Deputy Director of Operations, Community Legal Services

Posted by Community Legal Services on February 2, 2021

Philadelphia’s largest public interest law firm, with two offices and 145 employees, is seeking its next Deputy Director of Operations. Founded in 1966, Community Legal Services, Inc. mission is to fight poverty, challenge systems that perpetuate injustice, and change lives through cutting-edge advocacy and exceptional legal representation.

The Deputy Director of Operations is a top leadership job and we are looking for a candidate with strong leadership, interpersonal and management skills, and a record of accomplishment in overseeing a diverse work force, managing operations and facilities and project management. Reporting to and working closely with the Executive Director, the Deputy Director of Operations plans and executes human resources functions and oversees all aspects of CLS operations/facilities, union relations and personnel matters. The Deputy Director of Operations is also an ambassador for CLS.

The person in this job will play an important role in supporting our employees so that they can fulfill our mission and in helping employees to navigate workplace challenges. This position will also involve supporting individual CLS managers as they think through workplace challenges. The role demands a flexible, collaborative work style, exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, outstanding organization and attention to detail, and demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and to the mission of justice for low-income people. The position provides significant opportunities for career development.

Responsibilities:

• Works as a critical member of the CLS leadership team to strategically plan and execute the CLS’s mission and initiatives.
• Ensures that the workplace culture is consistent with organizational values of excellence, effectiveness, collaboration, compassion and teamwork.
• Works closely with the fiscal department by estimating, forecasting, and anticipating human resources requirements as well as, overlapping areas related to the budget, payroll process, vendor contracts, leases and facility matters.
• Oversees hiring and internship programs for all job categories at CLS, including hiring attorneys, law students and paralegals.
• Oversees recruitment for all job categories, including outreach to ensure hiring of diverse candidates.
• Supervises staff who administer compensation and benefit programs including health insurance, qualified retirement plan and wellness programs.
• Works with union representatives regarding hiring, policies, negotiating contracts, grievances and potentially arbitration.
• Works as part of a management team that negotiates union contracts.
• Works with pro bono counsel on legal issues that arise for CLS.
• Develops, writes and updates policies, procedures, methods, and guidelines to help increase employees’ job satisfaction including CLS’s Personnel Manual.
• Develops and implements progressive discipline policies in collaboration with others in legal management.
• Ensures CLS’s compliance with local, state and federal employment and labor law regulations.
• Supervises human resources staff and the office manager for our center city office and provides assistance to the Managing Attorney for the North Philadelphia office concerning supervision of the north Philadelphia administrative staff and office manager.
• Oversees facilities management and issues concerning CLS’ physical offices in center city and North Philadelphia, including CLS’ ownership responsibilities for the North Philadelphia building and negotiation of leases for rental space for the center city office.

Learn more and apply here.