Director of Animal Operations

Position Summary

The Director of Animal Operations provides strategic and operational leadership for the SPCA of Wake County's Animal Care, Adoptions, Intake, and Animal Behavior departments. This position is responsible for ensuring the highest standards of animal welfare, operational excellence, staff development, and customer experience while advancing the organization's mission to improve the lives of pets and people throughout the community.

 

This role oversees the development, execution, and continuous improvement of programs, policies, procedures, and operational strategies that support positive outcomes for animals and adopters. The Director of Animal Operations ensures that departmental operations are aligned with sheltering best practices, organizational goals, and evolving community needs while maintaining a strong focus on animal welfare, operational efficiency, and employee engagement.

 

The Director serves as a key member of the Operations leadership team and partners closely with Medical, Volunteer & Foster, Facilities, Development, Communications, and organizational leadership to ensure seamless coordination across functions. This position is responsible for developing leaders, fostering a culture of accountability and psychological safety, and driving continuous improvement through data-informed decision making.

 

This role is ideal for an experienced animal welfare leader who thrives in a fast-paced environment, enjoys developing people and programs, and is passionate about creating innovative solutions that improve outcomes for animals, adopters, staff, and the community.

Schedule
Monday – Friday, typically during standard business hours.

Schedule may vary based on operational needs. Position requires flexibility to support weekend, holiday, occasional evening, emergency, and inclement weather coverage as needed. Occasional on-call availability may be required to support operational priorities, animal welfare needs, and leadership responsibilities.

Our Core Values:
1- Hell, Yeah!
2- Be Kind
3- Do What You Say
4- Forward Focused
5- Loose & Wiggly
6- Drop the Mic

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Supervisory Responsibility
Directly supervises departmental leaders responsible for Animal Care, Adoptions, Intake, and Animal Behavior functions.

Strategic Leadership & Organizational Impact

• Provide strategic and operational leadership across Adoptions, Animal Care, Animal Behavior, and Intake departments
  • Develop and execute operational strategies aligned with organizational priorities, mission, and long-term goals
  • Foster a culture of collaboration, psychological safety, accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement
  • Participate as a member of the leadership team and contribute to organizational planning, decision-making, and strategic initiatives
  • Partner with organizational leaders to identify opportunities for operational enhancements and improved outcomes across departments
  • Lead change management initiatives and support implementation of new programs, services, and operational processes
  • Ensure departmental goals and performance measures align with organizational objectives

 

Leadership & Team Development

• Recruit, develop, coach, and retain high-performing managers and department teams
  • Model a leadership style built on trust, transparency, accountability, and professional development
• Inspires confidence through consistent leadership, sound judgment, and accountability
  • Conduct regular one-on-one meetings and provide ongoing coaching and performance feedback to direct reports
  • Foster an environment where employees feel empowered to raise concerns, contribute ideas, and participate in problem-solving efforts
  • Support succession planning and leadership development across operational departments
  • Promote employee engagement, teamwork, and a culture consistent with SPCA of Wake County values
  • Address performance concerns and support corrective action, coaching, and employee development efforts as needed

 

Animal Welfare & Operational Excellence

• Oversee daily operations across Animal Care, Adoptions, Intake, and Animal Behavior departments to ensure consistent, compassionate, and humane care for animals
  • Ensure operational practices align with animal welfare best practices, fear-free principles, and organizational standards
  • Develop, implement, and maintain standard operating procedures and operational workflows for assigned departments
  • Monitor shelter capacity, animal flow, and population management strategies to maximize outcomes and organizational readiness
  • Identify and proactively address barriers impacting intake, animal movement, adoption outcomes, and overall operational efficiency
  • Ensure behavior assessment and support programs are effectively integrated into shelter operations and adoption processes for animals and adopters
  • Oversee development and implementation of enrichment, behavior modification, and animal welfare initiatives that support positive outcomes and quality of life
  • Evaluate operational performance and implement improvements that enhance efficiency, consistency, and service delivery

 

Adoptions, Intake & Community Programs

• Lead strategies designed to maximize positive outcomes through efficient intake, placement, transfer, and adoption practices
  • Develop and support community-facing adoption programs, events, partnerships, and initiatives that increase adoptions and community engagement
  • Ensure intake operations are aligned with organizational capacity, population management goals, and animal welfare standards
  • Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to strengthen community partnerships and improve access to services
  • Support innovative programs that improve customer experience and increase organizational impact

 

Data, Performance & Continuous Improvement

• Establish, monitor, and evaluate key performance indicators related to animal welfare, operations, customer experience, and departmental effectiveness
  • Track and analyze metrics including intake volume, adoption rates, length of stay, capacity utilization, behavior outcomes, and other operational measures
  • Utilize data and performance trends to drive strategic decision-making and continuous improvement efforts
  • Prepare and present operational updates, recommendations, and performance reports to organizational leadership
  • Identify trends, opportunities, and risks and implement action plans to improve organizational outcomes

 

Financial & Resource Management

• Assist in the development and management of departmental budgets and operational resources
  • Ensure responsible stewardship of organizational assets, supplies, and resources
  • Evaluate staffing models, operational needs, and resource allocation to support efficient and effective operations
  • Partner with leadership to identify opportunities for operational investments and cost-effective improvements

 

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with Medical, Volunteer & Foster, Facilities, Development, Communications, and other organizational teams to support seamless operations
  • Collaborate with fellow directors and leaders to ensure alignment across departments and operational functions
  • Participate in meetings, committees, events, and organizational initiatives as assigned
  • Serve as a resource and subject matter expert regarding shelter operations, animal welfare, and population management strategies
  • Perform additional leadership and operational duties as assigned to support organizational priorities

 

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent
  • Minimum 3 years of leadership experience within animal welfare, animal sheltering, humane organizations, or a closely related field
  • Strong knowledge of shelter operations, humane care, animal welfare principles, population management, and industry best practices
  • Demonstrated experience leading, developing, and coaching employees and leaders
  • Strong communication, organizational, problem-solving, and decision-making skills
• Proven ability to lead with empathy and curiosity, build trust, and develop employees at all levels of the organization
  • Positive attitude with a collaborative, team-oriented approach to leadership and problem solving
  • Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment
  • Experience utilizing data, metrics, and performance measures to support operational decision-making
  • Proficiency with relevant software, databases, and reporting systems
  • Demonstrated commitment to the mission and values of the SPCA of Wake County

 

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Animal Science, Business Administration, Nonprofit Management, Organizational Leadership, or a related field
  • Five or more years of progressive leadership experience within animal welfare organizations
  • Experience leading multiple operational departments or large teams
  • Experience with shelter population management, behavior programs, and adoption operations
  • Experience developing and implementing operational strategies, policies, and standard operating procedures
  • Experience managing budgets and organizational resources
  • Fear Free, low-stress handling, or related animal welfare certifications
  • Experience leading organizational change and continuous improvement initiatives

 

Work Environment

This role operates within a fast-paced animal welfare environment and involves frequent interaction with staff, volunteers, adopters, community members, partners, and animals. Responsibilities are performed in office settings, animal housing areas, adoption environments, intake spaces, training settings, and community-facing events.

 

The position requires maintaining professionalism and effectiveness while working in an environment that may include high noise levels, strong odors, emotionally sensitive situations, and animals of varying sizes, temperaments, and medical or behavioral conditions. The role requires regular onsite presence to support leadership responsibilities, operational oversight, employee development, cross-functional collaboration, and organizational initiatives.

 

Physical Requirements

• Ability to stand, walk, bend, reach, crouch, kneel, and remain physically active for extended periods of time
  • Ability to lift, carry, push, and pull up to 50 pounds
  • Ability to safely handle animals of varying sizes, temperaments, and medical or behavioral conditions as needed
  • Ability to communicate effectively in person, by phone, and through electronic communication methods
  • Ability to work in environments with high noise levels, strong odors, and exposure to cleaning chemicals and disinfectants
  • Ability to work safely around fearful, stressed, or fractious animals
  • Ability to work both indoors and outdoors in varying weather and temperature conditions
  • Exposure to zoonotic diseases, parasites, viruses, bacteria, fungi, and other animal-related environmental conditions
  • Ability to consistently perform onsite leadership, operational oversight, training, and collaborative responsibilities at SPCA of Wake County facilities and organizational events as needed
  • Ability to respond to operational emergencies and support organizational needs outside of standard business hours when necessary

Benefits:

• Medical and Dental: Employer pays 90% of employee coverage (full-time)
• Insurance includes wellness, dental, vision, life, mental health care, prescriptions, emergency & urgent care, chiropractic care, and physical therapy
• Telemedicine options, 24/7 access to virtual health & wellness care and virtual behavioral health care

PAID TIME OFF –

• All part-time and full-time staff receive paid time off.
• Paid Holidays - 9 paid holidays per year (full-time)
• Vacation Time - 10 paid vacation days per year (full-time) with scheduled increases at milestone anniversaries of hire date
• Sick Time - 6.5 paid sick days per year (full-time)

FINANCIAL –

• Healthcare: Flexible Spending Account
• 401k Plan
• Coastal Federal Credit Union Membership
• 20% discount on pet adoptions and in SPCA Wake retail store

OTHER –

• Bereavement time off 
• Federal & State Leave of Absence options

Disclaimer

This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, or qualifications. Responsibilities may change based on organizational needs.

 

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position, consistent with applicable federal, state, and local laws.