Application Guide

How to Apply for Chief of Staff

at Our Roots

🏢 About Our Roots

Our Roots is a mission-driven nonprofit tackling maternal mental health disparities by connecting pregnant and postpartum individuals—especially those in historically overlooked communities—with peer coaches. Working here means joining a lean, impact-focused team that values innovation and equity in healthcare.

About This Role

As Chief of Staff, you’ll be the CEO’s right hand, driving strategic growth, product improvements, and operational efficiency. Your work will directly scale the organization’s reach and deepen its impact on maternal mental health, from streamlining Medicaid contracts to building systems for a growing team.

💡 A Day in the Life

You’ll start by reviewing product analytics and team updates, then meet with the CEO to align on priorities for the week. Afternoons might involve drafting a Medicaid billing workflow, reviewing a product feature for engagement, or coaching a team member on project milestones. You’ll end the day by reporting on key metrics and sequencing next steps for growth.

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Interview Prep

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🎯 Who Our Roots Is Looking For

  • A strategic operator with 7+ years in strategy/operations/product, ideally in health tech or tech nonprofit startups (2-3 years early-stage experience).
  • Data-savvy: proficient in Excel for analytics and comfortable with product metrics to inform decisions on engagement and retention.
  • Project management expert who can build workflows, manage billing/reporting, and support a remote team without micromanaging.
  • Passionate about maternal mental health equity and comfortable working in a fast-paced, resource-constrained nonprofit environment.

📝 Tips for Applying to Our Roots

1

Highlight specific examples of streamlining operations or improving product metrics in a startup or nonprofit context (e.g., reduced churn, scaled a program).

2

Show familiarity with Medicaid or government contracting workflows—mention any experience with billing, compliance, or reporting for such contracts.

3

Quantify your impact: use numbers to demonstrate how you’ve deepened engagement, improved retention, or built scalable systems.

4

Tailor your resume to emphasize product ownership and team-building, even if it was informal, since the role requires wearing multiple hats.

5

Address why you’re drawn to maternal mental health and Our Roots’ focus on underserved communities—personal connection matters here.

✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter

['Your experience with early-stage growth: how you’ve helped a startup or nonprofit prioritize opportunities and sequence initiatives.', 'Product improvement examples: how you’ve used data to drive engagement or retention in a health-related product.', 'Operational wins: specific systems you’ve built (e.g., workflows, billing processes) that could apply to Medicaid contracts.', 'Your alignment with the mission: show genuine commitment to perinatal mental health and reducing disparities.']

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🔍 Research Before Applying

To stand out, make sure you've researched:

  • → Read Our Roots’ website and blog to understand their peer coaching model, target communities, and any published outcomes or impact reports.
  • → Look into maternal mental health disparities in the US, especially for Black and Indigenous populations, to speak knowledgeably about the problem.
  • → Review Medicaid reimbursement for perinatal mental health services in key states (e.g., California, New York) to understand operational context.
  • → Check the CEO’s LinkedIn or any interviews to understand their leadership style and priorities for growth.
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💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics

Based on this role, you may be asked about:

1 How would you evaluate and prioritize growth opportunities for a nonprofit with limited resources? Walk us through your framework.
2 Describe a time you improved a product’s engagement metrics. What data did you use, and what was the outcome?
3 What’s your approach to streamlining operations for a government contract like Medicaid? How do you ensure compliance without stifling agility?
4 How do you manage a remote team and build systems that scale? Give an example of a process you implemented.
5 Why Our Roots specifically? What do you know about our peer coaching model and the communities we serve?
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⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Don’t submit a generic application—failing to mention maternal mental health or the nonprofit’s mission signals lack of interest.
  • Avoid overemphasizing corporate experience without connecting it to startup/nonprofit constraints (e.g., limited budget, small team).
  • Don’t ignore the product aspect: this isn’t just an ops role; show you can think about user engagement and retention.

📅 Application Timeline

This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.

Typical hiring timeline:

1

Application Review

1-2 weeks

2

Initial Screening

Phone call or written assessment

3

Interviews

1-2 rounds, usually virtual

✓

Offer

Congratulations!

Ready to Apply?

Good luck with your application to Our Roots!

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