Vice President, Cruelty Recovery Center

Summary:

The Vice President of the Cruelty Recovery Center (VP) leads the sheltering component of the ASPCA’s national response to animal cruelty and natural disasters. Based at the Cruelty Recovery Center (CRC) in Columbus, this role oversees a highly skilled team providing lifesaving care for animals rescued from large-scale cruelty cases and emergency situations. Working closely with leaders across disciplines, the CRC team delivers integrated, quality care—from intake through outcomes—both at the CRC facility and in temporary shelters established in the field.

Who We Are

For more than 150 years, the ASPCA has been on the frontlines to save, transform and protect the lives of millions of animals. The CRC team takes the ASPCA's commitment to the very heart of where help is most urgently needed. We are looking for a VP to lead our team, improving the lives of vulnerable animals who need us most.

The CRC provides intake, care, and outcomes for animals impacted by cruelty and natural disasters, serving as a vital part of the ASPCA’s national efforts to help communities respond effectively to animal cruelty—particularly in cases involving large populations of animals. At the CRC, sheltering, veterinary, and animal behavior professionals work side by side to deliver compassionate, high-quality care. The CRC team is comprised of staff, responders, and a growing number of volunteers and foster families. For the planning of new cases, CRC leadership joins a multi-disciplinary group of ASPCA departments who collaborate to ensure coordinated operations and excellent care, supporting animals at the CRC facility in Columbus and in temporary shelters established in the field.

What You’ll Do

The Vice President of the CRC oversees the ASPCA’s Columbus-based shelter, ensuring consistent, efficient, and forward-thinking operations for animals in the CRC’s care. Reporting to the Senior Vice President of Shelter and Rehabilitation Operations (SVP SRO), the VP leads teams in delivering fully integrated care, while ensuring medical, behavioral, and operational teams work seamlessly together. Under this leadership, pathway planning is a shared responsibility across all functions, balancing excellent care with the urgency required to be ready for the next critical request for assistance. The role also plays an important part in strengthening local engagement, building relationships within the Columbus community to grow adoptions, foster participation, and on-site volunteer support.

The Vice President is a strategic, people-centered leader who drives excellent operations, models collaboration within a complex, matrixed organization, and helps advance the field of animal sheltering. This role combines big-picture planning with boots-on-the-ground leadership—guiding teams through fast-moving work while supporting staff resilience. In doing so, the VP helps ensure the CRC continue to strive to be a model for emergency sheltering. For a leader inspired by purpose, innovation, and teamwork, this is a rare opportunity to shape national animal welfare efforts within a mission-driven organization.

As a member of the Shelter and Rehabilitation Operations Leadership Team (SRO LT), you will serve as a key leader, working collaboratively to advance the ASPCA’s shelter operations in ways that benefit animals, people, and the sheltering field. You will be an influential leader fostering alignment, engagement, and commitment across programs. The SRO LT models professionalism, collaboration, and open communication, creating and maintaining programs that are a great place for people to work and for animals to receive care.

• VP, the Cruelty Recovery Center reports directly to the SVP, Shelter and Rehabilitation Operations and has 4 direct reports.

When & Where You’ll Work

• This is an on-site position based at the ASPCA’s Cruelty Recovery Center in Columbus, OH.
• The regular schedule for this position is Monday through Friday and requires flexibility, as some early mornings, evenings and weekends are required based on operational needs in support of a 7-day per week operation. Work schedules are subject to change at the discretion of the ASPCA.
• This role requires the ability and willingness to travel up to 15% annually, as needed.

What You’ll Get

Compensation

Starting pay for the successful applicant will depend on a variety of factors, including but not limited to education, training, experience, location, business needs, internal equity, market demands or budgeted amount for the role. The target hiring range is for new hire offers only, and staff compensation may increase beyond the maximum hiring range based on performance over time. The maximum of the hiring range is reserved for candidates with the highest qualifications and relevant experience. The expected hiring salary range for this role is set forth below and may be modified in the future. 

• The target hiring range for this role is $160,000 - $175,000 annually

Benefits

At the ASPCA, you don’t have to choose between your passion and making a living. Our comprehensive benefits package helps ensure you can live a rewarding life at work and at home. Our benefits include but are not limited to:

• Affordable health coverage, including medical, employer-paid dental and optional vision coverage.
• Flexible time off that includes vacation time, sick and bereavement time, paid parental leave, 10 company paid holidays and paid personal time off that allows flexibility to observe the days that mean the most to you.
• Competitive financial incentives and retirement savings, including a 401(k) plan with generous employer contributions — we match dollar-for-dollar up to 4% and provide an additional 4% contribution toward your future each year.
• Robust professional development opportunities including classes, on-the-job training, coaching and mentorship with industry-leading peers, internal mobility, opportunities to support in the field and so much more.

For more information on our benefits offerings, visit our website.

Responsibilities:

Responsibility buckets are listed in general order of importance. They include, but are not limited to:

Leadership and Planning

• Lead the department to take progressive steps towards consistency across teams; effectively communicate objectives, expectations and accountabilities all with an eye towards helping as many animals as possible

• Proactively identify and resolve operational challenges, and capitalize on opportunities to improve efficiency, effectiveness and quality of animal care and foster, volunteer, and adopter experiences; keep lines of communication open with staff to ensure responsiveness and productivity

• Ensure compliance with applicable laws and adherence to  the Association of Shelter Veterinarians’ “Guidelines for Standards of Care in Animal Shelters”

• Collaborate with veterinary and animal behavior functions and leadership to ensure practices are integrated and aligned 

• Guide the department’s leadership teams in identifying, collecting, monitoring and interpreting important indicators that will inform sound decision-making as well as training and development plans

• Explore and develop opportunities to engage more deeply with the Columbus community to increase adoptions, foster homes, and on-site volunteers

• Perform other duties as assigned by SVP SRO

People Management and Staff Development

• Manage a team of +/-50 employees to succeed in their role by communicating clear expectations, providing opportunities for learning and development, and building positive and trusting relationships

• Work with partnering teams to oversee the management of a contingent workforce that supports CRC operations in Ohio and in temporary field shelters

• Support direct reports by holding regular effective feedback conversations, career conversations, annual performance evaluations, and ongoing check-in conversations with each team member on a cadence that’s appropriate for their role(s)

• Nurture a culture that is welcoming and respectful, where staff are engaged in learning and achieving individual and collective goals

• Collaborate with the SVPs of Operations, Veterinary Medicine, and Animal Behavior to maximize expertise across the organization by supporting the matrixed structure. Strengthen integrated decision-making by maintaining strong relationships with and fostering clear communication among ASPCA leaders.

• Foster unity across functions and bring staff together behind the goal of providing hands-on integrated care for at-risk animals while continually innovating to elevate the field 

• Provide training, supervision, modeling, coaching and ongoing guidance for direct reports and the teams they lead

• Support alignment of managers in the matrixed structure. Set an example of – as well as expectations for – exceptional collaboration through regular constructive and productive communication and team building. Build strong relationships across matrix, communicating regularly, and providing performance input on a quarterly basis at a minimum