Chief of Staff

imc; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work environment in Chicago

In-office 4 days per week

Job summary

IMC is seeking a Chief of Staff in Chicago to act as a strategic partner, aligning trading and business support teams while driving cross-functional initiatives and process improvements. The role reports to desk leadership and offers exposure to trading leadership with a path toward broader responsibility.

You will own goal tracking, drive desk meetings, manage onboarding, and push continuous improvements in desk operations and communication.

Qualifications

• MBA or equivalent advanced degree.
• 2+ years of post-MBA experience in top-tier management consulting or a comparable structured problem-solving environment.
• Demonstrated ability to influence and align senior stakeholders across multiple levels, including executive leadership, without formal authority.
• Proven track record of owning complex, cross-functional projects and delivering results in unstructured and ambiguous environments.
• Strong knowledge of business, finance and analytics; strong quantitative skills and comfort working directly with financial and operational data.
• Proven track record of identifying and driving process improvements that enhance efficiency and communication.
• Outstanding communication and presentation skills, with the ability to craft compelling narratives and build supporting materials (decks, briefings, and reports).
• Strong interpersonal skills and a collaborative approach to building relationships across teams and levels.
• Excellent organizational, verbal, analytical, and written skills with attention to detail.
• Interest in financial markets and a desire to build domain expertise in trading.

Responsibilities

• Operate at a tactical, strategic and operational level, handling the oversight of projects that do not neatly fit within the organizational chart or that fall between departments or leadership areas of responsibility.
• Drive cross-functional desk initiatives and buildouts from initiation through delivery, managing scope, milestones, dependencies, and escalations
• Co-ordinate business development for the desk
• Support budget planning, cost allocation reviews, and cost approval processes for the desk.
• Support evaluation, onboarding, and ongoing management of vendors and external data providers, including cost and performance reviews.
• Coordinate desk resourcing and staffing needs with recruiting and training teams.
• Contribute to long-range strategic planning and cascade firm strategy into desk-level goals and deliverables.
• Own goal tracking and milestones; ensure communication processes are completed when goals are achieved
• Coordinate, and lead desk meetings and follow up on action items; including
• Promote information flow and knowledge sharing across teams working on similar initiatives.
• Serve as owner/main point of contact for all stakeholders in onboarding and transfer processes.
• Drive continuous improvement of desk processes, tooling, and communication.
• Working closely with trading leads, proactively spot opportunities to improve efficiency of desk operations.
• Support team culture and engagement by fostering connection, recognition, and collaboration
• Own the desk's internal communication cadence, including planning and coordinating desk celebrations, offsites, and the holiday coverage calendar
• Perform daily reconciliation checks on PnL and support outputs; identify and flag discrepancies directly to the relevant support teams before they elevate.

Skills

Influence senior stakeholders

Cross-functional collaboration

Strong communication

Analytical skills

Interpersonal skills

Education

MBA or equivalent advanced degree

Job description

The Chief of Staff is a high-visibility strategic partner that leads the coordination and strategic alignment of the Desk. Acting as a connector between trading and business support teams, this person ensures that the desk runs efficiently, communicates effectively, and stays focused on both short- and long-term goals. The Chief of Staff is responsible for owning crossfunctional initiatives, building the analytical basis for desk decisions, and enhancing the team's effectiveness through better processes and structure. This is an operating seat with direct exposure to trading leadership and a path toward broader business and operating responsibility as the desk grows.

Your Core Responsibilities:

• Operate at a tactical, strategic and operational level, handling the oversight of projects that do not neatly fit within the organizational chart or that fall between departments or leadership areas of responsibility.
• Drive cross-functional desk initiatives and buildouts from initiation through delivery, managing scope, milestones, dependencies, and escalations
• Co-ordinate business development for the desk
• Support budget planning, cost allocation reviews, and cost approval processes for the desk.
• Support evaluation, onboarding, and ongoing management of vendors and external data providers, including cost and performance reviews.
• Coordinate desk resourcing and staffing needs with recruiting and training teams.
• Contribute to long-range strategic planning and cascade firm strategy into desk-level goals and deliverables.
• Own goal tracking and milestones; ensure communication processes are completed when goals are achieved
• Coordinate, and lead desk meetings and follow up on action items; including
• Promote information flow and knowledge sharing across teams working on similar initiatives.
• Serve as owner/main point of contact for all stakeholders in onboarding and transfer processes.
• Drive continuous improvement of desk processes, tooling, and communication.
• Working closely with trading leads, proactively spot opportunities to improve efficiency of desk operations.
• Support team culture and engagement by fostering connection, recognition, and collaboration
• Own the desk's internal communication cadence, including planning and coordinating desk celebrations, offsites, and the holiday coverage calendar
• Perform daily reconciliation checks on PnL and support outputs; identify and flag discrepancies directly to the relevant support teams before they elevate.

Your Skills and Experience:

• MBA or equivalent advanced degree
• 2+ years of post-MBA experience in top-tier management consulting or a comparable structured problem-solving environment
• Demonstrated ability to influence and align senior stakeholders across multiple levels, including executive leadership, without formal authority
• Proven track record of owning complex, cross-functional projects and delivering results in unstructured and ambiguous environments
• Strong knowledge of business, finance and analytics; strong quantitative skills and comfort working directly with financial and operational data
• Proven track record of identifying and driving process improvements that enhance efficiency and communication
• Outstanding communication and presentation skills, with the ability to craft compelling narratives and build supporting materials (decks, briefings, and reports)
• Strong interpersonal skills and a collaborative approach to building relationships across teams and levels
• Excellent organizational, verbal, analytical, and written skills with attention to detail
• Interest in financial markets and a desire to build domain expertise in trading

While this is a hybrid position, we expect an in-office presence in our Chicago office 4 times per week.

Please note that immigration sponsorship is not offered for this specific opening.

# LI-DNI

The Base Salary range for the role is included below. Base salary is only one component of total compensation; all full-time, permanent positions are eligible for a discretionary bonus and benefits, including paid leave and insurance. Please visit Benefits - US | IMC Trading for more comprehensive information.

Salary Range

$150,000 - $200,000 USD

About Us

IMC is a research-driven trading firm where quantitative modeling, machine learning, and engineering shape how modern markets are traded. A stabilizing force in markets since 1989, we provide liquidity across trading venues, delivering the best outcome in value and risk management to investors. Using our own technology and capital, we build proprietary systems and algorithms that operate across global markets. Our researchers, traders, and engineers work as a collective, combining rapid experimentation, advanced infrastructure, and real-time feedback to turn insight into execution and execution into advantage.