OPERATIONS SPECIALIST

The Role

We're looking for a driven person to join our team of Operations Specialists - the main conduit through which all of our clients' back-office operations run, including Human Resources, Finance, Payroll and Compliance. 

As an Operations Specialist, you work directly with US startup founders to project manage their most critical operational matters. You work alongside a Chief Chore Officer, who owns the relationship - you own the operations. In short: you're the point person who keeps the lights on.

These responsibilities are often tactical. But tactical doesn't mean thoughtless - and as you build trusted relationships with the founders you support, the work becomes strategic too. Our best Operations Specialists end up being the person a founder calls first. 

Some Examples Of The Work We Do

Tactical responsibilities still require judgment and thoughtfulness - “can you work with our accountant to get taxes filed?” or “can you get this NDA out to a customer and coordinate if there are any issues?”

Work that gets genuinely strategic - e.g., “how should I think about compensation and benchmarks for my company?” We’ve seen this organically happen at times, when OPs have built a trusted relationship with clients.

Research and problem-solving for back-office edge cases. An unusual filing. A regulator with an unhelpful website. A vendor who's gone quiet. Something that has genuinely never come up before. You go and find the answer

Choosing tools and vendors, with the cost in mind. Our clients are early-stage and often bootstrapped. You research the options, compare them properly, and recommend what actually fits their budget - not the biggest name in the market. We expect you to know what things cost and to raise it before anyone asks you to.

Contributing to our knowledge base. Internal, client-facing, and public-facing. Every startup on earth reinvents the wheel on HR, Finance and Legal Ops, and it drives us crazy. We're building a reusable source of wisdom and best practice - and what you learn goes into it, so nobody has to solve the same problem twice.

Internal projects that make Chore stronger. SOPs, systems, dashboards, operational improvements - scoped, executed and delivered by you.

One note on scope: unlike an internal Chief of Staff, this role doesn't extend into bespoke areas like go-to-market, analytics or partnerships.

What We're Looking For

Required

3+ years of work experience that includes interfacing with clients or external parties. This is required, not preferred. What matters most is that you were the person responsible for outcomes, not a contributor to someone else's.

Strongly preferred

HR, Payroll, Finance or Compliance operations experience (We're not looking for a recruitment or sales background)

And you're probably a fit if…

You're a total geek for better processes - more standardisation, and reinventing things just enough to make them more efficient.

Ticking items off your list while thinking "how could I do this more efficiently?" brings a smile to your face. There's always more to do for clients, and you thrive on getting things done

You're obsessed with using AI and technology to work smarter - you don't wait to be told about a new tool, you've usually already tested it

You love building deep, trusting relationships with dynamic founders across many industries

You're smart, detail-oriented, a natural context-switcher, with GREAT communication skills

You have a deep dedication to client service and doing right by people - going above and beyond to make sure our clients love us

You can focus in stressful situations and prioritise almost automatically

You're open to giving and receiving feedback, up, down and sideways, using the Radical Candor method

You start solving before you start asking. When something breaks and there's nobody available, you get going. You escalate with a recommendation, not a question

You don't mind the unsexy part of running a startup - dealing with regulators (including waiting on hold forever for them to pick up),  managing employee offboardings, and basically doing the "startup plumber" work. It might smell, but a strong back office is foundational to success 

Management

You want to join a passionate, fun and kind team for the long term (2+ years). This role might be a stepping stone, and we celebrate our team members' growth - but if you apply, our assumption is that you'd prefer a job you can see yourself in for several years over one you expect to leave within twelve months

 Nice to have, not required

An understanding of bookkeeping, accounting, or early-stage startup finance

Comfort with ClickUp, Slack, Notion, and Google Suite

🎁 Why This Role Is Special

You will run real companies behind the scenes. Very few roles give you this much impact this early

You get ownership from day one. From the moment you start, you are running real systems for real companies - not shadowing or waiting to be handed responsibility

You get rare visibility. You'll see how multiple US startups actually operate behind the scenes. Operators almost never get this

You work with sharp, ambitious teammates who care deeply about doing things well

You will grow faster than you imagined - start by partnering with experienced Chief of Staffs

🦨 Read Before Applying

We believe in being upfront about the hard parts.

US hours are required and can be demanding. This may not be suitable for everyone

Remote work has real challenges. You need reliable WiFi, power backup, and a quiet workspace

High ambiguity. You must create structure, not wait for it

Extreme context-switching. You'll juggle multiple clients, internal stakeholders and projects at the same time

Feedback fluency. You must be comfortable giving and receiving feedback up, down and sideways

High ownership. Minimal hand-holding. You are expected to self-manage

Client-facing pressure. Founders move fast and expect clarity

60-day fully paid probation period. We want everyone to feel set up for success from day one. In your first 60 days, success looks like confidently owning and running core client workflows with minimal oversight and communicating proactively with clients and teammates.

If this energizes you rather than intimidates you, you're probably a great fit.

❤️ Our Values

Delight All Stakeholders. Make work feel easier, clearer and more thoughtful for clients, teammates and yourself

Meritocracy. We reward value created - not longevity

Experiment & Adapt. Try things, learn fast, improve continuously

Assume Good Intentions. Take feedback well. Fix things proactively. Be a force multiplier