Chief of staff job description

Your guide to finding and hiring the right person for your organization

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Job description

What does a chief of staff do?

Chiefs of staff (CoS) work in all industries and are integral to a company’s productivity and effectiveness. While specific chief of staff roles vary across organizations, the essence remains the same. CoS responsibilities include leading teams, easing communications, and uniting people across organizations to keep them moving forward. These multi-talented professionals are often the right hand to other top-tier executives, including presidents, heads of departments, and chief executive officers (CEOs). Chief of staff salaries vary, however they tend to fall within other C-suite executive salary brackets.

Because of their influence and impact on organizational success, it’s important to find the right chief of staff. That means starting with an accurate job description. You can tailor the one below to your individual needs.

How to write a chief of staff job description

To attract the ideal chief of staff, the job description should be concise and simple. Tell candidates how they’ll contribute to your organization from the moment they start, and how those contributions will impact your success. Additionally, the post should introduce your organization in a way that communicates its conventions and values.

Review the lists of objectives, responsibilities, and qualifications carefully. Ensure that every point accurately reflects the expectations for the chief of staff role. Use direct language, avoiding jargon and slang, and keep the lists to no more than six bullets each.

Chief of staff job description template

This sample job post will introduce your organization’s culture and values, while helping potential candidates understand how they’ll contribute from Day 1.

Sample chief of staff job description

At [Company X], we’ve experienced a strong period of growth as the direct result of increased efficiency and productivity. To continue this trajectory, we’re searching for a highly qualified chief of staff to work closely with our executive team. From Day 1, this person will have an immediate impact on our productivity by streamlining strategic initiatives, overseeing program management, and communicating objectives to departments. The ideal candidate will have proven success in a business management role, with a special focus on executive-level advising and interdepartmental collaboration.

Objectives of this role

Oversee strategic business initiatives, from development through successful execution, under the guidance of senior leadership and department heads
Assist and communicate with executives in decision-making, program management, and initiative implementation
Review, design, and execute improvements to organizational structure; find knowledge and skills gaps and help address them
Improve current processes and optimize organizational procedures for efficiency and productivity

Responsibilities

Serve as liaison with staff, executives, senior leaders, and CEO regarding company climate, employee well-being, project updates, proposals, and planning
Assist the human resources department with new hires, including documentation and onboarding, and collaborate to address and resolve all employee concerns
Oversee daily operations in collaboration with senior managers and department leaders, and perform administrative tasks such as managing calendars, generating correspondence, maintaining hard copies and electronic files, planning and coordinating annual corporate meetings, and scheduling facilities
Develop and build on relationships with all employees for increased efficiency and responsiveness of existing operations, and help define new operational strategies by working with CEO and other executives on special projects
Serve as a subject-matter expert, handling inquiries, developing action plans, and assisting with preparation and dissemination of communications

Required skills and qualifications

Seven or more years of experience in a business management or executive role
Experience in organizing and directing multiple teams and departments
Experience in planning and leading strategic initiatives
Excellent written and verbal communication skills
Versatile abilities and extreme dedication to efficient productivity

Preferred skills and qualifications

Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent experience) in business administration or similar field
Experience in data analysis and budget management
Consulting experience, with a focus on operations management
Proven success in a project coordination role
Nimble business mind, focused on developing creative solutions
Strong project-reporting skills, with focus on interdepartmental communications