Founding Operations Lead — Robotics & AI Startup

Gradient Robotics; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

Gradient Robotics is seeking a Founding Business Operations lead to become the operational backbone of the company in San Francisco. You will own finance, HR, facilities, vendor management, and reporting cadence, partnering with the founders to turn chaos into scalable processes.

You’ll build automated systems, document everything, and ensure nothing slips through the cracks while supporting the leadership on fundraising and strategic initiatives.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in business operations, chief of staff, or ops management at startups.
• Experience owning multiple operational functions (finance, people, facilities, vendor management).
• Relentless closer: nothing you own goes delinquent, no thread goes dark, no commitment gets missed.
• Systems-minded: your instinct after doing something twice is to automate or document it.
• Trusted with payroll, equity, banking and sensitive information, able to maintain discretion.
• Able to work on-site in San Francisco, 5 days/week (6 during crunch time).

Responsibilities

• Own finance operations: payments, billing and renewals, monthly reporting, and expense management
• Own company metrics and operating cadence: dashboards, KPIs, and the reporting rhythm for founders
• Own vendor and supplier management: quotes, purchase orders, delivery timelines, and ongoing supplier relationships, including international suppliers
• Own people operations: payroll, benefits, onboarding, equity paperwork, and HR compliance
• Own facilities and office operations: leases, insurance, buildout projects, utilities, food, and day-to-day upkeep
• Be an extension of the founders: drive meeting follow-through, maintain key relationships, coordinate team offsites and customer/investor visits, and support the leadership team on legal, fundraising, and other high-priority operational initiatives alongside investors and outside counsel.
• Coordinate with recruiters: managing the applicant pipeline, scheduling, and fast candidate feedback
• Build automated systems so recurring work runs without a human chasing it, and document everything you build

Skills

Operations management

Finance operations

Vendor management

People operations

Automation and documentation

Discretion with sensitive information

On-site collaboration

Stakeholder coordination

Job description

Gradient Robotics is seeking a Founding Business Operations lead to become the operational backbone of the company in San Francisco. You will own finance, HR, facilities, vendor management, and reporting cadence, partnering with the founders to turn chaos into scalable processes.

You’ll build automated systems, document everything, and ensure nothing slips through the cracks while supporting the leadership on fundraising and strategic initiatives.