Enterprise Drone Operations Lead

SmartRecruiters, Inc.; Jericho (NY); Remote; USD 120,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote work flexibility

Flexible time off

Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance

401k Match

Job summary

J.S. Held is seeking a Flight Operations Manager to coordinate its enterprise drone program and establish a scalable, well-governed operating environment.

You will improve visibility into the fleet, support pilot and regulatory requirements, and manage technology and vendor relationships. The role requires strong program-management and operations experience in commercial drone operations, with collaboration across Practices, Operations, Finance, IT, and pilots.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• Five or more years of experience in program management, operations, fleet or asset management, or related discipline.
• Practical knowledge of commercial drone operations and FAA requirements.
• Experience implementing standardized processes across multiple teams, locations, or business units.
• Experience selecting, implementing, or administering an operational, fleet, asset, compliance, or workflow technology platform.
• Strong analytical, reporting, organizational, and stakeholder-management skills.
• Clear written and verbal communication skills, sound judgment, and the ability to manage multiple workstreams without relying on direct reporting authority.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate the enterprise drone program and maintain visibility into drone assets, pilots, certifications, utilization, and flight activity.
• Develop and maintain SOPs, training, practical policies, procedures, records, and controls that support consistent operations across the firm.
• Track program performance and provide concise reporting on utilization, compliance, billing, risks, and implementation progress.
• Entrepreneurial mindset towards continued refinement of Fleet Management and new revenue opportunities.
• Coordinate drone inventory, registration, assignment, maintenance, insurance, and retirement activities.
• Monitor applicable FAA requirements, pilot credentials, renewals, authorizations, and recordkeeping obligations; escalate as needed.
• Support risk assessments, incident reporting, corrective actions, and periodic compliance reviews.
• Partner with Finance and practice operations to establish consistent and transparent drone billing and documentation practices.

Skills

Program management

Operations management

Stakeholder management

Analytical reasoning

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree

Equivalent experience

Tools

Drone fleet-management platform

Fleet management software

Job description

J.S. Held is seeking a Flight Operations Manager to coordinate its enterprise drone program and establish a scalable, well-governed operating environment.

You will improve visibility into the fleet, support pilot and regulatory requirements, and manage technology and vendor relationships. The role requires strong program-management and operations experience in commercial drone operations, with collaboration across Practices, Operations, Finance, IT, and pilots.