Risk & Readiness Manager

Hope Mission Statement

The mission of Hope the Mission is to prevent, reduce and eliminate poverty, hunger, and homelessness by offering immediate assistance and long-term solutions.

Position Purpose and Summary 

HTM operates shelters, kitchens, warehouses, retail and program sites across Southern California. Each of those environments carries occupational risk. Injuries happen. Near misses go unreported. Without a disciplined system for investigation, corrective action, and compliance oversight, risk compounds, and the staff, volunteers, and guests HTM serves pay the price.

The Risk and Readiness Manager is responsible for making sure that does not happen. This role leads HTM's Risk and Readiness function, supervising the Coordinators who own the occupational and industrial health environments, and personally investigating the incidents that matter most. Serious injuries, matters that may be reportable to Cal/OSHA, and incidents carrying legal exposure are investigated by this position, not delegated.

The role also owns what happens after an investigation. Recordability determinations. The corrective action register. The escalation when a correction date passes. Regulatory response when an inspector arrives.

The expectation is not incident response. It is incident prevention. Investigations are thorough and completed on time. Corrective actions are tracked to closure. Training is delivered before deadlines lapse. At HTM, safety performance reflects the organization's commitment to the people it employs and the community it serves. The Safety Manager is accountable for that performance holding across every site, every week.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities 

Team Leadership and Personnel Management

• Supervise the Risk and Safety Coordinators for Physical Environment and Health Environment, including work assignment, coaching, training, and performance evaluation.

• Set priorities across inspection, occupational health, investigation, and training as organizational risk shifts.

• Review coordinator work products for accuracy, completeness, and regulatory sufficiency before they become part of the record.

• Conduct performance evaluations and issue corrective action in coordination with Human Resources.

• Recommend hiring, advancement, compensation, and separation decisions to the Director of Assets and Logistics.

• Review and approve staff timekeeping before payroll deadlines.

Incident Investigation

• Serve as the investigating authority for serious injuries and illnesses, incidents potentially reportable to Cal/OSHA, incidents carrying litigation or regulatory exposure, and incidents involving a manager or above.

• Conduct investigations including scene documentation, witness interviews, evidence preservation, and collection of supporting records.

• Conduct root cause analysis using an established methodology that identifies system conditions rather than assigning individual fault.

• Assign routine incident investigations to a Coordinator where appropriate and review the resulting findings before closure.

• Produce factual investigation reports that separate observation from recommendation and withstand review by an attorney, an inspector, or an insurer.

• Refer findings requiring Director-level review to the Director of Assets and Logistics before closure, including any matter involving a manager or above.

• Analyze incident and near-miss data across sites, departments, shifts, and tenure to identify trends and drive preventive action.

Corrective Action and Determination

• Own the organizational corrective action register. Ensure entries from inspection, investigation, and regulatory sources are recorded with a responsible party and completion date.

• Determine recordability of work-related injuries and illnesses and communicate determinations to the Risk and Safety Coordinator, Health Environment for recording.

• Approve corrective action plans and verify implementation.

• Escalate overdue corrective actions to the responsible department leader and to the Director of Assets and Logistics.

• Collaborate with operations leadership to implement corrective and preventive measures.

Safety Program Management

• Manage and administer HTM's safety and compliance programs organization-wide.

• Approve revisions to safety policies, procedures, written programs, and emergency response plans developed by the Coordinators.

• Conduct safety audits and operational risk assessments across HTM locations.

• Develop the annual safety training plan and verify delivery against it.

• Lead safety committee activities and safety meetings.

• Promote a culture of accountability, hazard recognition, and reporting without fear of reprisal.

Regulatory and Contract Compliance

• Ensure compliance with Cal/OSHA standards and all applicable federal, state, and local regulatory requirements.

• Serve as HTM's primary contact for regulatory inspections and inquiries. Coordinate responses in consultation with Human Resources and Legal.

• Report serious injuries, illnesses, and fatalities to Cal/OSHA within the required eight-hour window.

• Oversee regulatory logs, reporting, and compliance records maintained by the Coordinators.

• Monitor operational adherence to funder, county, and contract-specific safety obligations.

Reporting

• Consolidate metrics from both Coordinators into a combined leadership report.

• Track and report key safety performance indicators to the Director of Assets and Logistics and senior leadership.

• Report incident trends, open corrective actions, and compliance status on a defined reporting cycle.

Marginal Functions

• Deliver safety training directly when subject matter or scheduling requires it.

• Support new site openings with pre-occupancy risk assessment.

• Represent Risk and Safety in cross-departmental and organizational meetings.

• Perform additional duties as assigned by the Director of Assets and Logistics.

Skills 

• Leads a safety team with clear expectations, consistent accountability, and a coaching approach to performance.

• Leads incident investigations with thoroughness, objectivity, and consistent follow-through on corrective action.

• Identifies root cause rather than stopping at the immediate cause or the individual involved.

• Recognizes when an incident carries regulatory or legal consequence and acts within the required window.

• Maintains objectivity when investigating departments, leaders, and colleagues.

• Manages safety compliance across multiple sites, ensuring recordkeeping and regulatory obligations are met.

• Holds department leaders to correction dates without escalating to conflict, and escalates when the date passes.

• Analyzes incident data and safety metrics to identify trends and drive preventive action.

• Communicates safety requirements and performance expectations clearly to staff and site leadership.

• Coordinates with Human Resources, Legal, Operations, and external regulatory contacts with professionalism and accuracy.

• Handles sensitive and confidential information with consistent discretion.

• Proficient in safety management systems, Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, and reporting platforms.

Qualifications: 

• Bachelor's degree in Occupational Safety, Industrial Hygiene, Risk Management, or a related field preferred. Equivalent experience may be considered.

• Minimum five years of safety management experience required.

• Minimum two years of supervisory experience required.

• Demonstrated experience conducting incident investigations and root cause analysis required.

• Strong knowledge of Cal/OSHA regulations, recordkeeping requirements, and incident investigation practices required.

• Experience managing regulatory compliance and contract safety requirements required.

• Experience in a multi-site environment preferred.

• Experience in shelter, healthcare, congregate living, or human services settings preferred.

• Bilingual in English and Spanish preferred.

Preferred Certifications:

• OSHA 10 or OSHA 30

• FirstAid / CPR Certification

• Safety-related certifications are a plus

Mandatory Requirements: 

• Background Screening – Employment is contingent upon the successful completion of  background checks as required per worksite.

• Drug and Alcohol Testing – Candidates must pass pre-employment and ongoing drug and alcohol screenings in accordance with company policy.

• Motor Vehicle Record (MVR) Check – For roles requiring driving, employment is contingent upon an acceptable driving record (meeting criteria of HTM’s commercial insurance), a CA drivers license, and proof of vehicle insurance coverage.

• Legal Eligibility to Work – Maintain proof of legal authorization to work in the US.

• Compliance with Company Policies and HIPAA standards – All employees must comply with company policies, including safety, confidentiality, and conduct standards.

• Must have reliable transportation.

Physical, Demands, Environmental Conditions, Equipment 

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions. The employee is required to: walk and climb stairs; stand, bend,  squat, climb, kneel, and twist on an intermittent or sometimes continuous basis; grasp, push, pull objects such as  files, file cabinet drawers, and reach overhead; handle, finger, grasp and feel objects and equipment; reach with  hands and arms; be mobile by moving oneself from place to place quickly and easily; repeat various motions with  the wrists, hands, and fingers; be able to perform visual activities for (including, but not limited to) administrative  and clerical tasks; ability to lift up to 25 lbs.; communicate, receive and exchange ideas, information by means of  the spoken and written word; drive vehicles in and around Los Angeles County; be able to enter various buildings  that may require climbing stairs; be periodically subjected to outside environmental conditions. The employee may work in proximity to service animals and emotional support animals; use a desktop and/or laptop computer; various office machines. Complete all required forms in personal writing. 

Work Environment

The employee may be in contact with individuals and families in crisis who may be ill, using alcohol and drugs, and who may not be attentive to basic personal hygiene, health and safety practices. The employee may experience a number of unpleasant sensory demands associated with the participants’ use of alcohol and drugs, and lack of personal hygiene. The employee must be ready to respond quickly and effectively to many types of situations, including crisis situations and potentially hostile situations. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate in an office setting. Sometimes work may become stressful when working under pressure or in crisis intervention. 

EEO: HTM (Hope the Mission) provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, HTM complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, placement, promotion, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training. 

HTM will consider qualified applicants with a criminal history pursuant to the California Fair Chance Act. You do not need to disclose your criminal history or participate in a background check until a conditional job offer is made to you. After making a conditional offer and running a background check, if HTM is concerned about a conviction that is directly related to the job, you will be given the chance to explain the circumstances surrounding the conviction, provide mitigating evidence, or challenge the accuracy of the background report. Find out more about the Fair Chance Act by visiting the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing’s Fair Chance Act webpage.