Director of Residential Services

SafeHouse Denver, Inc.; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical – Kaiser Permanente

Dental

Vision

Long-term Disability

Life Insurance

Retirement Plan with employer match

90% of Health Insurance Premiums paid

Wellness Benefit and Wellness Days

Robust time off package

Mileage reimbursement

Job summary

SafeHouse Denver, Inc. is seeking a Director of Residential Services to lead all aspects of our 24/7 residential programs, ensuring safety, quality care, and survivor-centered services.

The role reports to the CEO and requires strategic oversight, staff development, policy implementation, and collaboration across departments to meet funding and service goals.

Qualifications

• Minimum of five years of progressively responsible management or leadership experience within human services, victim services, housing, homelessness services, behavioral health, or related field.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams, including supervising managers or experienced professionals, through change and complexity.
• Significant experience in domestic violence, victim services, emergency shelter, housing, homelessness services, or related residential services.
• Experience with 24/7 programming, staffing, crisis response, safety planning, facility operations, and continuity of services.
• Strong grounding in trauma-informed, equity-centered, and survivor-led practice.
• Demonstrated experience with crisis intervention, de-escalation, safety planning, and complex decision-making.
• Experience managing program budgets, contracts, grants, compliance, outcomes, and reporting.
• Experience developing and implementing policies, procedures, programs, and operational systems.

Responsibilities

• Serve as an active member of the senior leadership team, contributing to organizational strategy, planning, decision-making, and implementation.
• Provide strategic oversight and accountability for the overall effectiveness, quality, safety, accessibility, and sustainability of Residential Services.
• Translate organizational priorities into clear program goals, expectations, systems, and practices for residential programs.
• Keep the CEO informed of residential operations, staffing, performance, emerging needs, risks, and opportunities.
• Contribute to budgeting, workforce planning, policy development, risk management, and continuous program improvement.
• Develop and maintain residential policies, procedures, emergency protocols, and operational systems.
• Ensure adequate staffing, scheduling, supervisory coverage, crisis-line coverage, and after-hours/on-call systems to maintain safe and effective services.
• Maintain a visible presence within residential programs and a strong working knowledge of day-to-day residential operations.
• Serve as a senior point of escalation for significant incidents and emergencies.
• Collaborate with Facilities to ensure residential properties are safe, functional, welcoming, accessible, and compliant.
• Partner with Director of Survivor Services to meet grant requirements and ensure data collection, auditing, reporting.

Skills

Leadership experience

Program management

Trauma-informed practice

Crisis intervention

De-escalation

Budget/Grant management

Policy development

Job description

Reports to: Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Position Type: Full-time (40 hours per week) exempt

Benefits: Medical – Kaiser Permanente, Dental, Vision, Long-term Disability, Life Insurance, Retirement Plan with employer match; 90% of Health Insurance Premiums paid by employer; Wellness Benefit and Wellness Days; Robust time off package; Mileage reimbursement.

About SafeHouse Denver: SafeHouse Denver is the only organization in the City and County of Denver that provides both emergency shelter and non-residential counseling and advocacy services exclusively to adult, child, and youth survivors of domestic violence. Founded in 1977, SafeHouse Denver is deeply rooted in a mission to support survivors in reclaiming their lives.

Position Summary:

The Director of Residential Services is a leadership team position responsible for the overall leadership, quality, safety, and daily operations of SafeHouse Denver’s residential services. Reporting directly to the CEO, the DORS ensures that residential programs operate safely and effectively, 24 hours a day, seven days a week and that survivors and their children receive welcoming, accessible, trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and survivor-centered services. This position requires a leader who can balance strategic leadership with the day-to-day realities of operating a domestic violence shelter. The DORS leads and develops residential staff and supervisors, oversees service delivery and housing-related programming, ensures appropriate staffing and crisis response, maintains program and funding compliance, monitors outcomes, and collaborates across the organization to respond to the evolving needs of survivors. As a member of SafeHouse Denver’s leadership team, the DORS contributes to organizational strategy, culture, planning, risk management, and continuous improvement. This role will rotate with members of the leadership team as on-call executive manager for 24/7 residential services 1 week/month.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Serve as an active member of the senior leadership team, contributing to organizational strategy, planning, decision-making, and implementation.
• Provide strategic oversight and accountability for the overall effectiveness, quality, safety, accessibility, and sustainability of Residential Services.
• Translate organizational priorities into clear program goals, expectations, systems, and practices for residential programs.
• Keepthe CEO informed of residential operations, staffing, performance, emerging needs, risks, and opportunities.
• Contribute to budgeting, workforce planning, policy development, risk management, and continuous program improvement.

2. Residential Safety, Compliance & Program Quality

• Develop and maintain residential policies, procedures, emergency protocols, and operational systems consistent with best practices and organizational requirements, in collaboration with residential leadership.
• Ensure adequate staffing, scheduling, supervisory coverage, crisis-line coverage, and after-hours/on-call systems to maintain safe and effective services.
• Maintain a visible presence within residential programs and a strong working knowledge of day-to-day residentialoperations.
• Serve as a senior point of escalation for significant incidents and emergencies.
• Participate in the agency’s on-call leadership structure and respond to significant residential emergencies as needed.
• Ensure continuity of essential services during staffing shortages, severe weather, facility concerns, emergencies, and other unexpected circumstances.
• Partner closely with Facilities staff to ensure residential properties are safe, functional, welcoming, accessible, and compliant with applicable requirements.
• Collaborate and delegate, as appropriate,to ensure food, supplies, transportation, technology, and other operational needs are effectively met.
• Partner with Director of Survivor Services to ensure grant requirements are met, and that data is collected, audited, assessed, reported, and shared in a timely manner.

3. Community Partnerships & External Representation

• Develop and maintain relationships with domestic violence providers, housing organizations, government agencies, behavioral health providers, healthcare organizations, legal resources, and homelessness services.
• Participate in community collaborations and systems-level initiatives relevant to domestic violence, residential services, housing, and survivor needs.
• Collaborateacross Development, Finance, Facilities, Communications, and other organizational functions to support residential program needs.
• Represent SafeHouse Denver with funders, community partners, government entities, coalitions, and other stakeholders as appropriate.

4. Cross-Program Collaboration

• Partner with the Director of Survivor Services to promote alignment and continuity across residential and non-residential programs
• Provide consultation and strategic support to non-residential services as needed, particularly during periods of change, complexity, or service integration.
• Contribute survivor-services expertise and strategic support for cross-program planning, problem-solving, and service coordination.
• Build strong relationships across SafeHouse Dnever and promote effective coordination while maintaining clear role boundaries.

5. Equity, Trauma-Informed Practice & Values Alignment

• Ensure survivor services are grounded in trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and survivor-centered practice.
• Assess how policies, practices, and service models impact marginalized survivor communities.
• Support staff navigating emotional labor, ethical complexity, and secondary trauma.
• Model values-based leadership consistent with SafeHouse Denver’s mission and commitments to equity and inclusion.

Qualifications

• Minimum of five years of progressively responsible management or leadership experience within human services, victim services, housing, homelessness services, behavioral health, or related field.
• Demonstrated experience leading and developing multidisciplinary teams, including supervising managers, supervisors, or experienced professionals and leading teams through complexity, change, and emotionally demanding work.
• Significant experience in domestic violence, victim services, emergency shelter, housing, homelessness services, or closely related residential human services.
• Experience with the operational demands of residential or 24/7 programming, including staffing, scheduling, crisis response, safety planning, facility operations, and continuity of services.
• Strong grounding in trauma-informed, equity-centered, and survivor-led practice.
• Demonstrated experience with crisis intervention, de-escalation, safety planning, and complex decision-making.
• Experience managing program budgets, contracts, grant requirements, compliance, outcomes, and organizational resources.
• Experience developing and implementing policies, procedures, programs, and operational systems.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement:

SafeHouse Denver, Inc. is dedicated to the principles of equal employment opportunities. We provide equal employment and advancement opportunities to all individuals based on job-related qualifications and their ability and willingness to perform the duties necessary to accomplish the job, without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, marital status, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender variance or identification, disability, military status economic status, citizenship status, and/or veteran status. It is our policy to maintain a non-discriminatory environment free from intimidation, harassment, or bias based upon these grounds.