Operations Specialist

Purpose

The Friends of Reston, a 501 (C) (3) organization that that performs scientific, educational, and charitable projects in support of Reston Association (“RA"). Friends of Reston (“FOR”) exists to support and promote Reston through charitable fundraising and has provided scholarships, programs, services and community events, and projects that include park improvements, camp and tennis scholarships, environmental education, and natural areas restoration.

Its mission is to support the Reston Association in performing charitable, educational, and scientific purposes. The Friends of Reston has also engaged in significant capital fundraising campaigns in the past, specifically to build the Walker Nature House, a 6,000 square foot nature interpretive center with educational programming and 75 acres of native habitat within Reston.

In addition, the Operations Specialist is to serve as the primary Administrative Assistant to the senior suite of the Reston Association including the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) the Chief Operating Officer (COO), the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), and General Counsel of the Reston Association.

The Operations Specialist will work closely with the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Operating Officer (COO), Chair of the Friends of Reston Board of Directors, and the Director of Recreation Services to support the coordination of all efforts related to the administration of the CEO office, and the management of the Friends of Reston 501(c)(3) Non-Profit organization.

As the Operations Specialist at RA, you will play a vital role in our mission while acting as a liaison between the CEO and internal/external stakeholders. The ideal candidate for this position must possess a can-do attitude, approach and completes work assignments with a high degree of confidentiality, credibility, and integrity, has the ability to coordinate a high volume of competing priorities effectively and independently, while working with a professional demeanor under pressure.

Duties of this position include:

• Attending monthly Friends of Reston Board of Directors meetings and completes tasks in preparation for meetings to support the Director of Recreation Services. Attending Friends of Reston meetings, events, and social events, required.
• Responsible for planning and project coordination for all Friends of Reston events, including the program factsheet and planning.
• Organizes, schedules, and prepares meetings, or books special events, grand openings, Gala’s, etc., attended by the CEO and is responsible for securing conference room/equipment reservations, set up and breakdown, in addition to agenda preparation/distribution.
• Prepare materials for monthly Friends of Reston meetings including reports, presentations, and materials to communicate program outcomes and impact to stakeholders.
• Provide administrative support to the Chair and to the Friends of Reston Board of Directors.
• Responsible for actively engaging and energizing volunteers, board members, committees, partner organizations, donors, and funders.
• Provide general administrative support, including managing phone calls, filing, office organization, and scheduling for the CEO, COO, CFO, and General Counsel.
• Drafts, reviews, and edits correspondence, emails, and other communications on behalf of the CEO when requested.
• Prepares for each morning/weekly check-in to discuss and confirm all calendar related matters and important tasks.
• Fields general questions from RA members in person, by telephone, electronically and attends outreach events, as requested, and monitors general email/voicemail and responds as appropriate under the direction of the CEO.
• Serve as the central point of contact for ordering office supplies and other materials for the Order Association.
• Coordinates travel arrangements (flight, hotel, rental transportation/car service, and reserves travel time between destinations) for the CEO.
• Reconciles and track expenses, and credit card receipts/purchases and submits reimbursements to Finance on the CEO’s behalf and for the Friends of Reston.
• Collaborate with the Recreation Services Department Director, as assigned to ensure contracts and agreements for services are updated and distributed to the applicable internal/external stakeholders within Friends of Reston and the Reston Association.

Education and Experience –

Associate Degree in Marketing (Bachelor’s preferred), Communications, Business Administration, Advertising, Finance, Accounting, or Management preferred or related field, experience working with a non-profit organization and Board of Directors. A minimum of 1-3 years of program support experience in a non-profit organization and demonstrates success in fundraising and grant writing. Proven ability to collaborate activities and support successful programs and/or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Computer Skills -

To perform this job successfully, an individual should be proficient in the use of Microsoft Office applications. Maintains in-depth knowledge of RecTrac, WebTrac (customer event and program services programs), Teams, Microsoft Office Suite, SharePoint, OneDrive, Constant Contact and any other customer relationship databases or relevant software applications.

Other Skills and Abilities –

Requires strong project management skills, including the ability to prioritize tasks simultaneously, meet critical deadlines, adapt to changing circumstances, communicate clearly and effectively orally and in writing. Must be able to collaborate work of others, be detail-oriented and hold advanced skill sets in the use of word processing, electronic mail, and calendar software applications; considerable knowledge of modern office procedures and practices; correct punctuation, spelling, and grammatical usage; filing, indexing, and cross-referencing methods; and types and uses of common office materials and machines. Performs other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

The successful incumbent will be able to understand and carry out oral and written instructions; establish and maintain cooperative and effective relationships with diverse stakeholders, including volunteers, donors, community members, partner organizations, including those contacted in the course of any work-related activities and exercise excellent customer service skills, at all times.

Strong organizational abilities including planning, program support and task management.

Other Qualifications -

Must possess a valid driver’s license and good driving record. Have a strong background in relationship building, fundraising, strategic planning, project management, marketing, leadership, program management and evaluation and teamwork.

Decision-Making & Independence Exercised:

Describes the level of authority and/or responsibility to make decisions, develop and revise policies & procedures, make official commitments on behalf of the Association, etc.

Employee follows established guidelines; may be required to formulate, interpret, or implement management policies or operating practices with regard to word processing, file maintenance, or basic office operations as well as conference center usage and security protocols; and represent the Association in handling complaints, arbitrating disputes or resolving grievances with regard to word processing, file maintenance, or basic office operations.