Operations & Finance Director

POSITION SUMMARY

The Operations and Finance Director is a new role at a 20+ year-old arts and activism organization with four full-time staff and a growing number of projects. We produce touring museum exhibitions, public events, films, and more, with teams of cultural strategists, community activists, scientists and scholars, artists, organizers, and educators across the U.S. and Canada. We are seeking a detail-oriented, highly-organized team player committed to social justice—someone who enjoys setting up and using tech and organizational systems to improve the efficiency, collaboration, and success of projects with multiple participants and complex, fluid timelines.

This is a primarily remote (online), full-time position working closely with our Executive Director, Production Manager, and contractors to:

• produce and manage work-plans, budgets, timelines, team communications, logistics, and data for touring and online events, exhibitions, media productions, websites, and other projects;
• oversee and implement financial, legal, and other administrative processes including contracts; invoices/payments; benefits, and insurance services; compliance filings; grant and donor documentation; quarterly and as-needed financial projections and reports.
• lead organizational-upgrade projects, including improved tech for collaboration and project management; expansion of network-engagement data and tools; hiring additional staff; and acquisition and customization of a new touring facility for our Mobile Museum & Media Lab.

About Our Organization

Not An Alternative is an art/activism collective founded in 2004. We are currently a team of four full-time staff, plus a few long-time contractors, split between the US West and East Coasts. Our partners, participants, and audiences are located across the country and internationally. Since 2014, we have been producing The Natural History Museum (NHM), a traveling and online ‘museum without walls’ that creates collaborations with and for communities on the front lines of the fight against environmental injustice and harm. We’ve mobilized thousands of scientists and scholars to support community-led efforts, and helped connect grassroots leaders across the country. NHM projects have been featured in public parks, at street demonstrations, within Tribal Nations, in schools and science centers, at film festivals, in national news coverage, and at museums including the Guggenheim, Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, Carnegie Museum of Art, and Tate Modern.

Our primary programs this year are: We Refuse to Die, a series of art installations and collaborative events connecting Pacific Northwest, Gulf South, and Appalachian communities that are working to end the environmental and public health harms caused by fossil fuel and petrochemical industries. Words Are Monuments, which supports art, education, and community organizing projects that reckon with histories of racism, colonialism, and economic exploitation embedded in place names. Natural History for a World in Crisis, a virtual event series featuring our Red Natural History Fellows––a diverse group of scholar-activists presenting research and discussions on ecological stewardship to thousands of attendees via Zoom. Finally, we are launching the acquisition and construction of our new Mobile Museum facility for community media-making and touring exhibitions, incorporating a converted vehicle and our portable outdoor IMAX-style film venue.

We are hiring an Operations and Finance Director because our work continues to grow in scale and complexity. We need a new team member who can help us stay on track with plans and also pivot quickly to respond to rapid-response needs and emerging opportunities. We’re seeking someone who can provide structure and support to ensure our processes remain both dynamic and effective.

IS THIS THE JOB FOR YOU?

This is a role for someone who loves helping people get organized, collaborate effectively, stay on track, and solve challenges to bring ambitious and overlapping projects to life. The ideal candidate thrives in dynamic environments, seamlessly adjusting to rapidly shifting plans, emergent opportunities, and the evolving pace of collaborations that move at the speed of trust.

The Operations and Financial Director position is for someone who has:

• Skills in project and financial management, such as budget creation, financial analysis, and operationalizing project ideas into detailed plans.
• Familiarity with information management and customizing tech platforms, spreadsheets, databases and other software tools for task management, remote collaboration, and/or other administrative efficiency.
• Experience coordinating creative, collaborative groups such as artists, activists, coalitions, or start-up teams where plans rapidly changed in response to new developments.
• Talent for being highly organized and efficient, with meticulous attention to detail and systems for ensuring things don’t “slip through the cracks,” and for quickly fixing errors.
• Deep dedication to climate justice, social justice, and anti-racism principles.
• Comfort with personal time management and independent work; building working relationships online; and participating in group discussions and decision-making.

Prior experience in nonprofit operations, project management, finance, and/or administration is a plus, but not required. We welcome applicants who have developed the relevant skills and expertise in other settings, including film productions, touring and online arts or music festivals; electoral /advocacy campaigns; schools, small businesses, activist or faith organizations, government departments, etc—and who are eager to bring those strengths to creative and movement-minded environmental justice work.

JOB OVERVIEW

The Operations and Finance Director will work closely with the Executive Director, taking over key operations and financial management duties; with the production manager who provides support across the organization; and with our fundraising, organizational development, and bookkeeping consultants. You will lead the set-up and oversight of project and budget management for each project and for the organization overall. You will be translating creative project ideas that are developed with our artists and community partners into flexible work-plans, adjusting timelines and budgets as conditions and opportunities change, and ensuring the stability of the organization.

Core Duties and Responsibilities

Operations and Project Management

• Collaborate with the Executive Director and program teams to translate program ideas into actionable work plans and manage logistics for events and outreach activities.
• Manage the coordination of time, tasks, and resources across multiple projects, ensuring effective use of project management tools to enhance team efficiency.
• Ensure the setup and improvement of technology tools, leading the evaluation and implementation of solutions to enhance organizational efficiency.
• Maintain organizational files, implement procedures, manage subscriptions, conduct data entry, and ensure data integrity.
• Oversee the acquisition and customization of the new Mobile Museum facility (vehicle & trailer), coordinating with staff, consultants, contractors, vendors, licensing offices, etc.

Financial Planning and Management

• Develop and implement project budgets, expense tracking, and financial reports, including reconciliations and grant budgets, in collaboration with the ED and bookkeeper.
• Ensure timely financial planning, forecasting, and compliance; managing cash flow, payroll, and legal obligations. Supervise financial support staff and contractors to maintain accurate financial records, process payments, and manage reporting requirements.
• Support fundraising by managing donor tracking, awarded grants and grant budgets, creating project budgets, monitoring compliance, and overseeing tracking of deadlines and reporting requirements.
• Monitor the organization’s financial health, providing regular updates to staff and board members, and preparing financial reports for biannual board meetings.

Administration

• Manage HR paperwork, use of backend tools and compliance with labor laws, working with consultants and advisors as needed. Manage and process all aspects of payroll, benefits packages, and annual leave.
• Work with staff to secure insurance policies, manage renewals, and handle other administrative tasks such as leases, rental agreements, and government licensing requirements. Ensure that all insurance policies are appropriate and up to date
• Oversee contracts, renewals, and amendments with consultants and contractors.
• Ensure compliance with nonprofit and employment rules, consulting with experts as needed, and manage all required government registration and licensing requirements.

All of our staff works remotely from their own office/home spaces, communicating daily via video meetings, shared documents, and other tools that you will help us improve. As with all the roles on our small team, this job will include a combination of creative problem-solving leadership, oversight of some systems and activities, participation in group planning and decision-making, online research, and also some clerical and routine tasks.

As a senior member of our team, you will play an integral role in the creation of projects that involve community organizers, activists, artists, educators, scientists, and other advisors and partners — and that reach multigenerational audiences across the country.

Position Type and Compensation

This position begins with a three-month probationary period to ensure a strong match and effective workflow. We currently have funding secured for 24 months and will continue fundraising to sustain the role into the future.

• 100% FTE, exempt position. Annual gross pay is $80,000.
• WFH Office: Company computer, monitor, and virtual phone line will be provided
• All legally mandated benefits (such as workers’ compensation insurance, state disability and unemployment, and Social Security).
• In addition, NHM’s benefits package includes:
  • 15 vacation days per year, plus the final week of the year as paid time off
  • 10 flexible holidays, and 4 personal days per year
  • Paid family and medical leave, in accordance with your state’s laws
  • Generous and flexible medical, vision, and dental benefits for employees, spouses and dependents
  • 401(k) with a 100% employer match on employee contributions, up to 4% of annual salary

LOCATION

This role can be remote from anywhere within the US. The Executive Director and Creative Director live in Washington State and primarily work Pacific Time hours, but travel regularly. The Research Director and Production Manager are based primarily on the East Coast. Core contractors are based in PA, NY and CA. Because this role involves collaborating across time zones, it may require some flexibility for occasional evening or weekend meetings or events. Our programming regularly includes travel––both for in-person staff gatherings and, more often, to develop projects and produce events with partner groups. This role could include (paid) travel, unless different accommodations are required (such as for candidates who are unable to travel overnight).

Not An Alternative is an equal-opportunity employer that centers justice and equity in its work internally and externally. We are committed to the recruitment and retention of people from backgrounds traditionally excluded from nonprofit and professional leadership, including Black, Indigenous and people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people from low-income backgrounds, and with disabilities.

APPLICATION PROCESS AND TIMELINE

The job application process involves an online form to upload your work history, references, and responses to our initial questions. Top candidates based on relevant experience and alignment with our needs will be asked for a 30-minute video-call interview to discuss further and answer your questions (this may be conducted by an NAA/NHM team member, consultant, or advisor/board member). Finalists will be asked for a second interview with additional members of our team. We will follow up via email with all applicants as the process proceeds.

We will start reviewing and responding to applications on a rolling basis as soon as we have ten applicants and aim to make a hiring decision reviewing all finalists in mid to late May 2025 with an estimated start date of June 2025.

To apply:

Go to our Operations and Finance Director Application Form to upload your contact information and work history information; and to answer our initial job application questions.