What does a director of field operations do?
A director of field operations spearheads and oversees the daily field operations of a company, including its other branches or stores. They have the authority to make significant decisions based on extensive research and reviews while adhering to company standards and regulations. Their duties also entail administrative tasks, such as overseeing the department's employment and training procedures, developing sales strategies, setting objectives and guidelines, establishing budgets, and building positive relationships with potential business partners. Additionally, as a director, it is essential to lead and empower staff in a joint effort to reach program goals.
Director of field operations responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real director of field operations resumes:
- Finance and billing accountability across Medicaid, manage care commercial insurance, insurance verification, contract management, and benefits administration.
- Provide oversight of construction projects for commercial mechanical contractor.
- Provide finance oversight of territory real estate portfolio decision making.
- Leverage extensive technical subject matter expertise to evaluate and improve image quality; develop models to demonstrate improvements in establish KPIs.
- Establish training and internal protocols around auditing of pertinent Medicare transactions, increasing frequency of audit while maintaining and improving compliance.
Director of field operations skills and personality traits
We calculated that 15% of Directors Of Field Operations are proficient in Oversight, Project Management, and Human Resources. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Leadership skills, and Management skills.
We break down the percentage of Directors Of Field Operations that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Oversight, 15%
Provided oversight of construction projects for commercial mechanical contractor.
- Project Management, 9%
Appointed and participated in project team who successfully identified and implemented new CRM/ Project Management System, which significantly boosted productivity.
- Human Resources, 7%
Designed, implemented and monitored staffing models in support if human resources shared services.
- Continuous Improvement, 6%
Embrace sustainability through a program of continuous improvement in expense management, capital investment and human performance.
- Logistics, 6%
Accompanied sales team when cultivating prospective clients to present our service capabilities related to laboratory testing, logistics and reporting.
- Direct Reports, 5%
Led a field service and installation organization of 600 associates with 24 direct reports covering the central United States and Canada.
Common skills that a director of field operations uses to do their job include "oversight," "project management," and "human resources." You can find details on the most important director of field operations responsibilities below.
Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a director of field operations to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "top executives must be able to convey information clearly and persuasively." Additionally, a director of field operations resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "led telecommunications cost reduction effort resulting in over $1m per month savings. "
Leadership skills. Many director of field operations duties rely on leadership skills. "top executives must be able to shape and direct an organization by coordinating policies, people, and resources.," so a director of field operations will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways director of field operations responsibilities rely on leadership skills: "maintain partnership with sales leadership team to ensure service level agreements are being maintained and sustained at a high level. "
Problem-solving skills. A big part of what directors of field operations do relies on "problem-solving skills." You can see how essential it is to director of field operations responsibilities because "top executives need to identify and resolve issues within an organization." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical director of field operations tasks: "identified areas on efficiency improvement and cost reduction and provided solutions. "
Time-management skills. A commonly-found skill in director of field operations job descriptions, "time-management skills" is essential to what directors of field operations do. Director of field operations responsibilities rely on this skill because "top executives do many tasks concurrently to ensure that their work gets done and that the organization meets its goals." You can also see how director of field operations duties rely on time-management skills in this resume example: "maintained 95%+ on time service delivery resulting in monthly revenue growth of over $500k. "
The three companies that hire the most director of field operationss are:
- Eversource Energy6 directors of field operations jobs
- Charah Solutions3 directors of field operations jobs
- Gilbane Building Company3 directors of field operations jobs
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Compare different directors of field operations
Director of field operations vs. Operations manager, district
A district operations manager is a managerial professional who manages the daily operations of stores within the assigned district as well as provides support to managers in ensuring quality and budget performance. The district operations manager must work with the store management to create and implement action plans to address deficiencies discovered during a store audit. They are required to evaluate areas of operational concern and provide support during the implementation of solutions. District operations managers must also create a cooperative environment between operations and sales departments to motivate all employees to enhance customer service.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a director of field operations are more likely to require skills like "project management," "continuous improvement," "osha," and "strategic plan." On the other hand, a job as an operations manager, district requires skills like "performance reviews," "succession planning," "team training," and "store management." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Operations managers, district really shine in the retail industry with an average salary of $87,812. Comparatively, directors of field operations tend to make the most money in the hospitality industry with an average salary of $99,590.On average, operations managers, district reach lower levels of education than directors of field operations. Operations managers, district are 6.2% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Director of field operations vs. Deputy director
Deputy directors supervise a team of workers and oversee the daily functions of their organizations. They coordinate with the company's executive director in preparing long-term strategies to achieve organizational goals. It is their job to make sure that these goals are met through the company's available resources. They aid alliances so that conversation objectives will be achieved. When complex issues arise, they collaborate with scientists and policy experts for resolution.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real director of field operations resumes. While director of field operations responsibilities can utilize skills like "continuous improvement," "osha," "customer satisfaction," and "kpis," deputy directors use skills like "policy development," "customer service," "public health," and "financial management."
Deputy directors may earn a higher salary than directors of field operations, but deputy directors earn the most pay in the government industry with an average salary of $101,934. On the other hand, directors of field operations receive higher pay in the hospitality industry, where they earn an average salary of $99,590.deputy directors earn higher levels of education than directors of field operations in general. They're 10.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for Directors of field operations in the next 3-5 years?
Eric Olsen
Professor, Industrial Technology and Packaging, Orfalea College of Business
Director of field operations vs. Operations vice president
The responsibilities of an operations vice president will revolve around overseeing business operations and ensuring workforce and workflow efficiency through evaluations and providing strategic plans that would drive the company to meet its vision and mission. An operations vice president, in adherence to the company policies and regulations, also has the power to hire and train employees, even to execute disciplinary actions such as termination or suspension when necessary. Furthermore, an operations vice president also has discretion in reviewing and approving reports and requirements in various aspects such as budgeting and new policies.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from director of field operations resumes include skills like "osha," "customer satisfaction," "performance metrics," and "corporate policies," whereas an operations vice president is more likely to list skills in "customer service," "financial statements," "risk management," and "regulatory compliance. "
Operations vice presidents earn the highest salary when working in the hospitality industry, where they receive an average salary of $167,073. Comparatively, directors of field operations have the highest earning potential in the hospitality industry, with an average salary of $99,590.operations vice presidents typically earn similar educational levels compared to directors of field operations. Specifically, they're 2.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Director of field operations vs. Group director
A group director is responsible for monitoring the operations of a specific team in an organization, ensuring that the group meets daily targets, providing the highest customer satisfaction for the company's services. Group directors work with senior management to identify business opportunities that would bring more revenues and increase the company's profitability. They also handle the department's budgets, allocating adequate resources for every team to support project deliverables. A group director must have excellent communication and leadership skills, analyzing business functions, and developing strategic ways to increase productivity.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between directors of field operations and group directors, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a director of field operations might have more use for skills like "continuous improvement," "logistics," "osha," and "customer satisfaction." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of group directors require skills like "healthcare," "digital marketing," "client facing," and "program development. "
In general, group directors earn the most working in the finance industry, with an average salary of $169,482. The highest-paying industry for a director of field operations is the hospitality industry.group directors reach higher levels of education compared to directors of field operations, in general. The difference is that they're 6.7% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 1.6% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of director of field operations
Updated January 8, 2025
