portal resources jobs companies n new media ventures vp of people & operations

Vp Of People & Operations 🔥


New Media Ventures [1] (NMV) is a mission-driven, non-profit venture fund. We fund and provide technical support to both for-profit and nonprofit startups that build progressive power and the power of communities traditionally marginalized by the corporate, political, and cultural elite in the U.S. The three areas of our investment thesis are media & narrative, advocacy & organizing, and elections & civic engagement. Over the past 10 years, we have supported more than 100 promising early-stage startups, many of which are now widely-recognized pillars of the social change community, from Hearken and Blavity to Swing Left, Mijente, and PushBlack. 


We are looking to hire a VP of People & Operations to support a thriving team, cultivate organizational culture, lead our equity work, refine our HR practices, and manage our operations. The VP of People & Ops will report to the President of NMV and serve as a critical member of the executive team. This is an opportunity to join a uniquely impactful organization at a critical time for our democracy. Note: we’d be happy to welcome an especially experienced and capable applicant to the team at the Chief Operating Officer level, rather than the VP level.


One of NMV’s goals is to democratize access to capital in the progressive movement. Our work is guided by a commitment to collective liberation and undoing the ways the political and economic elite have oppressed people of color, women, First Nations, disabled people, LGTBQ+ communities, and more. We believe that social change is best led by people with successful track records of fighting for justice. We strongly encourage applications from people from the communities the investment, philanthropy, and tech industries have systematically excluded, including but not limited to Black, Latino, and indigenous communities, as well as people with disabilities.


Your responsibilities:

People & culture

  • Steward NMV’s culture and team norms, set the tone for the organization, and engage team in co-creating an inclusive and equitable work culture
  • Lead NMV in developing best practices across all areas of talent and culture, including recruitment, hiring, professional development, staff management, performance evaluations, promotion pathways, and employee retention plans
  • Manage employee engagement processes, including developing and analyzing our annual staff culture survey and co-leading efforts to track organizational progress and integrate feedback into policies and practices 
  • Serve as a point person for Employee Relations, including confidential and sensitive personnel issues that require follow up and consultation with the leadership team and/or HR team at our fiscal sponsor
  • Create and maintain employee handbook, including evaluating all human resources policies and procedures and identifying and implementing policy improvements 
  • Serve as a trusted resource to all team members to help navigate career development, management, respect in the workplace, and ensure great employee experiences 

Diversity, equity, and inclusion

  • Seek out and champion opportunities to further diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-oppression in all aspects of our work and (as relevant) the broader field 
  • Collaborate with the President to create and roll out learning opportunities that build staff knowledge and skills for embedding equity and inclusion and combating white supremacy and other forms of oppression in all aspects of their work
  • Lead our internal DEI team, hiring and managing consultants where helpful
  • Manage conflict effectively when it occurs, seeking understanding rather than being defensive

Leadership & management

  • Facilitate executive and full-team meetings, team building activities, and retreats 
  • Track team workload and work plans, support team members to reprioritize and avoid burnout
  • Manage direct reports and projects well, delegating effectively and flexing style to meet individual needs
  • Lead critical board-related projects -- such as formalization, recruitment of new board members, approval of plans and budget, audit committee, etc.
  • Manage team to create quarterly board report & financials; report to the board on finances, organizational culture, and team well-being
  • Serve as a trusted advisor to NMV’s portfolio members in areas within your realm of expertise, including DEI and people ops

Operations & budget

  • Regularly identify gaps where processes should be updated or formalized, maintain and improve key systems, tools and technology
  • Manage relationship with our fiscal sponsor to ensure clear policies, benefits, trainings, and employee resources, and legal compliance on those fronts
  • Work with the President, Board Treasurer, and our accountant to create organizational and program / project budgets, generate and review financial reports, and track progress to goals
  • Manage our accountant and other key operational vendors
  • Review & approve contracts and expenses
  • Collaborate with fundraising team in creating financial reports for grant proposals and reports
  • Lead on adoption of new processes, systems, and technologies internally among the NMV team

For COO level:

All of the above, plus:

  • Own all financial and budgeting processes for the organization
  • Develop and implement our strategy around future fiscal structures, operational structures, etc. (We are currently fiscally sponsored but could spin out, plus we are interested in setting up sister for-profit structures alongside our current non-profit structures.)
  • Ensure legal training and compliance for the organization on all fronts, including election law and tax law
  • Lead on investigating, developing, modeling, and introducing new potential revenue streams and businesses for NMV
  • Develop our events strategy and run major events for the organization, such as our annual Summit
  • Managing other cross-cutting organizational priorities that touch multiple departments

Candidate requirements:

  • 7+ years of professional experience in human resources, operations, or management (12+ years expected for COO level)
  • Excellent organizational, coaching, and leadership skills, including ability to lead and support teams, across gender, race, class, sexual orientation, and other group identities
  • Track record of identifying opportunities and taking action to build inclusion and equity into organizational strategy, culture, employee engagement, and professional development. Strong insight into dynamics around oppression and identity, power, and privilege in professional settings
  • Experience working with and/or deep relationships in one or more of the U.S. communities the political and economic elite have marginalized, including Black, Latinx, indigenous, Muslim, and/or undocumented communities, low-wage workers, LGBTQ communities, disabled communities, and more
  • Strong spreadsheet skills, and experience working with finance staff and/or accountants to manage a budget >$500,000 (or equivalent financial management experience)
  • Familiarity with people management principles and a proven track record of innovating to improve beyond best practices
  • Demonstrated experience creating and improving structures, processes, and/or systems to help diverse teams succeed
  • Highly organized and detail oriented, capable of balancing and prioritizing concurrent projects and deadlines.
  • Strong interpersonal skills and self-awareness, commitment to growth, comfort seeking out feedback to identify personal blindspots. 
  • Outstanding verbal and written skills in the following: communication, emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, and interpersonal relationships and dynamics 
  • Deep mission alignment with NMV

Candidate pluses (note: the successful candidate may only match a handful of the list below):

  • Significant knowledge of election law, and/or laws governing 501(c)3s and 501(c)4s
  • Substantial experience with accounting, budgeting, or finance
  • Experience setting up new organizations and creating governance structures
  • Substantial experience working with nonprofits as a funder, a board member, on staff, or as a long-term volunteer
  • Experience creating strong relationships with remote team members, and/or building a team culture in a virtual setting
  • Expertise in change management
  • Substantial experience shepherding organizational adoption of new systems, technologies, and processes
  • Experience working/strong networks in one of more of the sectors NMV invests in or is adjacent to, including: media, political and advocacy technology, progressive politics, social justice movements, philanthropy, venture capital, and/or impact investing
  • Existing relationships with progressive donors, foundations, impact investors, and/or VCs
  • Experience with major donor, corporate, and/or foundation fundraising
  • Existing familiarity with NMV and/or our portfolio members
  • Experience working with, or deep networks among, Indigenous communities and/or disabled communities
  • Experience working, or volunteering in a substantial capacity, on political campaigns
  • Lives in or near the San Francisco Bay Area

Other details:

  • Location flexible, within the United States. Most of the NMV team is based in the San Francisco Bay Area, currently working remotely. Candidate should be available to work during 9–5pm PT at least 3 days per week. We can provide additional flexibility for parents who are currently also doubling as teachers during the workday until schools reopen, and make accommodations for people with disabilities.
  • This position reports to the President.
  • This is an exempt, full-time, salaried position.

What to expect from us: 

  • Salary range: $140-180k for a VP-level candidate based in the San Francisco Bay Area or New York City Metro Area; $160-200k for a COO-level candidate in those metro areas. The higher end of these ranges assume additional experience and more alignment with candidate pluses above. For candidates living elsewhere, salary may be partially adjusted based on cost of living.
  • Full benefits, including employer-covered health/vision/dental, life, and disability insurance, 401k match up to 5%, and more than 25 days of paid time off (vacation, holidays, and the week between Christmas and New Years).
  • A team with a sense of justice and a sense of humor.
  • A low-ego, high-performance culture and flexible work environment.
  • A commitment to equity and inclusion, including striving to build a truly multiracial and multicultural team, and creating an accessible workplace for people with disabilities.

Ready to apply? There are 2 simple steps to fill out through this form [2]:

  • In lieu of a cover letter, answer the following questions:
  1. Why are you interested in this position? (150 words max)
  2. This article has been a useful starting point for important discussions we’ve been having about our team culture lately: https://www.showingupforracialjustice.org/white-supremacy-culture-characteristics.html [3]. Tell us about a time when you tried to shift a team’s culture on one of the dimensions mentioned in the article. Why was the shift important? How did your effort go? What did you learn from the experience? (200 words max)
  3. Name the “big pluses” listed above that you bring (remember, we don’t expect the successful candidate to bring more than half of them, maybe only a quarter!) with no more than ONE sentence of description for each. (150 words max)
  • Upload your resume. Please do NOT include a photo of yourself on your resume.

The deadline for applying is 9am Pacific on May 10.


  1. http://www.newmediaventures.org/
  2. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe0GV-EjuL5sNokKwEkO8sFNoVVjG0AcHkd80hAXz37is_ftA/viewform
  3. https://www.showingupforracialjustice.org/white-supremacy-culture-characteristics.html

Let us send you new openings similar to Vp Of People & Operations straight to your Inbox. Weekly or Daily. 7-day free trial đź’Ś

The ability to work remotely increases employee happiness by 20 percent.