Wilderness Medicine - Business Operations Director

About This Role

The Wilderness Medicine Business Operations Director leads strategy, partnerships, and operational systems for NOLS Wilderness Medicine, overseeing course delivery, financial performance, and global logistics to ensure efficient, high\-quality program execution.

Key Information

Application Deadline: 19 April 2026 Target Start Date: 18 May 2026 Location: NOLS HQ, Hybrid (3 wks/month at HQ) considered for the right candidate Wage: $65,000\-$72,500 USD (Annually) Reports To: Vice President, Wilderness Medicine Department: Wilderness Medicine Position Type: Full\-time, Exempt

Benefits Eligible: Yes

What does a Business Operations Director do?

The Business Operations Director (BOD) provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for NOLS Wilderness Medicine’s course delivery systems, sponsor relationships, financial performance, and equipment operations. This role is responsible for ensuring efficient, innovative, and high\-quality business systems that support over 800 courses and 18,000\+ students annually.

Leadership and Supervision

The BOD directly supervises the Client Relations Manager, Equipment and Materials Manager, and their respective teams (approximately six staff total). The role provides direction to the Program Team (Account Managers) and ensures alignment across all operational functions. The BOD fosters a culture of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement, while identifying efficiencies and advancing new business systems.

Strategic Partnerships and Representation

The BOD develops and maintains relationships with more than 300 active sponsors, including colleges, universities, and government agencies. As the primary relationship owner for high\-level partnerships, the BOD manages complex sponsor interactions beyond standard policies and serves as the chief negotiator for course contracts and Master Services Agreements with key vendors.

The BOD represents Wilderness Medicine’s strategic priorities in school\-wide committees and workgroups, contributing to organizational decision\-making and long\-term planning. Specifically, the BOD serves as the department’s primary liaison to NOLS Marketing, setting the strategic vision for the partnership, aligning marketing initiatives with program goals, and ensuring coordinated, effective promotion of Wilderness Medicine offerings.

Sales and Marketing

The BOD leads the strategy and execution of the B2B sales function at NOLS Wilderness Medicine, which is responsible for approximately $4\.5 million in annual revenue. This includes driving B2B growth through the development of new sponsor partnerships in both emerging and established markets, while strengthening and expanding existing relationships. In parallel, the BOD serves as the primary liaison to the NOLS Marketing team, aligning enrollment strategies to drive student enrollment, market reach, and program sustainability.

Asset Management

The role supervises global equipment and materials operations, managing approximately $1 million in inventory across more than 100 gear sets worldwide, ensuring efficient systems for purchasing, maintenance, and distribution.

Operational Oversight

The BOD is responsible for the development, management, and execution of all course\-related operations. This includes:

• Building and implementing the annual course mix in collaboration with the Vice President
• Overseeing communication and enforcement of sponsor and course policies
• Ensuring compliance with all contractual obligations
• Maintaining permits for courses operating on public lands
• Managing NOLS’ Government Services Administration listing and required reporting

The BOD is accountable for refining business systems to improve service delivery, operational efficiency, and cost\-effectiveness across the organization.

Contracting and Compliance

Serving as an authorized signer for legal agreements, the BOD leads contract negotiation and ensures compliance with all sponsor and vendor agreements. This includes mitigating risk, maintaining regulatory adherence, and protecting organizational interests.

Note: Duties and responsibilities may evolve based on organizational needs.

In your first 6 months, you will

• Develop a clear operational understanding of the business model
• Clarify priorities
• Evaluate systems and recommend improvements
• Establish trust and credibility with internal and external stakeholders
• Support core operations
• Align marketing and growth strategy

What makes a great Business Operations Director at NOLS?

We are looking for people who share our values and are keen to learn and develop their expertise. While our ideal candidate comes with the skills listed below, we expect to provide training and development support in some of the areas.

• Strategic thinker
• Operational excellence mindset
• Strong financial acumen
• Skilled relationship builder
• Decisive and accountable
• Systems thinker
• Above average fluency with technology
• Calm under pressure
• Clear communicator
• Talent developer
• Continuous improver

Minimum qualifications

• Minimum of 2\-3 years of experience in business operations
• Minimum of 2\-3 years of experience in financial and budgetary management
• Minimum of 3\-5 years supervisory experience
• Experience in direct or indirect customer service
• Experience in sales or marketing

\\We will not be reviewing applications coming from Indeed. To learn more about the position and to be considered, please visit the NOLS Careers page at www.NOLS.edu; or apply using the following link: https://workforcenow.adp.com/mascsr/default/mdf/recruitment/recruitment.html?cid\=a87ec8da\-7dfe\-4840\-967e\-19cbed49ce35\&ccId\=19000101\_000001\&jobId\=614662\&source\=CC2\&lang\=en\_US

Pay: $65,000\.00 \- $72,500\.00 per year

Benefits

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Employee assistance program
• Employee discount
• Family leave
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Health savings account
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Pet insurance
• Vision insurance

People with a criminal record are encouraged to apply

Work Location: Hybrid remote in Lander, WY 82520