Own high-stakes projects across a fast-growing real estate and operating platform, work directly alongside ownership, and build the systems that help scale the business. This is a launchpad for someone looking to grow into a senior operations leadership role.
Our SelectLeader’s client is a Jersey City-based real estate and operating platform developing high-quality residential, commercial, and community-driven assets in underserved urban neighborhoods.
Founded in 2010, the company built its foundation by identifying overlooked opportunities in downtown Jersey City and executing a differentiated strategy focused on smaller-scale, high-impact developments on non-conforming lots that larger developers often passed over.
To date, the organization has completed or is developing 25+ multifamily and commercial properties and has repositioned a historic school building into a 50,000-square-foot, fully leased community hub anchored by education, wellness, and service businesses. The project was recognized with an Urban Land Institute award.
Alongside its real estate platform, the organization operates a growing portfolio of businesses across education, food and nutrition, and fitness, employing more than 170 team members.
- Real estate pipeline exceeding $100M across multiple condo projects
- Expanding operating businesses across education, food, and fitness
The Opportunity
Our client is seeking a high-potential operator to help scale a multi-entity platform spanning real estate and private preschools.
This is not a traditional operations role. It’s a high-impact position with a clear path to Director of Operations, designed for someone who wants to grow into a senior leader and is ready to take on significant responsibility.
You’ll report to the Director of Operations while working directly with ownership on high-priority initiatives and special projects.
Approximately 70% of your time will be project-based, including strategic initiatives, new investments, and cross-functional execution. The remaining 30% will focus on operational and financial oversight across the platform.
You’ll thrive in this environment if you’re resourceful, analytical, and ownership-driven — someone who runs toward ambiguity, moves with urgency, and takes full responsibility for outcomes.
What You’ll Do
Strategic & Special Projects
- Lead and execute high-priority initiatives across real estate development, operating businesses, and new ventures, owning projects end-to-end from idea through execution and reporting.
- Support the evaluation of new investments through research, data analysis, and execution planning.
- Develop actionable insights around expansion opportunities.
- Build dashboards, reporting systems, and operating processes across entities, identifying inefficiencies and implementing scalable improvements.
- Act as a force multiplier for both ownership and the Director of Operations on mission-critical priorities.
Operations & Financial Oversight
- Support day-to-day operations across properties and business units.
- Oversee financial workflows, including payables, receivables, and coordination with accounting.
- Partner with the finance team to track and report monthly performance and key metrics across entities.
- Manage vendor relationships, negotiate pricing, and oversee RFP processes.
- Ensure operational workflows and maintenance standards are executed at a high level.
Portfolio & Execution Management
- Track the full real estate portfolio and development pipeline across all stages, maintaining timelines for active and future projects.
- Identify critical decision points and proactively drive accountability across stakeholders.
- Keep ownership informed and prepared to make key decisions.
- Develop, implement, and refine policies and systems that improve execution across the organization.
Who You Are
- 7–10 years of experience in operations or consulting.
- Strong analytical skills with genuine comfort working with data and business metrics.
- An extremely high ownership mentality with relentless follow-through.
- Able to manage multiple complex projects simultaneously and perform well under pressure.
- Resourceful, proactive, and solutions-oriented.
- Comfortable operating in an unstructured, fast-moving, high-expectation environment.
- Highly organized with sharp attention to detail.
- Clear ambition to grow into a Director of Operations-level role.
- Valid driver’s license and reliable transportation required.
Why This Role
- Broad business exposure: Gain hands-on experience across real estate, education, food, and fitness businesses.
- Direct access to ownership: Work closely with key decision-makers and contribute to meaningful business initiatives from day one.
- Build, don’t just maintain: Create systems, processes, and solutions that help shape how the organization operates.
- High responsibility early: Take ownership of meaningful projects with a clear path toward operations leadership.
This is not a coordinator or administrative role. It’s a training ground for a future operations leader within a growing, entrepreneurial organization.
