Managing Director

Job Description

Appointment Type: Permanent Exempt, Category 14: This position is excluded by the Charter from the competitive Civil Service examination process and shall serve at the discretion of the Appointing Officer.

The Integrated Operations Division is the operational core of SFO, responsible for ensuring the Airport moves safely, securely, and with unwavering consistency every hour of every day. It is where real-time decisions are made, where crises are managed, and where the safety and security of the traveling public is protected. Leading this division requires executive depth, operational command, and the judgment to act decisively under pressure.

SFO is seeking an exceptional senior executive to serve as its Managing Director, Integrated Operations, one of the most consequential operational leadership roles at the Airport. Reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer, this leader holds strategic and operational accountability for SFO’s safety, security, airfield operations, and emergency management functions, while providing senior executive oversight of the Airport Integrated Operations Center.

This is a role for a proven leader who brings both strategic vision and deep operational credibility: someone who thrives in complexity, builds enduring partnerships with federal agencies and industry stakeholders, and elevates the performance of every team they lead. With a $65 million annual portfolio and more than 250 dedicated professionals across the division, the Managing Director, Integrated Operations defines what it means for SFO to operate at the highest standard of safety, security, and business continuity for every passenger, every flight, every day.

The essential functions of this position include:

Operational Strategy and Enterprise Leadership

The Managing Director provides the strategic vision and leadership culture that defines how SFO’s Integrated Operations Division performs, not just today, but over the long arc of the Airport’s evolution as a global aviation leader. This is an executive who sees across functions, connects the dots between mission-critical functions, and ensures the division operates as a coherent, high-performing enterprise.

• Establishes and advances a cohesive division-wide strategy aligned with SFO’s enterprise goals, translating the COO’s vision into clear priorities, measurable outcomes, and accountable leadership at every level
• Cultivates a performance culture grounded in safety, mission-readiness, continuous improvement, and a shared sense of purpose across a 24/7/365 operational enterprise
• Leads organizational design and strategic resource allocation across a $65 million portfolio, ensuring investments are purposeful, outcomes are measurable, and the division’s capacity grows with SFO’s ambitions
• Drives enterprise-wide advances in operational systems, technology integration, and interdivisional coordination, raising the ceiling on what integrated airport operations can achieve
• Serves as a trusted advisor to the COO and Airport Director, offering clear-eyed analysis of emerging risks, strategic opportunities, and the operational realities that shape SFO’s future

Airport Integrated Operations Center

The Airport Integrated Operations Center is SFO’s operational nerve center, the platform through which real-time information, decisions, and cross-functional coordination flow across the entire Airport enterprise. The Managing Director ensures the AIOC has the leadership, resources, and strategic clarity to fulfill that mandate at the highest level.

• Provides senior executive oversight of the AIOC, ensuring the Center operates as SFO’s primary hub for situational awareness, operational coordination, and incident management across all Airport functions and partner agencies
• Sets the strategic framework for AIOC performance, including inter-agency coordination protocols, escalation authorities, and standards for information sharing and operational decision-making
• Champions sustained investment in AIOC technology, data infrastructure, and operational systems, ensuring the Center remains at the leading edge of aviation operations management
• Ensures the AIOC functions as the connective tissue between SFO’s operational divisions, airline and concessionaire partners, federal agencies, and the City’s emergency management architecture
• Oversees the design and execution of joint operational exercises and full-scale drills that rigorously test SFO’s coordinated response capabilities and sharpen the Airport’s collective readiness

Safety, Security, and Emergency Management

Protecting the people, infrastructure, and operational integrity of San Francisco International Airport is the most fundamental responsibility of this role. The Managing Director holds ultimate executive accountability for a safety and security enterprise that is proactive, intelligence-informed, regulatory-compliant, and built to respond with confidence when it matters most.

• Sets the strategic direction for SFO’s comprehensive safety, security, and emergency management enterprise, ensuring programs are forward-looking, threat-aware, and compliant with FAA, TSA, CBP, and OSHA requirements
• Holds executive accountability for the Airport Security Program (ASP) and the Airport Emergency Plan (AEP), ensuring both are operationally current, regularly exercised, and reflective of the evolving threat landscape
• Cultivates high-trust, high-performance partnerships with the San Francisco Police Department, TSA, FBI, CBP, and other federal, state, and local law enforcement and regulatory stakeholders
• Directs SFO’s enterprise approach to access control, perimeter integrity, surveillance systems, and physical security infrastructure, continuously raising the standard for campus-wide protection
• Leads the organizational response to significant security incidents, providing command clarity, guiding inter-agency coordination, and ensuring rigorous after-action review drives lasting improvement
• Integrates emergency preparedness into the fabric of daily operations, leading a program where planning is disciplined, exercises are realistic, and the organization responds to crisis with the composure of a team that has prepared for it
• Serves in executive command authority within SFO’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) structure, coordinating with the City’s Department of Emergency Management, regional mutual aid partners, and federal emergency management agencies
• Leads crisis communications strategy and public information coordination during emergency activations, partnering with the Airport Director and SFO Communications to ensure consistent, credible, and transparent public messaging
• Builds and sustains a culture of safety excellence and commitment to business continuity, ensuring every member of the division understands their role in protecting the Airport and the people it serves every member of the division understands their role in protecting the Airport and the people it serves

Airfield Operations

SFO’s airfield is among the most operationally complex environments in American aviation. The Managing Director ensures that SFO’s airfield operation is executed with the precision, discipline, and regulatory mastery that the nation’s busiest and most consequential airports demand.

• Provides executive oversight of SFO’s airfield operation, encompassing FAR Part 139 certification compliance, runway and taxiway safety management, and execution of the Wildlife Hazard Management Program
• Ensures the airfield operations team maintains an unwavering standard of safety and regulatory compliance in coordination with the FAA, airline partners, and ground service providers
• Directs management of airfield construction impacts, temporary operating procedures, and NOTAM coordination, protecting safety and minimizing operational disruption through periods of significant infrastructure activity
• Provides executive direction for real-time response to weather events, airspace management challenges, and operational disruptions in close coordination with the AIOC and airline stakeholders

Administration and Resource Stewardship

Operational excellence at scale requires disciplined administration and strategic investment in people, systems, and organizational capability. The Managing Director is supported by a dedicated Administrative Manager who leads the division’s administrative infrastructure and is accountable for the outcomes those functions produce.

• Holds executive accountability for the development, oversight, and stewardship of the division’s $65 million annual budget, ensuring resources are allocated strategically, expenditures are managed with rigor, and financial performance is reported with transparency to the COO and Airport Commission
• Directs division-wide workforce planning and talent strategy, ensuring the Integrated Operations team has the depth, capability, and succession strength to meet SFO’s present and future operational demands
• Oversees the design and execution of training programs across the division, ensuring every team is prepared, certified, and continuously developing the skills that operational excellence requires
• Provides executive direction for the division’s contract portfolio, ensuring procurements are strategically aligned, vendor relationships are high-performing, and contract outcomes deliver measurable value to SFO’s operational mission
• Anticipates financial risks and emerging resource needs, bringing the COO proactive analysis and actionable solutions rather than problems alone

Executive Stakeholder Leadership

The Managing Director is SFO’s senior operational voice in the rooms where it matters: from federal regulatory hearings and airline executive forums to Airport Commission sessions and City Hall. This leader builds relationships that strengthen SFO’s standing, advance its interests, and create the conditions for operational partnership at the highest level.

• Serves as SFO’s authoritative operational representative with the FAA, TSA, CBP, and other federal regulatory agencies, maintaining compliance relationships built on credibility, transparency, and demonstrated operational excellence
• Represents the Integrated Operations Division before the Airport Commission, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, city departments, and the public on matters of safety, security, airfield operations, and organizational performance
• Develops and stewards productive partnerships with airline executives, ground handlers, federal inspection agencies, and other Airport stakeholders on operational matters of shared consequence
• Provides the COO and Airport Director with the executive counsel they need, offering clear analysis, sound judgment, and well-reasoned recommendations on matters of significant operational or public impact

People Leadership and Organizational Development

The strength of the Integrated Operations Division begins and ends with its people. The Managing Director invests in the talent, culture, and organizational conditions that allow more than 250 professionals to do the best work of their careers in service of SFO’s mission.

• Builds a leadership team culture defined by accountability, psychological safety, mutual trust, and a shared commitment to the division’s mission, modeling the values and behaviors expected at every level of the organization
• Invests meaningfully in the growth and development of senior leaders across the division, building the depth and succession strength the organization needs to sustain high performance over time
• Ensures performance is managed with clarity and consistency, recognizing excellence, addressing gaps with directness and support, and creating the conditions for every employee to contribute at their highest level
• Champions a workplace where SFO’s commitment to equity, inclusion, and belonging is reflected in how the division operates, how decisions are made, and how people are developed and advanced
• Defines and tracks division-wide performance indicators that illuminate both operational outcomes and organizational health, reporting findings with candor and using data to drive meaningful, lasting improvement
• Performs other duties as assigned

Qualifications

Qualifications

1. Education: Possession of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university; AND
2. Experience: Six (6) years of managerial experience at a commercial service airport involving airport operations, maintenance, safety and security, and customer service. All experience must include supervisory functions; AND
3. Possession of a valid Class C Driver’s License. A California license must be obtained prior to appointment. Employees are required to maintain a satisfactory driving record.

Substitution: Additional qualifying work experience as described above may be substituted for up to two (2) years of the required education on a year-for-year basis. One year of work experience is equal to 30 semester or 45 quarter units.

Every application is reviewed to ensure that you meet the minimum qualifications as listed in the job ad. Please review our articles on Employment Application and Minimum Qualifications and Verification of Experience and/or Education for considerations taken when reviewing applications. 

Applicants must meet the minimum qualification requirement by the final filing date unless otherwise noted.

One year full-time employment is equivalent to 2,000 hours (2,000 hours of qualifying work experience is based on a 40 hour work week). Any overtime hours that you work above 40 hours per week are not included in the calculation to determine full-time employment.

Desirable Qualifications
The stated desirable qualifications may be used to identify job finalists at the end of the selection process when candidates are referred to hiring.

The strongest candidates will bring progressively responsible senior leadership experience at a large-hub commercial service airport, a track record of managing complex multi-disciplinary teams, and a demonstrated ability to lead with authority across safety, security, and operational functions simultaneously.

SFO is looking for an executive who brings more than credentials. The right candidate leads with conviction, earns trust across every level of the organization, and brings a genuine sense of mission to the work of keeping an airport safe and moving. Specifically, we are looking for someone who offers:

• A compelling record of leading safety-critical, high-complexity operational programs with the authority, judgment, and steadiness that this scale of responsibility demands
• Deep expertise across one or more of the division’s core domains, from airport operations and safety and security to airfield management and emergency management, paired with the intellectual range to lead effectively across all of them
• The ability to build trust quickly and credibly with a wide range of stakeholders, from federal regulators and airline executives to frontline workforce leaders and elected officials
• A communication style that is clear, confident, and authoritative, as effective in an emergency command center as it is in an Airport Commission hearing or a one-on-one conversation with a team member
• A genuine commitment to developing people, shaping organizational culture, and leaving every team stronger, more capable, and more confident than they found it
• The strategic patience and composure to lead through crisis, sustained pressure, and organizational complexity without losing sight of the long-term mission

Nature of Work
May require extensive walking, standing, computer work requiring keyboarding and prolonged sitting and working off a flat screen monitor to perform job duties; ability to work effectively with executives, managers, co-workers, contractors and other personnel; and ability to identify issues and problem solve.

Verification
Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at Verification of Experience and/or Education

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed City and County of San Francisco application. Applications completed improperly may be cause for ineligibility, disqualification or may lead to lower scores.

Selection Procedures
The selection process will include evaluation of applications in relation to minimum requirements.  Applicants meeting the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement to interview.  Depending on the number of applicants, the Department may establish and implement additional screening mechanisms to comparatively evaluate the qualifications of candidates.  If this becomes necessary, only those applicants whose qualifications most closely meet the needs of the Department will be invited for an interview.

NOTE: Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement through all of the steps in the selection procedure.

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Security Clearance: Candidates for employment with the San Francisco Airport Commission are required to undergo a criminal history record check, including FBI fingerprints, and Security Threat Assessment in order to determine eligibility for security clearance and may be required to undergo drug/alcohol screening. Per Civil Service Commission Rule Section 110.9.1, every applicant for an examination must possess and maintain the qualifications required by law and by the examination announcement for the examination. Failure to obtain and maintain security clearance may be basis for termination from employment with the Airport Commission.

Customs Clearance:  This position requires that the incumbent be qualified for unescorted access to the San Francisco International Airport U.S. Customs Security Area. An application for a U.S. Custom Access Seal may be submitted to Customs ONLY after employment has commenced. Employment in this position requires that the incumbent submit an application for, successfully acquire and maintain a Customs Access Seal. Per Civil Service Commission Rule 110.9.1, every applicant must possess and maintain the qualifications required by law and by the examination announcement for this examination. Failure to acquire or maintain customs access, a requirement for this position, may be basis for termination from employment with the Airport Commission. Customs Access Seal requirements and procedures are located in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 19, Part 122, Sections 181 or 189.

Additional Information

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

• Information About the Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview  
• Equal Employment Opportunity 
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

Applicants will receive a confirmation email from [email protected] that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

HOW TO APPLY
Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process. 

Visit https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/CityAndCountyOfSanFrancisco1/ and begin the application process.

• Select the “I’m Interested” button and follow instructions on the screen

Applicants may be contacted by email about this recruitment and, therefore, it is their responsibility to ensure that their registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that email from CCSF is not blocked on their computer by a spam filter. To prevent blocking, applicants should set up their email to accept CCSF mail from the following addresses (@sfgov.org, @sfdpw.org, @sfport.com, @flysfo.com, @sfwater.org, @sfdph.org, @asianart.org, @sfmta.com, @sfpl.org, @dcyf.org, @first5sf.org, @famsf.org, @ccsf.edu, @smartalerts.info, and @smartrecruiters.com).

Recruiter Information: If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the Recruiter Vicky Lei at [email protected].

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.