Business Operations Lead

Berkeley Food Network is hiring for a Business Operations Lead that will thrive in a fast-paced environment, is comfortable navigating ambiguity in process, and is committed to building an accessible, food-secure future for our community. The Business Operations Lead is the experienced individual contributor who owns the systems that keep Berkeley Food Network’s executive, governance, financial, and people operations running. Reporting to the Executive Director, this role independently leads the Board engagement cycle, owns BFN’s mail and gift-intake channel, runs monthly close preparation with BFN’s bookkeeper, supports the organizational financial calendar through invoice submission, grant reporting, and audit preparation, maintains employment records and onboarding for every new hire, and administers the accounts and access the staff depends on. Beyond executing the work, this role improves it: designing and documenting the SOPs the organization runs on, training staff and volunteers on shared tools, and anticipating what the Executive Director and Leadership Team will need to succeed in their roles. The ideal candidate has run business operations or executive and Board support before, exercises independent judgment on confidential matters, and leaves every process better documented than they found it. Executive & Board Governance 30% Support the Executive Director’s calendar and executive workflow: scheduling, daily briefings, meeting preparation, and follow-through on commitments — including donor meetings and warehouse tours; anticipate needs and prepare materials before they are requested. Support the annual Board governance cycle end-to-end: meeting calendar, agenda preparation with the Executive Director, packet production and distribution, minutes, resolutions, and action-item tracking through completion. Assemble the packet from the materials each department supplies, including Development’s slides and reports. Serve as the primary staff contact for Board members on scheduling, materials, and logistics. Independently manage the annual compliance calendar: insurance renewals, registrations, filings, and governance-document upkeep (bylaws, policies, conflict-of-interest forms), escalating only exceptions. Track every organizational contract and its renewal or expiration date against the compliance calendar, and bring each one to the Executive Director in advance of the decision date. The Executive Director authorizes and signs contracts. Draft correspondence, memos, and presentations for the Executive Director that require minimal revision. Maintain organized, confidential records systems for governance, contracts, and personnel documents; handle donor, personnel, and financial information with absolute discretion. Finance & Business Administration 35% Support the organizational financial calendar: keep invoice submission, grant reporting, and audit preparation deadlines visible and on schedule, assembling the documentation each one requires and following up until every submission is complete and confirmed. The Senior Development Manager owns the grants calendar and the Executive Director owns the financial calendar; this position keeps both running on time. Prepare for the annual audit year-round: maintain audit-ready vendor, invoice, receipt, and restricted-fund records, and assemble the requested schedules and documentation when fieldwork begins. Lead the staff-to-bookkeeper pipeline: design and run the systems that move invoices, receipts, and expense documentation reliably each month. Food and warehouse receiving invoices are handled within Operations. Support Leadership staff with monthly credit card reconciliation process Lead BFN’s gift-intake channel for mailed and offline gifts: log every check and offline contribution on receipt, enter it in donor database platform, and route it for deposit the same week. Administer acknowledgement letters for in-kind and non-cash donations — goods, food, and services — producing and mailing them with the required substantiation language, supported by the Development & Communications Coordinator. The acknowledgement workflow for monetary donations is held by the Development & Communications Coordinator. Process incoming mail weekly: sort it, log all checks and payments received, and prepare bank deposits on a documented schedule. The Executive Director performs the second check on all deposits before they are made, verifying the deposit against the check log. Manage vendor accounts, subscriptions, and recurring payments: track renewals, question anomalies, and maintain audit-ready records (including W-9s) for the annual audit and grant reporting. Coordinate print and mail production for annual fund appeals and campaign mailings — print vendor, postage, and volunteer processing — working from the lists and content the Development & Communications Coordinator prepares. Execute purchases the Executive Director has authorized for the Business Operations function, and recommend anything new or beyond the authorized scope rather than committing it. People & Systems Administration 15% Maintain BFN’s employment records: job descriptions, signed acknowledgements, I-9 and employment-eligibility documentation, policy and handbook acknowledgements, training and certification records, emergency contacts, and completed performance-review filings. Compensation records, benefits elections, and payroll data are held by the Executive Director; this position does not access or administer them. Run new-hire paperwork end-to-end: assemble the packet, collect and verify required documentation on or before the first day, and confirm the file is complete before it is closed. Lead internal organizational efforts on Google Drive and other platforms. Own cross-organizational onboarding logistics for every new hire: workspace and equipment, first-week schedule, orientation and introduction meetings, and the onboarding checklist — coordinating with the hiring supervisor, who owns role-specific training. Provision and deprovision staff accounts and access: Google Workspace, shared drives, and the software licenses each role requires; deactivate all access on an employee’s last day and keep an access inventory the Executive Director can review. Administer the DMV employer pull-notice program for all positions requiring a driving record, and maintain current documentation of licenses and insurance for staff who drive on BFN business. Design, document, and maintain the organization’s administrative SOPs, submitting them to the Executive Director for approval before use; train staff on shared systems and onboard new hires to administrative tools. Office Administration 20% Own office administration: supplies inventory and organization for office and meeting spaces, equipment and technology coordination, shared calendars, and meeting rooms. Warehouse supplies and warehouse vendor relationships sit with the Warehouse Lead. Serve as the first point of contact for staff computer and equipment issues, arranging vendor or IT support and tracking the resolution. Schedule and support all-staff meetings, Leadership Team meetings, and cross-departmental gatherings, including agendas and note-taking as requested. Step in across the Administration function and back up adjacent processes during absences or crunch periods. Support other tasks as needed based on organizational demands. Required Qualifications Minimum of 3 years of business operations, nonprofit administration, or executive support experience, including direct support of an executive, leadership team, or Board of Directors. Demonstrated experience building, documenting, and improving administrative systems or SOPs — not only following them. Ability to work independently with minimal supervision: manage a multi-month governance and compliance calendar, exercise sound judgment on confidential matters, and escalate only true exceptions. Demonstrated ability to handle confidential e