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Job description
About the Organization
Forrest Behavioral Health is a growing behavioral health treatment organization serving individuals with substance use disorders, mental health conditions, and co-occurring diagnoses. The organization operates with a strong focus on delivering high-quality treatment while building environments where both patients and employees feel supported.
As the organization continues to grow across multiple states and locations, leadership is focused on strengthening an operating model that is already working well, identifying opportunities for improvement, and ensuring consistent execution across facilities.
The Opportunity
We are seeking a hands‑on Chief Operating Officer to help lead the operational performance and continued growth of Forrest Behavioral Health across Massachusetts and Illinois, with potential involvement in Rhode Island.
This is not a role focused on rebuilding an underperforming organization. The facilities are established and generally operate near target capacity. The opportunity is to understand an existing operating model, identify weaknesses and inefficiencies, strengthen execution, and help leadership scale that model successfully as the organization grows.
The COO will partner closely with ownership and facility Directors while maintaining the independence and accountability necessary to move initiatives forward. Approximately one week of travel per month is expected, depending on operational needs.
Who Thrives Here
The strongest fit is a behavioral health operator who is ambitious, adaptable, accountable, and comfortable getting directly involved when necessary.
You may currently be a COO, VP of Operations, Regional Director, Executive Director, or similar leader who has spent several meaningful years within substance use disorder or mental health treatment and is ready to take on broader responsibility.
This role does not require decades of executive experience. It does require someone who understands how behavioral health facilities actually operate and can move comfortably between strategic leadership and practical problem‑solving.
You should be able to walk into a facility, recognize where something is not working, collaborate with the appropriate leaders to develop a solution, and stay involved long enough to ensure that solution is executed.
What You'll Do
Oversee operations and performance across multiple behavioral health treatment locations
Partner with facility Directors to identify operational shortcomings, inefficiencies, and opportunities for improvement
Hold facility leadership accountable to organizational expectations, deliverables, performance standards, and deadlines
Support state licensing, accreditation, regulatory compliance, and facility readiness initiatives
Help implement new programs, operational systems, processes, and locations
Support recruiting and hiring for key leadership positions and frontline roles when necessary
Monitor operational performance and help leadership strengthen facility-level execution
Serve as an operational resource to ownership while independently carrying initiatives through completion
Work across admissions, clinical operations, staffing, utilization review, census, retention, and other functions that influence facility performance
Travel between Massachusetts and Illinois facilities as operational needs require, with potential involvement in Rhode Island
Help establish measurable performance goals and a bonus structure tied to facility and organizational success
Chief Operating Officer | Massachusetts & Illinois
About the Organization
Forrest Behavioral Health is a growing behavioral health treatment organization serving individuals with substance use disorders, mental health conditions, and co-occurring diagnoses. The organization operates with a strong focus on delivering high-quality treatment while building environments where both patients and employees feel supported.
As the organization continues to grow across multiple states and locations, leadership is focused on strengthening an operating model that is already working well, identifying opportunities for improvement, and ensuring consistent execution across facilities.
The Opportunity
We are seeking a hands‑on Chief Operating Officer to help lead the operational performance and continued growth of Forrest Behavioral Health across Massachusetts and Illinois, with potential involvement in Rhode Island.
This is not a role focused on rebuilding an underperforming organization. The facilities are established and generally operate near target capacity. The opportunity is to understand an existing operating model, identify weaknesses and inefficiencies, strengthen execution, and help leadership scale that model successfully as the organization grows.
The COO will partner closely with ownership and facility Directors while maintaining the independence and accountability necessary to move initiatives forward. Approximately one week of travel per month is expected, depending on operational needs.
Who Thrives Here
The strongest fit is a behavioral health operator who is ambitious, adaptable, accountable, and comfortable getting directly involved when necessary.
You may currently be a COO, VP of Operations, Regional Director, Executive Director, or similar leader who has spent several meaningful years within substance use disorder or mental health treatment and is ready to take on broader responsibility.
This role does not require decades of executive experience. It does require someone who understands how behavioral health facilities actually operate and can move comfortably between strategic leadership and practical problem‑solving.
You should be able to walk into a facility, recognize where something is not working, collaborate with the appropriate leaders to develop a solution, and stay involved long enough to ensure that solution is executed.
What You'll Do
Oversee operations and performance across multiple behavioral health treatment locations
Partner with facility Directors to identify operational shortcomings, inefficiencies, and opportunities for improvement
Hold facility leadership accountable to organizational expectations, deliverables, performance standards, and deadlines
Support state licensing, accreditation, regulatory compliance, and facility readiness initiatives
Help implement new programs, operational systems, processes, and locations
Support recruiting and hiring for key leadership positions and frontline roles when necessary
Monitor operational performance and help leadership strengthen facility-level execution
Serve as an operational resource to ownership while independently carrying initiatives through completion
Work across admissions, clinical operations, staffing, utilization review, census, retention, and other functions that influence facility performance
Travel between Massachusetts and Illinois facilities as operational needs require, with potential involvement in Rhode Island
Help establish measurable performance goals and a bonus structure tied to facility and organizational success
Requirements
Direct professional experience within substance use disorder and/or mental health treatment operations
Leadership experience within behavioral healthcare, such as COO, VP of Operations, Regional Director, Executive Director, Director of Operations, or a comparable multi‑site or senior operational role
Working knowledge of behavioral health treatment operations and levels of care such as PHP, IOP, OP, residential, detox, or similar programs
Experience supporting or overseeing operational areas such as staffing, admissions, utilization review, insurance authorization, census management, patient retention, clinical operations, licensing, accreditation, or regulatory compliance
Demonstrated ability to identify operational problems, develop practical solutions, and drive those solutions through implementation
Experience holding facility or department leaders accountable for expectations, deliverables, and deadlines
Ability and willingness to travel approximately one week per month, with flexibility to travel more or less depending on operational needs
Ability to maintain a home base in Massachusetts or Illinois
Strong communication, leadership, problem‑solving, and organizational skills
Preferred
Multi‑site behavioral health leadership experience
Experience supporting facility launches, expansion initiatives, new programs, or licensing and accreditation processes
Experience recruiting and developing behavioral health leadership teams
Familiarity with both substance use disorder and mental health treatment operations
Experience operating across multiple states or regulatory environments
Benefits
Compensation and Schedule
Salary: Up to $150,000 annually, commensurate with directly relevant experience
Performance‑based bonus structure
Home Base: Ideally Massachusetts or Illinois
Hybrid/work‑from‑home flexibility when appropriate
Travel: Approximately one week per month, based on operational needs
Additional Benefits
Employer contribution of 60% toward health insurance
Performance‑based incentive opportunity
Significant opportunity to influence operational strategy and organizational growth
Direct partnership with ownership and facility leadership
Opportunity to help strengthen and scale an established behavioral health operating model
This opportunity is posted by Atlantic Health Strategies on behalf of Forrest Behavioral Health.
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Worksite address
hoffman estates, IL, 60179, US
Who can apply
Review the original listing for work authorization, qualifications and employer requirements.