Chief Operating Officer in Birmingham

Salary: £39,000–£42,000 per annum (£65,000–£70,000 FTE equivalent)

Contract: Permanent – Part time, 3 days a week

Location: London or Birmingham

Working pattern: Hybrid. Cross-region travel up to twice a month for in-person SMT meetings.

Envision is at an exciting moment. Our programmes are working, our partnerships are growing, and our team cares deeply about getting it right. What we need now is someone to help us build the infrastructure to match our ambition – reaching and impacting more young people from less-advantaged backgrounds across London, Birmingham and Bristol.

As our Chief Operating Officer, you will join our Senior Management Team and take clear ownership of Envision's finance, compliance, HR governance, and operational efficiency. This is a newly defined role – created to give the function the senior leadership it needs and to free the CEO to focus on external leadership, fundraising, and strategy. You will join an SMT of four, working alongside the Director of Programmes and Impact and the Director of Philanthropy and Partnerships, led by the CEO. It is a collegiate team that operates with a high degree of mutual trust and collective ownership – and we are looking for someone who is as comfortable in a strategic conversation about Envision's future as they are reviewing a set of management accounts.

Key Responsibilities

• Play an active role in SMT – contributing operational and financial insight to organisational planning, strategy development, and decision-making alongside the CEO and senior leadership team.
• Lead finance oversight and board reporting: overseeing monthly and quarterly management accounts, leading the annual budget-setting process, owning the audit cycle, and preparing papers for the Finance, Audit and Risk Governance (FARG) Committee.
• Own HR policy and governance: maintaining Envision's HR framework, handling complex employee relations matters, and overseeing the full employee lifecycle with execution led by the Business Admin and Finance Officer.
• Line manage the Finance Manager and Business Admin and Finance Officer, providing clear direction and developing a high-performing team.
• Lead operational improvement: conducting a review of processes and systems, building a live improvement register, and implementing agreed changes through to completion – not just to proposal.
• Explore and pilot AI and automation tools for high-friction tasks. Genuine curiosity and willingness to experiment matters more than technical expertise.
• Hold compliance and risk governance oversight – GDPR, Health and Safety, regulatory filings – ensuring a clear calendar of requirements is owned and met.

Essential Experience, Knowledge and Competencies

• Qualified or part-qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent), or demonstrable equivalent finance expertise.
• Proven experience in a senior operational leadership role with finance oversight responsibility.
• Experience of audit management and board-level financial reporting.
• Track record of leading and developing small teams.
• Working knowledge of GDPR and charity compliance obligations.
• Demonstrable ability to operate at a strategic and governance level.
• Experience leading operational process or systems improvement, from diagnosis through to implementation.
• Active interest in AI and automation tools, with a practical approach to exploring and applying them.
• Commitment to Envision's vision, mission and values and ability to work well in, and contribute to, our organisational culture.

Envision actively encourages applications from those from Black and Minority Ethnic backgrounds and from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds, as they are currently under-represented in our organisation. We seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce and that all applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment, regardless of age, race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability or nationality.

Envision graduates will be guaranteed a first-round interview. Please note: we are unable to support visa applications and therefore applicants must have the right to work in the UK.

To apply, please apply through CharityJob. Closing date for applications - Wednesday 10 June (midnight). Round 1 interviews (online): Thursday 18 June. Round 2 interviews (in person- London): Thursday 25 June. We will only be contacting candidates who have been shortlisted for interview.

The safety and wellbeing of the young people we work with is paramount at Envision. Successful candidates will be subject to a full Enhanced DBS check and reference checks. All new staff must attend safeguarding training during their induction period.