Director of Operations

Director of Operations

Hilltop Wealth Advisors Chapel Hill NC

Role Purpose

Hilltop Wealth Advisors is scaling toward a $50M revenue future. To do that the firm needs an operations function that is reliable visible accountable and not dependent on the President stepping into daily operational firefighting.

The Director of Operations will build and lead that function.

This is ahands-on operational builder rolefor someone who can create order while leading the work. Reporting to the President who currently serves as Hilltops interim COO/CCO the Director of Operations will own day-to-day operational performance client-service execution workflow discipline team accountability and operational capacity.

This person will not inherit a fully built operations department. They willestablishthe rhythms standards documentation reporting and team structurerequiredto support Hilltops next stage of scale.

The Director supports compliance execution but doesnotserve as Hilltops CCO. CCO responsibilityremainswith the President supported by Comply until Hilltop makes a future decision toestablisha dedicated COO/CCO or CCO seat.

Reports To

President / Interim COO-CCO

Direct Reports

Initially:

• Client Services Team Lead / Senior Client Service Associate

• Client Service Associates

• Other client service or operations personnel as assigned

As the team scales:

• Operations Manager

• Office Manager

• Client Services Team Lead

Primary Outcome Owned

Hilltops operations and client service function deliversaccuratetimely repeatable work at the capacityrequiredto support advisor productivity exceptional client experience compliance execution and scalable growth.

Key Responsibilities

Build the Operations Function

• Assess Hilltops current operations client-service workflows CRM usage task management service capacity and operational risks.

• Establish clear ownership service standards workflows and escalation paths for recurring operational work.

• Build the operating cadence for the department including daily workflow visibility weekly team meetings KPI review and issue escalation.

• Create andmaintainpractical documentation for core workflows including client onboarding account maintenance transfers billing support service requests and custodian interactions.

• Identifythe highest-leverage process technology staffing and capacity improvementsrequiredfor Hilltop to scale.

• Recommend the future structure and timing for an Operations Manager and Office Manager as the function matures.

Lead Daily Operations and Client Service

• Directly lead the current client service and operations team until anOperationsManager is in place.

• Assign prioritize track and follow up on operational work client requests workflow backlogs and cross-functional handoffs.

• Ensure client service requests account paperwork transfers onboarding billing support and other core workflows are completed accurately and within defined standards.

• Monitor operational workload capacity errors rework overdue tasks and service failures; intervene quickly when standards are not met.

• Serve as the escalation point for complexclient-service workflow and operational issues.

• Partner with advisors to improve service handoffs advisor support and client experience.

Systems Data and Process Discipline

• Drive consistent use of Hilltops CRM workflow tools documentation standards and task-management systems.

• Improve CRM data quality operational reporting workflow visibility and accountability.

• Partner with the President and other leaders on theAdvyzonCRM transition related process changes and data cleanup.

• Identifyrecurring friction redundant steps and bottlenecks; implement practical improvements.

• Ensure the firm has reliable operational data to make decisions about staffing capacity service levels and priorities.

Team Leadership and Development

• Set clear expectations scorecards development plans and accountability for direct reports.

• Coach and develop the Client Services Team Lead/Senior CSA in technical leadership quality control training and future management readiness.

• Build cross-training and coverageplansso critical workflows do not depend on one person.

• Hire onboard and develop future operations and client-service talent as approved.

• Address unclear ownership missed commitments and sustained underperformance directly.

Compliance and Risk Execution

• Ensure operational compliance workflows recordkeeping documentation and follow-up tasks are completed accurately and on time.

• Partner with the President and Comply on audits compliance requests operational evidence and remediation activity.

• Escalate material client-service process documentation or compliance risks promptly.

• Reinforce adherence toestablishedcompliance policies and procedures across the operations and client-servicefunction.

This role executes and manages compliance-related operational workflows. It does not independently interpret regulationsestablishcompliance policy or replace the President as the CCO.

Key Performance Indicators

• Client service requests completed within defined service standards

• New-client onboarding turnaround time and accuracy

• Workflow completion rate overdue task volume and backlog aging

• CRM data completeness accuracy and workflow adherence

• Operational error rework and exception rates

• Advisor satisfaction with operational and client-service support

• Client-service team capacity workload balance and cross-training readiness

• Completion rate for priority operational improvement initiatives

• Compliance workflow and documentation completion rate

• Timerequiredfrom the President for operational escalations and firefighting

What Great Looks Like in 90 Days

• First 30 Days

• Understands Hilltops service model client-service team workflow volume systems and current bottlenecks.

• Identifiesthehighest-riskbreakdowns in CRM data task ownership workflow handoffs and client-service capacity.

• Builds strong relationships with the President advisors client service staff Comply custodians and key vendors.

• Establishes clear ownership and immediate priorities for the current team.

• By 60 Days

• Implements a visible daily and weekly operating cadence.

• Creates a prioritized list of workflow capacity CRM and service-level improvements.

• Establishes baseline metrics for workflow backlog turnaround time errors and service capacity.

• Begins reducing the most material overdue work dropped-ball risks or recurring bottlenecks.

• Gives the President consistent visibility into operational issues without requiring them to manage the details.

• By 90 Days

• Core workflows have defined owners documented standards and predictable escalation paths.

• The current client-service team has clearer accountability stronger workload visibility and improved process discipline.

• Priority operational backlogs and recurring execution failures are materially reduced.

• The President is spending less time in daily operations and has a clear recommendation for the next operations-layer hire: Operations Manager Office Manager or another targeted role.

Decision Rights

The Director of Operations may independently:

• Assign and prioritize work across the operations and client-service team.

• Set dailyworkflow-managementpractices service standards training expectations and team meeting rhythms.

• Implement process improvements within approved systems and policy boundaries.

• Hold direct reports accountable for performance workflow discipline and quality.

• Escalateclient-service capacity operational and compliance risks.

• Recommend staffing role design technology workflow and capacity changes to the President.

The Director of Operations requires President/Interim COO-CCO approval for:

• New headcount compensation changes or material organizational changes

• Material vendor technology or systems investments

• Changes to firm-wide client segmentation or service model

• Material policy changes or regulatory communications

• Compliance-policy interpretation or final compliance decisions

Ideal Candidate Profile

You are ahungry builder not a caretaker of an already mature department.

You can move between strategic judgment and hands-on execution. You are comfortable creating structure from ambiguity leading a small team directly enforcing standards and improving the work without waiting for a large support layer to appear.

You have enough maturity to work closely with senior leadership but you are not above rolling up your sleeves to resolve workflow failures coach team membersclean upprocess gaps and make daily execution more reliable.

Required Qualifications

• 10 years of operations client service or business-process leadership experience in wealth management financial services or a similarly regulated professional-services environment

• 3 years leading or supervising teams

• Demonstrated experience improving workflows service delivery accountability and operational capacity

• Experience managing CRM workflow documentation reporting and process-improvement efforts

• Strong people leadership communication problem-solving and follow-through

• Ability to lead in a scaling changing and resource-conscious environment

• Bachelors degree or equivalent relevant experience

Preferred Qualifications

• RIA or wealth-management operations leadership experience

• Experience withAdvyzon Orion Tamarac Salesforce RedtailWealthscape or comparable systems

• Experience supporting compliance operations in a regulated environment

• FPQP CFP operations certification or comparable credential

Compensation Range: $145000 - $185000