Chief Operating Officer (m/f/d)

Transparency International Berlin, Germany

The COO leads the internal operations of Transparency International (Secretariat), translating strategy into action and ensuring that Finance, People and Culture, Technology, and Governance, Legal & Events work as a coherent, high-performing operational backbone, both for the Secretariat itself and in service of the wider Movement. The COO is expected to proactively improve how the Secretariat works, modernising systems and processes, driving innovation, and building organisational resilience, while acting as a close partner to the CEO in strengthening culture, openness, trust and accountability.

• Owns the overall effectiveness and coherence of internal operations, bringing together the Heads of Finance, People and Culture, Technology, and Governance, Legal & Events for joined-up planning and transparent communication on organisation-wide policies.
• Proactively identifies opportunities to modernise processes, systems and ways of working, including through technology, and leads implementation of improvements.
• Leads strategic workforce planning for the Secretariat - anticipating future capability and capacity needs, shaping structure and skills in line with TI's strategic plan.
• Provides senior oversight of the finance function - line managing the Head of Finance, ensuring robust financial management, timely and accurate reporting, and a strong external audit process.

2. Line management of administrative functions

• Directly manages and coaches the Head of Finance, Head of People and Culture, Head of Technology, and Head of Governance and Legal. Motivates, inspires and mentors direct reports and their teams, creating real opportunities for professional development and growth.
• Ensures these functions align their annual plans and budgets with TI's strategic plan, and translates strategic workforce planning into concrete recruitment, structure and development plans with the Head of People and Culture.
• Serves as the Secretariat's primary management counterpart to the Works Council (Betriebsrat), building a constructive, trust-based relationship and ensuring proper consultation and co-determination on organisational, HR and workplace matters in line with German labour law.

3. Board administration

• Provides the administrative and secretariat support for the Board of Directors: proposes the agenda to the Chair in coordination with the CEO, ensures timely and high-quality board papers, minutes meetings, and tracks follow-up on action points.
• Oversees the governance function's work in support of the Board, ensuring the Chair and Vice-Chair receive professional, high-quality and timely support, in close coordination with the CEO.
• Keeps TI's governance framework, by-laws and internal policies properly documented and administratively compliant, flagging any need for substantive review to the CEO.

4. Movement governance and support to chapters

• Supporting the Secretariat's role in the accreditation of National Chapters, working with the Membership Accreditation Committee.
• Coordinates administrative and logistical support to the Annual Membership Meeting.
• Ensures Finance, Technology and Governance, Legal & Events offer chapters practical, efficient, service-oriented support, including guidance and tools adapted to the very different legal, security, regulatory and resource environments chapters operate in.

5. Compliance and institutional integrity

• Ensures the Secretariat's own policies (safeguarding, whistleblowing, conflict of interest, data protection) meet high standards, and are properly reported to the Board.
• Oversees statutory compliance for Transparency International as a Berlin-registered e.V., working with the Head of Governance and Legal.

Critical leadership capabilities

Strategic and forward-looking leadership

• Partners closely with the CEO to turn TI's strategic plan into a forward-looking operational strategy, strengthening systems.
• Anticipates capacity gaps and organisational risk in a changing environment, and shapes the Secretariat's response ahead of time.
• Understands and is responsive to the operational realities facing chapters working across very different legal, political and resource environments, ensuring Secretariat support is practical and locally relevant.
• Identifies strategic changes and develops implementation plans that achieve genuine buy-in across a diverse, geographically dispersed Secretariat and Movement.

Driving results

• Communicates the CEO's vision and strategy with clarity and conviction, keeping long-term goals visible while reviewing progress regularly with teams and leadership.
• Successfully balances short-term operational demands with long-term priorities, sustaining organisational momentum; adjusts scope as needed.
• Brings a data-driven, continuous-improvement mindset, and leads initiatives that increase efficiency, resilience and impact, including in how the Secretariat serves chapters.

People leadership and organisational impact

• Models TI's values, ensuring the highest operational and management standards appropriate to a complex, global membership organisation.
• Sets clear goals and fosters a culture that welcomes change and innovation, engaging others through thoughtful, consistent leadership.
• Promotes diversity, equity and inclusion across the Secretariat, and manages performance fairly, consistently and transparently.
• Cultivates energy, commitment and accountability among staff, building a collaborative environment that strengthens organisational effectiveness.

Partnering on culture, openness and accountability

• Acts as a close partner to the CEO in shaping and safeguarding a culture of openness, trust and accountability across the Secretariat, modelling the standards TI expects.

Person specification

• 12-15+ years of senior leadership experience in operations/administration within an INGO, membership-based organisation, or comparably complex multi-stakeholder environment.
• Track record line-managing finance, HR, IT and/or legal functions at senior level, and leading through others.
• Demonstrated success driving organisational change, process improvement or innovation in a complex organisation.
• Experience in strategic workforce planning, organisational design and change management.
• Experience providing service-oriented operational support to a decentralised network of affiliates or chapters operating across diverse legal, political and resource environments.
• Experience supporting a governing board administratively (board secretary experience a strong plus), with a clear understanding of where administrative support ends and political engagement begins.
• Experience engaging with employee representation bodies (e.g., Works Councils) in a German or other context is a strong asset.
• Sophisticated understanding of financial management and comfort using data to drive decisions.
• Sound judgement and discretion, given proximity to the Board and sensitive governance matters.
• Fluent English required; German and other languages an advantage.

The role reports to the Chief Executive Officer.