Arun Baheti, who has extensive experience in the nonprofit and public sectors, will help guide operations at Project Angel Food. (photo by Anna Homonnay)

Project Angel Food has named Arun Baheti as its first chief operating officer, creating a new executive leadership position to strengthen the people, systems and infrastructure behind the organization’s rapidly growing service of providing medically tailored meals to people living with serious illness.

Baheti will report directly to CEO Richard Ayoub and oversee Project Angel Food’s core operations including finance, human resources, facilities, technology and kitchen operations. He will also serve as the organization’s general counsel, bringing legal and risk-management expertise to a role aimed at strengthening operations across the organization.

The appointment comes during a period of extraordinary growth for Project Angel Food. Over the past decade, the organization has grown from serving approximately 1,000 people a day to 3,000 people, while its annual budget has increased from $3.8 million to approximately $20 million and its staff has grown from 37 employees to 122. Project Angel Food currently serves nearly 7,800 clients annually and prepares and delivers more than 1.5 million medically tailored meals each year.

“Project Angel Food has grown tremendously, and the infrastructure behind our mission has to grow with it,” Ayoub said. “Arun brings an extraordinary combination of operational leadership, legal expertise and experience guiding organizations through growth and change. He will be a key thought and operational partner to me and our leadership team as we build the systems that will allow us to serve more people while protecting the quality, compassion and culture that have always defined Project Angel Food.”

The creation of the COO position comes as Project Angel Food continues the most ambitious expansion in its history. The organization recently opened the first phase of the Chuck Lorre Family Foundation Kitchen and Campus, exponentially increasing meal-production capacity, and is moving forward with a second building, which will bring together client and nutrition services, a teaching kitchen, research and policy initiatives and additional community programming.

Baheti will work across departments to strengthen systems, support staff, manage risk and prepare the organization for continued growth. He will work closely with kitchen leadership to develop scalable production practices while protecting Project Angel Food’s standards for quality and individualized care.

“What drew me to Project Angel Food is how directly the work touches people’s lives,” Baheti said. “Strong operations may happen behind the scenes, but here they ultimately mean that someone facing a serious illness receives the right meal at their door with care and dignity. Los Angeles is home for me, and being able to use what I’ve learned over the years to make a difference here is especially meaningful. I’m excited to work with Richard and this remarkable team to build on what Project Angel Food has accomplished and help prepare the organization for what comes next.”

Baheti previously served as vice president of operations at the California Wellness Foundation and led operations and finance at the Writers Guild Foundation. His appointment follows Project Angel Food’s hiring of LaShanda Maze in March as the first chief development officer, For information, visit angelfood.org.