We are a fast-growing enterprise AI company building mission-critical products for global customers. Our R&D organization spans 200+ people across multiple product lines and a common AI/ML platform. As we scale, we are redefining the operating system for how a modern, complex, multi-disciplinary R&D team collaborates and delivers with excellence.

To enable this next phase of growth, we are establishing a Strategy & Operations function to drive cross-functional alignment, lead strategic programs, and provide data-driven insights that shape org design, investment decisions, and execution rigor.

You will be one of the first hires on this team - opportunity to build the systems, processes, and strategic muscle that power a world-class R&D organization.

This is not a traditional strategy or PMO role you will both shape the strategy and drive execution end-to-end.

The Role:

As Senior Manager Strategy & Operations, you will drive high-impact initiatives across R&D and own:

1. Strategic Programs:

- Lead multiple cross-functional, business-critical initiatives with measurable outcomes.

Examples include:

- AI adoption and productivity programs

- Cost optimization and COGS reduction initiatives

- Annual planning process redesign

- Platform adoption and standardization

Responsibilities include:

- Building business cases and running pilots

- Aligning stakeholders across functions

- Tracking ROI and scaling successful programs

2. Analysis & Insights:

- Organizational Effectiveness

- Benchmark org structure, productivity, and role capacity

- Analyze efficiency metrics and recommend improvements

- Competitive Intelligence & Market Benchmarking

- Evaluate industry best practices for R&D processes and tooling

- Analyze competitor capabilities and emerging technologies

- Translate insights into strategic priorities and actions

3. Strategic Investment Analysis:

- Build financial models for product/tech investment decisions

- Lead build-vs-buy evaluations

- Track R&D investment allocation (innovation, platform, product, maintenance)

- Ensure initiatives map to company-level OKRs with clear progress tracking

4. Executive & Board Communication:

- Own the R&D narrative for quarterly reviews and board decks

- Synthesize complex technical topics into crisp, executive-ready insights

- Provide objective, data-driven reporting on portfolio health

3. Operational Excellence:

Process Design:

- Create lightweight cross-functional workflows for planning, launches, customer onboarding, imagery/data operations, etc.

- Build practical playbooks and templates that teams actually use.

- Governance & Decision Frameworks

- Establish decision rights, RACI models, and escalation paths

- Set up steering committees and working groups for fast decision-making

- Performance Tracking & Visibility

- Build dashboards with visibility into program health, dependencies, risks

- Define success metrics (cycle time, on-time delivery, automation rate)

- Identify and mitigate risks early

Change Management

- Drive adoption of new processes across functions

- Conduct training, communications, and stakeholder engagement

- Measure adoption and iterate

4. Building the Function:

As an early member of the Strategy & Operations team, you will:

- Define future roles and team structure

- Mentor analysts / associates as the team grows

- Create operating rhythms, templates, and best practices

- Codify lessons learned and continuously improve the OS of R&D

What You'll Love About This Role:

- Diverse, intellectually stimulating challenges: Analytical one hour, technical the next, facilitation the next.

- High impact: Your work directly influences product delivery, cost structure, and customer outcomes.

- Cutting-edge technology exposure: Deep learning, geospatial analytics, satellite imagery, AI/ML, platform engineering.

- Mission-driven environment: Build systems that make critical infrastructure more reliable, resilient, and sustainable.

What This Role Is Not:

- Not pure strategy: You wont just recommend youll execute.

- Not a traditional PMO: No Gantt chart policing or status report administration.

- Not process policing: This is about enabling outcomes, not enforcing compliance.

What Were Looking For:

Minimum Qualifications

- 4-6+ years at a top-tier consulting firm or 6-8+ years in internal strategy, strategic operations, or chief-of-staff roles in high-growth tech companies

- Demonstrated ability to lead complex cross-functional initiatives without authority

- Strong program / project management track record

- Data-driven, meticulous planner with strong dashboarding and analytical capability

- Strong influencing skills; able to align senior stakeholders across silos

- Ability to bring clarity and truth-seeking rigor to ambiguous, multi-dimensional problems

- Self-starter with ability to drive work independently

Preferred Qualifications

- Experience in enterprise SaaS, platform engineering, or AI/ML

- Familiarity with tools like Jira, Smartsheet, MS Project, PowerBI, Tableau

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