Directorate Chief Operations Officer, Environmental & Legacy Management

The Directorate Chief Operations Officer (DCOO) serves as the senior operational executive for the Environmental & Legacy Management (ELM) Directorate at Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) and is a key member of the directorate leadership team. Reporting directly to the Associate Laboratory Director (ALD), the DCOO is responsible for translating strategic vision into operational execution by integrating people, facilities, infrastructure, business systems, governance, and organizational processes into a unified enterprise that enables world-class science. Working collaboratively with Division Directors, Mission Support organizations, and Laboratory leadership, the DCOO ensures the directorate has the operational capabilities, organizational agility, and institutional partnerships necessary to execute today’s mission while positioning ELM for future growth and emerging Department of Energy (DOE) priorities. The DCOO serves as the principal operational advisor to the ALD and provides executive leadership for operational excellence, organizational performance, workforce development, strategic planning, enterprise risk management, digital transformation, and continuous improvement. The position is responsible for building the operational foundation that enables scientific innovation, accelerates mission delivery, and strengthens SRNL’s leadership across the DOE complex.

About Environmental & Legacy Management: ELM is one of SRNL’s multidisciplinary research organizations. The directorate develops and deploys scientific and engineering solutions that address some of the nation’s most significant environmental cleanup, nuclear materials, and energy challenges. ELM integrates environmental science, radiochemistry, analytical chemistry, process engineering, advanced separations, environmental monitoring, waste treatment, robotics, artificial intelligence, digital engineering, advanced manufacturing, and deployable field systems to deliver technologies that reduce environmental risk, accelerate cleanup, improve operational performance, and enable future national security and energy missions. The directorate supports multiple DOE program offices—including DOE’s Office of Environmental Management, Office of Nuclear Energy, Office of Science, the National Nuclear Security Administration, and other federal agencies—through research that spans fundamental science, technology development, engineering demonstration, and field deployment.

ELM believes exceptional science requires exceptional operations. Operational excellence is not separate from scientific excellence—it is the foundation that enables it. ELM is committed to creating an environment where scientists and engineers can focus on solving nationally important technical challenges because the organization’s people, facilities, infrastructure, business systems, governance, and operational processes function as an integrated enterprise. The DCOO plays a central role in bringing this philosophy to life.

Strategic Leadership and Organizational Integration

• Partner with the ALD to execute the ELM Strategic Plan and translate long-term vision into measurable operational outcomes.

• Serve as the operational integrator across scientific divisions, Mission Support organizations, and Laboratory leadership to ensure organizational alignment with strategic priorities.

• Develop long-range operational strategies supporting workforce growth, facility modernization, infrastructure investment, and future DOE mission opportunities.

• Coordinate directorate planning activities that position ELM for sustained scientific excellence and mission growth.

Operational Excellence

• Lead all operational aspects of the directorate, ensuring research is conducted safely, securely, efficiently, and in full compliance with DOE requirements and SRNL policies.

• Foster a culture of operational excellence built upon SRNL’s Safe Conduct of Research principles.

• Establish governance processes that promote accountability, transparency, disciplined decision-making, and organizational effectiveness.

• Develop operational performance metrics and key performance indicators that support continuous improvement and data-informed decision-making.

Mission Enablement

• Ensure people, facilities, laboratories, equipment, infrastructure, and business systems effectively support scientific research and technology deployment.

• Lead operational readiness activities that enable successful execution of research programs and emerging mission opportunities.