Head of Operations - Annapolis, MD
1 day ago
Job description
The Role
We're a growing early childhood education company moving from founder-led operations to a real operating platform. This role owns how the business runs day to day across centers. You're not here to babysit problems, you're here to build systems that prevent them. Your mandate is to bring structure, consistency, and accountability to a business that impacts families every single day.
You'll partner closely with the CEO, center directors, and functional leaders to create scalable operating standards that improve quality, compliance, parent experience, staff retention, and unit-level performance. This is a hands-on leadership role that requires time in centers, not just time in meetings.
What You'll Own
- Own day-to-day operations across all centers and regional teams
- Build and standardize operating playbooks for center performance, staffing, safety, and parent experience
- Drive consistent quality of care and learning environment across locations
- Partner with HR to improve hiring, onboarding, training, and retention of teachers and center leaders
- Create scalable processes for scheduling, ratios, enrollment management, and daily operations
- Improve center-level P&Ls through labor optimization, enrollment growth, and cost discipline
- Ensure compliance with all state and local childcare regulations and licensing requirements
- Lead regional managers and center directors with clear expectations and accountability
- Build KPI dashboards and operating rhythms (weekly reviews, site visits, scorecards)
- Own new center openings and operational readiness for expansion
- Partner with Finance on budgeting, forecasting, and unit economics
- Identify and fix operational bottlenecks that impact families and staff
- Build a culture of consistency, safety, and performance without losing heart
What Success Looks Like
- Centers run consistently well regardless of who's on shift
- Directors are developed leaders, not firefighters
- Enrollment grows and retention improves
- Staff turnover decreases and training quality improves
- Parent satisfaction and trust increase
- Compliance issues decrease and audits become routine, not stressful
- New centers open smoothly and hit performance targets faster
- The CEO gets leverage and isn't pulled into daily ops fires
Who We're Looking For
- 7+ years of operations leadership in multi-site services, education, healthcare, hospitality, or franchised environments
- Experience scaling operations beyond founder-led chaos
- Proven ability to build playbooks, systems, and accountability structures
- Comfortable leading leaders and holding high standards with empathy
- Strong operational judgment in regulated environments
- Data-driven but people-first leadership style
- Willing to be in the field and in centers regularly
- Strong communicator who can drive alignment across
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