Managing Director, San Francisco & Fresno

Position Description

KIND seeks a Managing Director for the San Francisco & Fresno office to provide seasoned, disciplined, and effective management of the field office, including program and performance management, budgeting, employee relations, and development‑support functions. The Managing Director is the senior representative of the organization at the local level, engaging government, private sector partners, and community stakeholders to advance KIND’s mission. This position reports to the Regional Director, Legal Services and is contingent upon continued funding.

KIDS in Need of Defense (KIND) is a global leader in the protection of unaccompanied and separated children who are forcibly displaced from their countries of origin. Launched in 2008, KIND champions a world in which every child’s rights and well‑being are protected throughout their journey to safety. Building on its extensive programming and successful model in the United States, KIND is expanding throughout the Americas and Europe to address the legal and mental‑health needs of this population, build strong partnerships, engage in training and capacity‑strengthening, and advocate for systemic reforms to advance the rights of unaccompanied and separated children.

The Managing Director will oversee the provision of top‑notch mentoring programs and direct representation services to clients in the released and detained context, as relevant. Responsibilities include guiding staff performance, ensuring adherence to grant and funding requirements, managing the field office budget, tracking expenditures, and identifying innovative program and process improvements.

• Provides mentoring to KIND pro‑bono attorneys and, as needed, limited direct legal representation to KIND clients.
• Mentoring includes robust consultation and technical assistance to pro‑bono attorneys who have accepted a KIND case; direct representation includes legal research, strategy formulation, client interviews, court appearances, and drafting filings.
• Serves as a member of the Legal Programs management team, responsible for overall management of the field office, program quality, staff performance, team cohesion, and integration with the Legal Programs department and organization at large.
• Monitors and presents changes in immigration law to internal and external stakeholders, providing thought leadership on local trends to support the Training and Technical Assistance team.
• Develops and implements effective management strategies to meet ambitious programmatic and funding deliverables, including staff recruitment and development, employee engagement, and quality control of legal services delivery.
• Oversees the provision of mentoring programs and direct representation services to clients in relevant contexts.
• Ensures data integrity and utilizes case‑management databases and other technological tools to streamline processes, identify training needs, and inform recruitment and client‑service strategies.
• Promotes volunteer support by developing and maintaining relationships with local law firms and corporate counsel, in coordination with the Senior Director for Pro Bono Partnerships.
• Acts as the primary liaison between the field office and KIND headquarters—including Legal Programs leadership, Policy, Advocacy, Communications, Development, Human Resources, and Operations—under the supervision of the Regional Director.
• Maintains relations with internal and external stakeholders and serves as KIND’s leader in local coalitions supporting unaccompanied immigrant children.
• Works with Legal Programs leadership, Development, and Finance to ensure compliance with all grant and funding requirements.
• Manages the team or field office budget, tracks expenditures, and identifies budgeting priorities.
• Assists with special projects of local and national scope at the direction of KIND leadership.
• Participates in local coalitions of various stakeholders supporting unaccompanied immigrant children.
• Collaborates on social services programming for clients and pro‑bono attorneys in conjunction with the Social Services Team and local field office Social…