Head of Business Operations - Cooley AI

Cooley AI; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 250,000 - 325,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

PTO 25 days + 10 holidays

Parental leave & fertility benefits

Dental & vision

HSA

Job summary

Cooley AI is seeking a Head of Business Operations to build and run the operational foundation. This hands-on leadership role will establish systems, governance and cadence to scale from zero to one and beyond.

You will translate strategy into operating plans and drive alignment across cross‑functional teams, focusing on AI-native workflows and scalable practices. The role requires deep operations experience, strong leadership, and comfort with implementing policies in a fast-paced professional

Qualifications

• 8+ years in business operations with hands-on building from ground up in tech
• 4+ years of management experience
• Bachelor’s degree
• Experience building scalable, automation-focused processes
• Strong leadership and cross-functional collaboration
• Familiarity with AI-enabled workflows and tools

Responsibilities

• Build business operations from the ground up with planning cycles and governance
• Lead day-to-day operations and drive initiatives from problem definition to execution
• Drive cross-functional alignment across Cooley AI teams
• Translate strategy into sequenced operating plans and measurable outcomes
• Design and oversee AI-native workplace tech ecosystem incl Slack and Jira

Skills

8+ years ops experience

Leadership experience

Process design & optimization

Automation & scalable operations

AI tools familiarity

Cross-functional collaboration

Slack & Jira experience

Travel ability

Microsoft Office / iManage proficiency

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Microsoft Office

iManage

Job description

Cooley AI is seeking a Head of Business Operations.

About Cooley AI

Cooley AI is the wholly owned subsidiary of Cooley LLP and the frontier development arm of the leading technology law firm in the world.

Our mission is to bring the best-in-class practices from the technology field into the legal domain to help lead our firm and the legal industry into the AI era.

All employees of Cooley AI are employees of Cooley and are seconded to Cooley AI.

Position summary

As a leading technology law firm, Cooley is determined to become a leader in the digital practice of law. The Head of Business Operations will build and run the operational foundation of Cooley AI. This hands‑on leadership role will establish the systems, processes, governance and operating cadence needed to grow from zero to one and create the discipline needed to rapidly scale beyond. Working closely with Cooley AI leadership, this role will translate strategy into operating plans, drive cross-functional alignment and execution, operationalize AI‑native workflows and ensure policies are translated into practical, scalable operating practices. The successful candidate will combine strategic judgment with operational discipline and resourcefulness to build an AI‑native operating environment that enables all Cooley AI teams to collaborate and effectively execute against shared priorities. Specific duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

Position Responsibilities

• Build business operations from the ground up, establishing practical planning cycles, approval paths and documentation that support speed, accountability and growth
• Own day‑to‑day business operations and lead initiatives from problem definition through implementation, simplifying processes and coordinating with Cooley LLP’s cross‑functional teams on responsibilities and escalation paths
• Drive cross‑functional alignment across Cooley AI teams, ensuring priorities, ownership, dependencies and decision points are clear and coordinated
• Identify cross‑functional dependencies, structural gaps, and execution risks across Cooley AI initiatives. Proactively surface issues and drive resolution with the appropriate leaders and teams
• Partner with Cooley AI leadership to translate strategic priorities into sequenced operating plans, resource requirements and measurable outcomes
• Establish clear decision rights, governance structures and escalation paths across Cooley AI initiatives to support accountability, speed and effective execution
• Design, implement and oversee Cooley AI’s organization‑wide, AI‑native workplace technology ecosystem, including Slack and Jira, to create closed‑loop workflows that connect communication, collaboration, documentation and execution; partner with technical teams where engineering support is needed
• Operationalize Cooley AI policies into practical procedures and controls in partnership with security, legal, HR and other functional teams, including data handling, access, records, exceptions and escalation
• Lead rollout and adoption of AI‑enabled workflows through playbooks, user guidance and feedback loops; define workflow owners and fallback procedures, measure adoption and ROI, and continuously improve operational effectiveness
• Create operating cadences and forums that enable Cooley AI leadership and functional teams to make timely decisions, resolve blockers and stay aligned on priorities and progress
• Build and lead the business operations team, setting priorities, developing talent and establishing accountability for results
• Serve as direct supervisor and mentor to direct reports
• Provide day‑to‑day supervision of direct reports, ensure compliance with assigned work hours and monitor for compliance with all firm and department policies. Manage staffing coverage, review and process time logs/time off requests
• Support business professional development and continued educational opportunities
• In collaboration with immediate supervisor and central HR, participate in hiring, performance appraisals, counseling, termination and other employee lifecycle events
• All other duties as assigned or required

Required

Skills and experience

• After orientation at Cooley LLP, exhibit proficiency in the Microsoft Office suite, iManage and other firm applications
• Ability to work extended and/or weekend hours, as required
• Ability to travel, as required
• 8+ years progressive experience in business operations or a related operating role, including hands‑on experience building operations from the ground up in a growing technology or analogous business, with 4+ years of management experience in relevant roles
• Bachelor’s degree
• Demonstrated experience building processes or operational functions from an early stage
• Experience designing and improving organization‑wide workflows, systems and processes, with a strong orientation toward automation, efficiency and scalable operations
• Proven track record of effective leadership

Preferred

• Experience building or scaling AI‑enabled business operations
• Experience designing and managing an integrated workplace technology ecosystem across platforms such as Slack and Jira, including workflow automation and systems integration
• Experience leading cross‑functional rollout and adoption of AI‑enabled workflows
• Experience implementing operational policies and controls in a regulated, security‑conscious or professional‑services environment

Competencies

• Ability to operate effectively in a fast‑paced, ambiguous environment
• Strong judgment and problem‑solving skills, with the ability to identify ambiguity, surface risks and dependencies, and develop practical solutions with limited direction
• Ability to translate operational problems into governed, standardized, scalable systems
• Strong fluency in AI tools, technologies and AI‑native ways of working
• Team player with exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to influence decisions without formal authority
• Entrepreneurial and proactive, with a bias for action
• Excellent attention to detail
• Ability to translate financial and operational analysis into clear recommendations and practical tradeoffs for leadership and colleagues
• Ability to organize, prioritize and coordinate multiple activities often under tight timelines
• Ability to drive projects to completion and achieve organizational goals

Cooley offers a competitive compensation and excellent benefits package and is committed to fair and equitable employment practices. EOE.

The expected annual pay range for this position with a full‑time schedule is $250,000 - $325,000. Please note that final offer amount will be dependent on geographic location, applicable experience and skillset of the candidate.

We offer a full range of elective benefits including medical, health savings account (with applicable medical plan), dental, vision, health and/or dependent care flexible spending accounts, pre‑tax commuter benefits, life insurance, AD&D, long‑term care coverage, backup care for children and/or adults and other parental support benefits. In addition to elective benefit options, benefited employees receive firm‑paid life insurance, AD&D, LTD, short term medical benefits as well as 25 days of Paid Time Off (“PTO”) and 10 paid holidays each year. We provide generous parental leave and fertility benefits. New employees will attend a detailed benefit orientation to learn more about our many benefits and resources.