Managing Director

Requirements

• 15+ years of experience across architecture and real estate development, with significant time in community management or owner-side project leadership
• 10+ years in organizational leadership, with a track record of growing teams and managing across disciplines
• Expertise in at least one field and the curiosity to work fluidly across many others, connecting dots between disciplines, bringing unexpected perspectives to complex problems, and getting energized by collaboration across silos rather than within them
• Understanding of the hybrid nonprofit/fee-for-service model (how mission and earned income coexist) and energized by both sides of that equation
• Strong people manager who builds trust, holds accountability with care, and actively coaches, mentors, and develops the people around them
• High curiosity and worldly exposure, with experience working with diverse communities and bringing genuine humility and attentiveness to that work
• Strong personality who can challenge leadership and disagree constructively as a thought partner
• Leads relationally, where culture, trust, and care are how good work gets done
• Ability to hold complexity and create clarity for others, especially in ambiguous, resource-constrained environments
• Based in the Bay Area, or willing to relocate there, with ongoing bicoastal work as a standing part of the role given the presence across coasts

Nice to have:

• Experience with affordable housing, supportive housing, or community-serving real estate development
• Nonprofit operations, fundraising, or evaluation experience
• Familiarity with abolitionist frameworks and community-engaged or trauma-informed design
• An MBA or equivalent graduate training
• Licensed architect

Benefits

• 100% employer-covered medical, dental, and vision for employees and their children under 26; optional coverage for domestic partners, long-term disability, and life insurance
• Generous PTO: tiered vacation by tenure, sick leave, bereavement, jury duty, and 16 total holidays (12 standard + 4 flexible personal days)
• Up to 12 weeks of fully paid parental leave, supported by California state benefits and DJDS supplemental pay
• Sabbatical eligibility after 7 years: 12 weeks paid leave plus a reduced-load continuation period

Important Details

• Work format: Hybrid, 3 days in office

Application Process

• Submit a resume and a cover letter speaking to your experience, your vision for this role, and why DJDS's mission resonates with you

About the Company

DJDS is an architecture and real estate development social enterprise creating spaces that embody justice, healing, and self-determination. By designing with communities most impacted by incarceration and disinvestment, the company builds infrastructure that supports community ownership, redistributes power, and lays the foundation for a world rooted in care, not punishment. The team is composed of architects, designers, real estate developers, and community members working together to create solutionary spaces and places that bring dignity, well-being, and care to the communities served.