CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER (1165-Manager, Department of Public Health)

The Department of Public Health prioritizes equitable and inclusive access to quality healthcare for its community and values the importance of diversity in its workforce. All employees at the Department of Public Health work to advance equity, inclusion, and diversity with a specific lens and focus on race, ethnicity, gender, sex, sexuality, disability, and immigration status.  Application Opening: Friday, September 25, 2026 Application Deadline: Continuous Salary:  $274,196 to $349,934 Annually (Range A) Appointment Type:  Permanent Exempt    Recruitment ID: PEX-1165-RTF0168464-01154807 Work Arrangement: Onsite The Mission of the San Francisco Department of Public Health (DPH) is to protect and promote the health of all San Franciscans. Fulfilling this mission requires employees working across our hospitals, clinics, programs, and offices to deliver services and support the communities we serve. Individuals interested in joining DPH should expect to work in person across these settings. DPH operates one of the most complex and integrated public health systems in the nation, encompassing approximately $3.6 billion in annual funding, a workforce of nearly 9,000 employees, and services delivered through two hospitals, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center and Laguna Honda Hospital & Rehabilitation Center, and more than 45 primary and specialty care clinics, behavioral health programs, population health services, emergency preparedness, managed care, and a broad network of community-based partners.  CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER (1165-Manager, Department of Public Health) POSITION OVERVIEW The Department's workforce, technology, facilities, safety, security, compliance, and administrative systems support healthcare delivery, public health services, emergency response, and daily operations across DPH. The scale and complexity of these functions require strong operational leadership, effective coordination, and the ability to execute priorities across a large and highly interconnected organization. DPH is seeking an impact-driven Chief Operating Officer (COO) to lead the operational systems that support one of the nation's premier and most complex integrated public health systems. This is both an operational and a strategic role, and a defining leadership opportunity: to build and drive the operational foundation of a modern, high-performing public health system. It calls for a leader with a strong vision for performance transformation and a demonstrated ability to deliver measurable outcomes through top-to-bottom, end-to-end execution, translating strategy into results across the full length of a large and interconnected organization. Depending on the final organizational design, the COO may also lead financial planning and budget for the Department, aligning resources to strategy and connecting funding directly to performance and outcomes. ABOUT THE ROLE The COO serves as the Department's senior executive responsible for enterprise operations, operational excellence, and organizational performance. Reporting to the Director of Health, the position ensures that these functions operate effectively and remain aligned with departmental priorities. This is a role for a builder and a driver: the mandate is to raise operational performance. The COO translates strategic priorities into operational execution, aligns resources with organizational needs, and drives continuous improvement and performance transformation across administrative and operational functions.  Effective leadership requires a deep understanding of how clinical services, public health programs, administrative operations, and workforce dynamics intersect to support DPH's mission and deliver results across a complex public health system. The COO works closely with City leaders, elected officials, labor representatives, regulatory agencies, and external stakeholders to advance departmental priorities and address complex operational challenges. Success in this role requires sound judgment, political acumen, strong negotiation skills, and the ability to build alignment, navigate competing interests, and drive results in a highly visible public-sector environment. The position provides leadership for approximately 650 employees across: Information Technology Human Resources Capital Planning and Facilities Safety and Security Compliance and Privacy Affairs Together, these functions provide the operational foundation that supports every employee, program, facility, and service location across DPH. KEY RESPONSIBILITIES Drive Operational Excellence Lead enterprise operational functions that support DPH's public health and healthcare mission. Establish clear priorities, performance expectations, and accountability structures that strengthen organizational effectiveness. Identify opportunities to improve operational performance, remove barriers to execution, and enhance service delivery across the Department. Foster a culture that promotes respect, results, innovation, agility, and continuous improvement. Set Strategic Direction and Drive Transformation Translate enterprise strategy into a clear, multi-year operational plan, and own execution end to end from priority-setting through delivery and measurable results. Direct strategic planning across operations and administrative systems, aligning resources and priorities to the Department's goals. Drive performance transformation across operational and administrative functions, redesigning how work is done to raise performance. Establish performance expectations and a review cadence that give leaders reliable visibility into progress, risk, and results. Align Operations with Strategy Translate departmental priorities into coordinated action across workforce, technology, facilities, safety, compliance, and operational support functions. Align resources, infrastructure, and operational investments with current and future organiza