Chief Administrative Officer

Description

Under the direction of the Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) is an enterprise-wide executive responsible for leading Roots Community Health’s administrative infrastructure, business operations, workforce oversight, and organizational compliance systems across all sites. As a core member of the Executive Management Team, the CAO ensures agency-wide administration runs smoothly, cost-effectively, and in full alignment with Roots’ mission, values, and strategic vision.

The CAO leads the organization’s administrative compliance infrastructure and chairs the Executive Compliance Committee, serving as the designated administrative link between specialized domain leads, the CEO, and the Board of Directors. The role is structured to hold the formal designation of the organization's Compliance Officer, facilitating enterprise risk management, workforce compliance, and board-level governance. To maintain strict regulatory compliance and OIG audit independence, the CAO holds no operational oversight or auditing authority over medical billing, revenue cycle management, or financial claiming processes.

Based in Roots' South Bay location, the CAO also serves as the executive anchor and  primary regional ambassador in Santa Clara County, stewarding vital relationships with local funders, county partners, political stakeholders, and community allies.

Enterprise Compliance Leadership & Governance

• Committee Leadership & Board Reporting: Lead and Chair the multi-disciplinary Executive Compliance Committee; coordinate quarterly compliance updates and annual reporting to the Board of Directors covering HIPAA, Fraud, Waste, and Abuse (FWA), OIG compliance standards, workforce, and operational risk.
• Enterprise Domain Coordination: Function as the central facilitator across specialized compliance domains — collaborating with the CMO (Clinical Quality), CFO (Finance/Billing), IT/vCISO (Data Privacy & Cyber Security), COO (Facilities/OSHA), and Legal — to synthesize enterprise risk without displacing the technical expertise of those domain leads.
• Administrative Compliance Machinery: Oversee agency-wide compliance policies, annual risk assessments, conflict-of-interest disclosures, mandatory staff trainings, hotline/incident tracking, OIG/GSA exclusion screenings, and whistleblower protections.
• ?Grant & Contract Compliance Calendar: Maintain enterprise-wide line-of-sight over all active grants, MOUs, and master contracts. Manage the central compliance tracking system to ensure program, clinical, and finance leads complete all mandatory reporting deliverables and renewal submissions accurately and ahead of deadline.

Workforce, Labor & Administrative Operations

• Human Resources Supervision: Executive oversight and direct supervision of Human Resources leadership and enterprise administrative staff.
• Labor & Litigation Risk Management: Oversee wage/hour compliance, workplace policies, Employment Practices Liability (EPLI) risk, Workers' Compensation administrative tracking, and manage potential/actual employment litigation in close coordination with legal counsel.
• Academic Interns, Learners & Volunteer Infrastructure: Provide administrative oversight, tracking, and compliance frameworks for academic partnerships, student placements, clinical/administrative learners, and volunteer programs.
• Corporate Contract Administration: Oversee agency-wide administrative contracting policies, master service agreement templates, corporate vendor compliance standards (BAAs, insurance certificates), and lease documentation.
• Vendor & Consultant Contract Lifecycle Oversight: Establish and maintain an enterprise-wide master repository and calendar for all vendor, consultant, and independent contractor agreements. Actively monitor contract terms, effective start/end dates, performance milestones, and renewal timelines. Proactively initiate contract reviews, amendments, scope updates, or terminations prior to expiration. Manage month-to-month contract conversions, ensuring both internal leads and external consultants are clear on terms, notice periods, and rate structures upon transition.
• Operational Alignment with Operations: Partner closely with Operations Leadership—who retains direct operational authority over site vendor selection, physical facility management, site OSHA execution, and day-to-day service delivery—to ensure all vendor agreements and facility leases meet legal, corporate insurance, and compliance standards prior to execution.

Medi-Cal Administrative Activities (MAA) & HR Alignment

• Workforce MAA Readiness & Role Eligibility: In coordination with HR, ensure organization-wide job descriptions, role classifications, and duty statements accurately reflect MAA-eligible functions.
• Mandatory Compliance Training Tracking: Ensure robust systems are in place for tracking mandatory annual MAA compliance and time-study training across all eligible staff classes in partnership with HR and organizational training leads.
• Master Contract Administration: Manage high-level administrative master agreements, county MOUs, and Local Governmental Agency (LGA) contracting frameworks in partnership with legal and finance.
• Strict Revenue Independence: Maintain total operational separation from time-study collection, staff reminder systems, coding execution, financial calculations, invoice preparation, and billing submission (owned and operated independently by Finance, Billing, and operational teams).

Enterprise Executive Leadership, Strategy & Research

• Collaborate with the CEO and executive peers to design, implement, and evaluate organization-wide business strategies, administrative policies, and long-term expansion goals.
• Prepare and present comprehensive operational, workforce, and administrative reports for the CEO and Board of Directors.
• Manage agency-wide administrative budgets, procurement standards, business negotiations, and corporate vendor contracting.
• Participate in organizational risk management, strategic alliances, regional expansion, and community-based research initiatives/grants as assigned.

Regional Stakeholder Leadership & South Bay Anchoring

• Act as the primary executive representative and ambassador for Roots in the South Bay, maintaining high visibility with local government officials, public health agencies, and institutional funders.
• Cultivate and nurture deep, trust-based relationships within the San Jose and Santa Clara County political, philanthropic, and safety-net landscapes.
• Collaborate with the CEO on regional grant opportunities, county funding cultivation, and public advocacy ventures.
• Represent Roots at local task forces, public hearings, policy roundtables, and county leadership meetings.

• Mission-Driven Public Health Leadership: Deeply internalizes Roots' mission, public health orientation, and culturally informed approach. Balances business acumen with a deep commitment to community health equity, trauma-informed care, and serving urban marginalized communities.
• Enterprise Risk Coordination & Cross-Functional Governance: Facilitates multi-domain compliance, risk synthesis, and board reporting by synthesizing technical input from Clinical, Financial, IT, and Legal leads without needing to personally execute domain-specific audits.
• Enterprise & Systems Thinking: Approaches decision-making with an organization-wide perspective rather than a siloed or regional lens. Synthesizes operational data to anticipate bottlenecks, streamline workflows, and align everyday activities with enterprise goals.
• Relational Leadership & Trust-Building: Builds authentic, high-trust relationships across distinct stakeholder groups, from frontline staff and executive peers to county officials, political stakeholders, and funders. Leads with emotional intelligence, cultural humility, and an approachable, transparent communication style.
• Rigorous Operational Stewardship: Demonstrates high detail orientation and compliance discipline when managing complex administrative systems, labor/HR policies, and enterprise risk frameworks.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor’s degree required. Master’s degree in Public Health (MPH), Health Administration (MHA), Business Administration (MBA), or relevant field preferred.
• Executive Experience: Minimum 7–10 years of progressive executive or senior administrative leadership experience specifically in public health, community health centers, or safety-net healthcare settings.
• Demonstrated HR & Labor Oversight: Minimum 5+ years of direct experience overseeing Human Resources functions, labor/wage-and-hour compliance, workplace risk management, and employee relations within a healthcare or complex nonprofit setting. Deep familiarity with California labor law, Workers' Compensation administration, and employment litigation risk mitigation is strictly required.
• ?Grant & Contract Management: Proven experience maintaining enterprise line-of-sight and compliance tracking for public, county, and private grants, MOUs, and master service agreements.
• Compliance Frameworks: Preferred experience with healthcare/nonprofit compliance frameworks (e.g., OIG General Compliance Program Guidance, HIPAA Privacy/Security, FWA oversight, and enterprise risk management).
• Ecosystem Leadership: Proven ability to navigate complex municipal, county, and safety-net environments. Existing professional networks within San Jose and Santa Clara County strongly preferred, or a demonstrated track record of rapidly building institutional relationships in new municipal landscapes.
• Location: Based at a San Jose, CA office (South Bay Residency strongly preferred).
• Community Alignment: Deep commitment to and experience serving urban, low-income and marginalized communities of color.
• Communication: Exceptional public speaking, board reporting, coalition-building, and executive presence.