Director of Operations

Responsibilities

• Evolve Business Strategy
• Lead the operational setup and go-to-market infrastructure for a managed services offering, partnering with sales, delivery, and finance to design scalable service models, SLAs, and supporting processes
• Define and implement KPIs and benchmarking frameworks across delivery, talent, and finance that give leadership clear, consistent visibility into business health and performance trends
• Partner with the VP of Operations, COO, and senior leadership to identify strategic opportunities, shape operational initiatives, and translate business priorities into executable plans
• Process Improvement
• Identify and eliminate operational bottlenecks across the firm by redesigning workflows, standardizing processes, and creating playbooks that improve consistency and quality at scale
• Implement AI-powered tools and automation into administrative processes, with a focus on talent acquisition (sourcing, screening, scheduling) and talent experience (onboarding, engagement, offboarding)
• Champion a culture of continuous improvement across operations, using data and feedback loops to drive iterative enhancements
• Strategic Systems Management
• Own end-to-end implementation and ongoing oversight of the firm's PSA (Professional Services Automation) platform, ensuring it supports accurate project tracking, resource planning, utilization reporting, and billing workflows
• Oversee the HRIS system, partnering with the talent team to ensure data integrity, compliance, and seamless integration across people operations
• Lead the design and deployment of Slack automations that streamline internal workflows, reduce administrative overhead, and improve cross-functional coordination
• Drive compliance-side readiness for AWS GenAIIC certification, coordinating across teams to document controls, meet requirements, and maintain certification standards
• Manage IT cost strategy across applications and AI token consumption, identifying optimization opportunities and establishing governance frameworks that balance capability with spend
• Financial Management
• Partner with finance and practice leads to review and validate billing rates and delivery costs, ensuring pricing reflects market positioning, margin targets, and competitive realities
• Develop and maintain practice- and vertical-level reporting standards that give leadership accurate, actionable financia

Benefits

Additional Information

Director of Operations Location: Remote - United States; preference for Detroit, Pittsburgh, Columbus, or Cleveland metro areas Company Overview Robots & Pencils is an applied AI engineering firm building the next frontier of business architecture. We design and ship AI co-workers that integrate into enterprise operations and deliver measurable results for our clients. We're all in on AWS, combining deep UX capability with senior engineering talent to get AI into production fast and keep it there. We've earned the trust of leaders across Consumer Products and Retail, Education, Energy, Financial Services, Healthcare, and Manufacturing and more, and earned a reputation as the nimble alternative to traditional global systems integrators. Founded in 2009, with delivery centers in Canada, the United States, Eastern Europe, and Latin America, we are smaller, faster, and more senior by design. Our teams average 15+ years of experience. We move fast, sweat the details, and build things that actually ship. Position Overview We're looking for a Director of Operations to scale and strengthen the systems, processes, and cross-functional infrastructure that power R&P's growth. Reporting to the VP of Operations, you will be a key operational leader - translating strategic direction into disciplined execution, driving measurable improvements across financial performance, technology systems, and business operations. This role spans the full breadth of operations: from standing up and managing critical business systems like our PSA and HRIS, to sharpening the operating model we have to price, sell, and retain clients. You will work closely with practice leads, finance, talent, and sales to eliminate friction, establish standards, and enable our teams to move faster and smarter. This role is right for someone who brings both strategic instincts and hands-on discipline - someone who thrives building structure in a high-growth, AI-forward professional services environment. Why This Role Matters At Robots & Pencils, we design AI systems for a human world. Our name says it all. Robots and pencils means engineering paired with creativity, because every agent we ship has to work for real people in real workflows. That balance is baked into how we operate. Every role here contributes directly to that mission. As Director of Operations, you shape the operational backbone that allows R&P to move at velocity, maintain quality, and grow sustainably. The work you do here has a direct line to client outcomes, team effectiveness, and the firm's ability to compete and win.

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