Senior Operations Manager at SPUN |… · New York

About SPUN

SPUN (Society for the Protection of Underground Networks) is a startup NGO with a mission to map and protect the mycorrhizal fungal networks that regulate Earth’s climate and ecosystems. These fungi draw down approximately 13 billion tons of CO2 each year, yet they have been largely overlooked by science, policy, and practice.

Since our founding in 2021, we’ve built a global data platform to make these invisible networks measurable. Through our Underground Explorers program and network of over 700 Science Associates across more than 80 countries, with the majority in the Global South, we generate high-resolution biodiversity maps and ML-powered tools that integrate mycorrhizal data into climate, conservation, restoration, and land management decisions.

Our work spans laboratory research, data science, and robotics through to locally led field applications, and we’ve begun working with policymakers and restoration practitioners to apply our findings on the ground. With strong backing from leading foundations and growing momentum in international policy circles, we’re now at an inflection point: scaling these efforts across more landscapes, institutions, and countries over the long term.

The Opportunity

We’re looking for a Senior Operations Manager to run the operational backbone of SPUN.

Our work rests on an unusual operational reach: a small core team spread across several countries, partnerships with research institutions and conservation organizations, and a network of scientists in more than 80 countries, many in places where contracts, payments, and data protection are far from straightforward. Keeping all of this running well is what frees our scientists, data team, and partners to focus on the work only they can do.

You will oversee the administration, systems, and processes that keep SPUN running, including:

• administration and back-office systems
• people operations
• legal and compliance
• grants administration
• sustainable operations
• IT and data security

Many of our systems were built quickly by a small team, and some don’t exist yet. You will have real ownership over how SPUN operates: what to keep, what to rebuild, and how much structure is enough to support a fast-moving team without adding bureaucracy.

Key Responsibilities

Administration & Back-Office Systems

• Own SPUN’s core administrative and back-office systems, keeping them well configured, integrated, and documented.
• Administer software licenses, accounts, and system access, including setup and removal as people join and leave.
• Manage vendor relationships, procurement, contracts, and renewals.
• Support our finance team with expense processes, invoicing, and operational budget tracking as needed.
• Coordinate logistics for retreats and organization-wide gatherings.
• Look for ways to automate routine work, including with AI, so operations stay lean as needs change.

People Operations

• Manage employee lifecycle administration, including offer letters, contracts, onboarding and offboarding logistics, and personnel records.
• Administer payroll inputs, benefits, and leave across our PEO and employer-of-record providers.
• Maintain the employee handbook and people policies, keeping them current and compliant.
• Run recruiting logistics and manage contractor and consultant agreements, including appropriate classification.
• Put into practice the people processes developed with the Head of People & Organizational Development, such as onboarding programs and performance cycles.
• Handle confidential employee information with discretion and care.

Legal, Risk & Compliance

• Manage entity administration, registrations, and filings across the countries where SPUN operates.
• Run SPUN’s contract process, from templates and review to signatures and records, including partnership, data-sharing, and confidentiality agreements. Coordinate with outside counsel as needed.
• Support the CFO to assess the adequacy of insurance coverage and maintain core organizational policies.
• Track regulatory and employment requirements across the jurisdictions where we operate.

Grants Administration

• Manage SPUN’s grant portfolio after award, maintaining reporting calendars, tracking deliverables, and coordinating inputs for funder reports.
• Work with our finance team to track grant budgets, restricted funds, and compliance with funder terms, including preparation for audits.
• Administer outgoing grants and subawards, including agreements, due diligence, payments, and documentation.

Sustainable Operations

• Develop and administer SPUN’s travel policy, balancing the value of fieldwork and in-person collaboration with its environmental cost.
• Track and report SPUN’s greenhouse gas emissions, and identify practical ways to reduce them.
• Build sustainability into procurement and vendor decisions, from equipment to events.

IT & Data Security

• Partner with the data team to set and maintain security practices across SPUN’s systems, including access controls, device policies, password management, and backups.
• Make sure staff understand and follow those practices, starting from onboarding.
• Help manage data protection obligations, such as GDPR, for personal information we hold about staff, partners, and our global network.
• Coordinate the response if a security issue comes up, working with the data team and external providers.

Required Qualifications

Broad operations experience. You have 5+ years of experience in operations, ideally covering several of the areas above, in a small or growing organization.

International experience. You have handled administration, employment, or compliance across more than one country, and you’re familiar with PEO and employer-of-record platforms such as Justworks or Deel.

Highly organized. You manage many moving parts at once, keep track of details, and follow through reliably.

Systems builder with good judgment. You notice where processes break down, improve them, and document them so others can rely on them. You also know when a simple process works better than a complicated one.

Security-minded. You understand the basics of IT security and data protection, and you take them seriously without making them a burden for colleagues.

Comfortable with contracts and compliance. You can manage agreements and regulatory requirements confidently, and you know when to bring in legal or financial experts.

Discreet and trustworthy. You handle sensitive personal, financial, and legal information with integrity and good judgment.

Service-minded communicator. You are responsive, clear, and approachable, and colleagues across time zones and disciplines trust you to get things done.

Mission-driven. You are excited by SPUN’s mission and motivated to build the operational foundation that allows a pioneering environmental NGO to have greater impact.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in a nonprofit, NGO, research, or impact-driven organization.
• Experience with grants administration, including funder reporting and subaward management.
• Experience with US and European requirements, particularly in the Netherlands.
• Experience administering workplace systems and IT for a remote team.
• Familiarity with GDPR and other data protection frameworks.
• Familiarity with bookkeeping, budgeting, or finance operations.
• Familiarity with organizational emissions tracking or sustainability programs.

Why Join SPUN

We believe in empowering people to do their best work. This is reflected in our benefits that support health, well-being, growth, and balance. They are tailored to local laws so that everyone across our globally distributed team receives the same high standard of support.

We offer great benefits including, but not limited to, health coverage and a generous PTO

At SPUN, we embrace diversity as a fundamental pillar of our mission to protect underground ecosystems. Our commitment to decolonizing science depends on the diversity of knowledge and experience on our team and among our partners across the globe. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment where all individuals, regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, or background, feel valued, respected, and empowered to bring their authentic selves to work. We highly encourage individuals from traditionally underrepresented or marginalized groups, including but not limited to women, LGBTQIA+ people, individuals from the Global South, and individuals with Indigenous heritage, to apply to join our team at SPUN.

To learn more about our organization and culture, please visit our website http://www.spun.earth.

Please apply directly on our Careers Page. Please do not reach out to the hiring manager directly to ensure an equitable process for all candidates.