multiple schools and regions.

• Accountable for operational outcomes, talent strategy, organizational design, and leadership development.

• Senior cross-functional influencer and thought partner to network leadership.

• Responsible for scaling systems, standards, and capabilities across the organization.

• Balances immediate operational realities with long-term organizational priorities.

• Frequent travel between schools and network locations.

Knowledge, Skills, and Experience

Leadership

• Proven ability to lead leaders and build high-performing teams.

• Demonstrated success coaching, developing, and managing senior leaders.

• Ability to create follower-ship, accountability, and ownership across a large organization.

• Strong judgment in talent assessment, succession planning, and organizational design.

Strategic Thinking

• Exceptional strategic planning and systems-thinking capabilities.

• Ability to connect day-to-day execution with long-term organizational outcomes.

• Skilled at navigating ambiguity, competing priorities, and organizational complexity.

• Experience leading large-scale organizational change and transformation efforts.

Operational Excellence

• Deep understanding of operational systems, performance management, and continuous improvement.

• Strong analytical skills and ability to leverage data to drive decisions.

• Experience building scalable systems, standards, and accountability frameworks.

• Ability to drive operational excellence across multiple sites, teams, or business units.

Influence & Collaboration

• Exceptional communication, relationship-building, and influencing skills.

• Ability to drive alignment across diverse stakeholders and competing priorities.

• Strong executive presence and ability to influence without direct authority.

• Skilled at building trust and credibility across all levels of an organization.

Business Acumen

• Experience managing budgets, forecasting, resource allocation, and organizational investments.

• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills.

• Ability to balance organizational priorities while maintaining a relentless focus on scholar outcomes.

Preferred Experience

• 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in operations, education, consulting, military leadership, hospitality, retail, healthcare, or other complex multi-site environments.

• Experience leading leaders across multiple regions, business units, or locations.

• Experience designing organizations, building talent systems, and driving transformational change.

• Demonstrated success scaling teams, systems, and operational performance across a large organization.

• Experience partnering with senior executives to drive enterprise-wide initiatives and organizational effectiveness.