What is the Role of a Chief Operating Officer (COO)?

A Chief Operating Officer (COO) is a senior executive responsible for overseeing the daily administrative and operational functions of a company. Learn more about their role.

What is the Role of a Chief Operating Officer (COO)?

The role of a Chief Operating Officer (COO) is to oversee the daily administrative and operational functions of a company. They are the second in command after the CEO, and are responsible for translating the goals of the executive director and board of directors into operational strategies and objectives that will be implemented throughout the organization. The COO is a key member of the senior management team, and is often referred to as the director of operations, director of operations, or vice president of operations. The success of a COO depends on their relationship with the CEO, as they are second in command after the CEO who is the top executive of a company. While the CEO is responsible for the long-term success of an organization, the COO is usually responsible for daily operations.

They design and implement policies to promote the company's culture and vision and oversee operations to keep companies on track. In large companies, there can be two COOs that cover several businesses within the company. The breakup between Larry Ellison, founder and CEO of Oracle, and its chief operating officer, Ray Lane, in 2000 highlighted how important this role is within an organization. The chief operating officer (COO) job description template is optimized for publication on job boards or online career pages and is easy to customize for your company.

Dave Sylvan
Dave Sylvan

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