Operations Coordinator

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. We are seeking a skilled and values-aligned Operations Coordinator to join our team.

The Operations Coordinator is a creative systems-thinker and designer who enjoys building the infrastructure required for a growing team of advocates and organizers. A patient and thoughtful problem solver, the Operations Coordinator leverages their knowledge and comfort with nonprofit finance, as well as operations software and tools in order to facilitate the overall effectiveness of our team. The Operations Coordinator is honest and transparent, and operates from an unwavering commitment to ethics on a daily basis. In 2025, the Operations Coordinator will design and develop the systems needed to support a team of approximately 25 staff across two office locations. 

Core Responsibilities

Operations & Information Systems Management

• Support organization-wide systems management, including: storage, communication, and workflow tools.
• Assist with managing technology vendors, such as the IT helpdesk and Zoom, and help track equipment purchases and inventory.
• Provide support with office resources, vendor coordination, technology, supplies, and tenant/landlord matters for Essie’s Oakland and Los Angeles offices.
• Own the process of organizing and maintaining Essie’s digital filing on Google Drive.
• Support the Operations Manager in advancing digital security protocols. 

Financial Process Coordination

• Ensure smooth and accurate financial processes, including monthly book closings and weekly check runs.
• Assist in developing and implementing training to equip staff with essential knowledge of nonprofit finance, Essie’s chart of accounts, budget classes, and financial policies.
• Coordinate financial document collection and submission to the finance vendor, ensuring timely book closures.
• Maintain financial records and oversee financial administrative tasks.
• Assist in developing and implementing training that equip all staff with sufficient information to be good stewards of our resources, including best practices for budget management.
• Support budget managers in reviewing and approving expense reports as delegated.
• Support in rolling out financial policy adherence across staff and training the team to maintain compliance.

General Administrative Support

• Assist the Office & Events Coordinator with office management tasks requiring additional staff support.
• Implement program and campaign related tasks as assigned.
• Provide hiring support as delegated.
• Support in managing organization-wide systems related to workflow management and operational efficiency.

Qualities

• Knows that good ideas require 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, and programmatic reach.
• Thrives in the weeds. You approach building and problem solving with curiosity, creativity, and an obsessive attention to detail.
• Values people, process, and results. You are an exceptionally hard worker. You thrive in inspiring environments in which stuff gets done with speed, great impact, and focus.
• Discernment and honesty we can trust. You are a thoughtful communicator who acts in alignment with your integrity and are unfailingly trustworthy. You readily follow the rules when no one is looking and are sought-after by friends and colleagues for help to navigate gray areas because they know you’ll hold them accountable to what’s right.
• 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, a sense of humor, and authentic kindness wherever you go.

The Position

The Operations Coordinator is a full-time, salaried, exempt position. This position is supervised by the Operations Manager.  The salary for this position is between $72,000- $76,000 depending on experience with full medical, dental, and vision benefits, optional 401(k), a substantial vacation package, and a monthly personal wellness stipend. . All Essie staff are strongly encouraged to be vaccinated against Covid-19, with limited exceptions for medical or religious reasons.

To Apply

Please address a personal, specific, and thoughtful cover letter to the “Essie Hiring Committee” and submit along with a resume through our hiring portal (https://essiejusticegroup.bamboohr.com/jobs). Your resume tells us what you can do; your cover letter should tell us who you are and why you want to work with Essie.

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 expansive 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 non profit 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. 

Salary : $72,000 - $76,000