Director, Operations | Step Up for India Work from Home (India) | Reports to: Executive Director
Before you apply, ask yourself:
• Am I ready to be the operational backbone of the organization and a true thought partner to the organization?
• Do I want to apply my leadership to the social sector, where outcomes are measured in lives improved, not just metrics achieved?
• Can I balance empathy and rigor while leading teams and partners in the education and social sector?
• Can I build operations that work today while preparing the organization to scale tomorrow?
If your answer is "yes," we'd love to hear from you.
Why This Role Matters
This is a pivotal leadership role for a senior professional who combines strategic vision with disciplined execution and is passionate about building systems that can transform educational outcomes for millions of children across India. You will play a key role in scaling impact, building organizational capability, and driving operational excellence across Step Up for India's growing programs.
Since 2013, Step Up for India has been working to improve English language skills of children studying in nonEnglish government schools, impacting over 8.5 lakh students, 35,000+ government teachers, and mobilising 3,000+ volunteers across multiple states in India. Our work has spanned Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, with programs designed to strengthen English language proficiency and deliver sustainable learning outcomes at scale, inspiring children to love to learn even as they learn to learn challenging subjects.
Location: Work from Home (India). Candidates should ideally be based in a location with strong air, rail, and road connectivity to Step Up for India's program states to facilitate efficient and regular travel.
Travel: Travel: Approximately 50–60% travel to program states and field locations where Step Up for India operates, including Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, as well as other states as organizational needs evolve.
Role Overview
The Director, Operations is a core member of the senior leadership team and a strategic partner to the Executive Director. The role carries end-to-end ownership of organizational operations and program execution across states.
You will help turn strategy into action and action into impact by building strong operating systems, leading multilocation teams, and ensuring that programs are delivered with excellence while meeting donor, CSR, and government commitments. This role requires sound judgment, disciplined execution, and the ability to thrive in complex, field-based environments.
What You’ll Be Accountable For Strategic & Operational Leadership :
• Translate organizational strategy into clear annual and quarterly operational plans with defined outcomes.
• Lead day-to-day operations across programs, states, and field locations.
• Act as a strategic thought partner to the Executive Director on organizational design, growth, and scale readiness.
• Ensure alignment across programs, finance, HR, and field operations.
Program Delivery & Quality :
• Ensure high-quality, timely implementation of all academic and field programs across states.
• Strengthen implementation frameworks, quality benchmarks, and delivery standards.
• Oversee operational excellence across our flagship programs
• Ensure alignment with donor, CSR, and government agreements.
Team Leadership & Culture :
• Lead, mentor, and manage state-level and field leadership teams.
• Strengthen recruitment, onboarding, performance management, and leadership development systems.
• Build a culture of accountability, collaboration, and mission-driven execution.
• Develop second-line leadership to support continuity and growth.
Monitoring, Evaluation & Reporting :
• Strengthen monitoring and evaluation systems to track outcomes, impact, and implementation quality.
• Ensure timely, accurate, and high-quality reporting to donors, trustees, and CSR partners.
• Use data and field insights to drive continuous improvement.
Donor, CSR & Stakeholder Engagement :
• Support the Executive Director in managing relationships with CSR partners, donors, government stakeholders, and institutions.
• Lead operational coordination for partner reviews, audits, and site visits.
• Contribute to proposals, presentations, and impact documentation from an operational lens.
Financial, Resource & Risk Management :
• Work closely with Finance to oversee budgets, utilization, forecasting, and cost efficiency.
• Ensure effective deployment of human, material, and logistical resources.
• Identify and mitigate operational and delivery risks.
• Ensure compliance with organizational policies, statutory requirements, and donor guidelines.
Systems & Process Excellence :
• Design, strengthen, and institutionalize SOPs, operational manuals, and reporting systems.
• Drive adoption of digital tools to track training, assessments, attendance, and field performance.
• Lead continuous process improvement to support efficiency, transparency, and scalability.
What Success Looks Like (12–18 Months) :
• Consistent, high-quality program delivery across all operating states.
• Strong operational systems that support planning, monitoring, and decision-making.
• Empowered, accountable state and field leadership teams.
• High donor confidence through timely reporting and smooth audits.
• Organizational readiness to scale without compromising quality or impact.
This Role Is Likely a Strong Fit If You Bring :
• A postgraduate qualification in Education, Management, Social Work, Development Studies, or a related field.
• 8-10 years of senior-level experience in operations, program management, or organizational leadership, preferably in education or the development sector.
• Proven experience leading large, multi-location, field-based teams.
• Strong understanding of CSR, donor compliance, and governance environments.
• Strategic thinking combined with hands-on execution capability.
• Comfort working with senior stakeholders, founders, boards, and partners.
Languages: Proficiency in English and Hindi is mandatory to support effective communication across Step Up for India's multi-state operations. If you also speak Tamil, Kannada, or Marathi, that's a wonderful bonus—but not a deal-breaker. Knowledge of any additional Indian language is always welcome.
Ready to step up with us? We'd love to hear your story. Send your CV and a brief cover letter to hr@stepupforindia.org or kavitha@stepupforindia.org.