Senior Director, Product & Business Operations

Nokia; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 260,000 - 380,000; Full time

Job summary

Nokia in San Jose, CA seeks a Senior Director, Product & Business Operations to partner with senior leaders and translate strategy into results. You will act as the operational integrator across Product Management, Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Finance, Sales, HR, and Corporate Development to ensure priorities align and execution stays on track.

You will build operating mechanisms, performance management systems, and business processes that enable growth, accelerate decision making,

Qualifications

• 15+ years of business, operations, product, or leadership experience.
• Proven track record leading cross-functional initiatives.
• Experience partnering with senior executives and influencing decisions.
• Strong financial and strategic acumen.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute business strategy, operating plans, and growth objectives.
• Translate long-term goals into actionable priorities and measurable outcomes.
• Drive resource allocation and investment decisions.
• Lead cross-functional initiatives across multiple organizations.
• Establish operating rhythm with weekly, monthly, quarterly reviews.
• Develop executive scorecards and KPIs.
• Identify risks and mitigation strategies.
• Champion digital transformation and AI-enabled workflows.
• Provide data-driven analysis to senior leadership.
• Lead organizational design and workforce planning.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Cross-functional leadership

Data-driven decision making

Executive communication

Change management

Education

MBA or advanced degree

Bachelor’s degree in related field

Job description

Job Description

As Senior Director, Product & Business Operations, you will partner directly with senior business leaders to translate strategy into results. You will serve as the operational integrator across Product Management, Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Finance, Sales, HR, and Corporate Development, ensuring that priorities are aligned and execution remains on track.

Job Description

As Senior Director, Product & Business Operations, you will partner directly with senior business leaders to translate strategy into results. You will serve as the operational integrator across Product Management, Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Finance, Sales, HR, and Corporate Development, ensuring that priorities are aligned and execution remains on track.

You will build the operating mechanisms, performance management systems, and business processes that enable growth, accelerate decision making, and improve organizational effectiveness.

This role combines the disciplines of business operations, strategy execution, program leadership, and organizational transformation.

How You Will Contribute And What You Will Learn

Strategic Business Leadership

• Partner with senior leaders to define and execute business strategy, annual operating plans, and growth objectives.
• Translate long-term business goals into actionable priorities and measurable outcomes.
• Drive resource allocation, investment decisions, and organizational trade-offs.
• Support strategic growth initiatives, partnerships, acquisitions, and integration activities.
• Identify business risks and develop mitigation strategies.
• Business Performance & Operational Excellence
• Establish and lead the operating rhythm of the organization, including weekly, monthly, and quarterly business reviews.
• Develop and maintain executive scorecards and key performance indicators.
• Create transparency around business performance, execution risks, and organizational priorities.
• Drive accountability for commitments and ensure timely resolution of issues.
• Cross-Functional Leadership
• Lead complex initiatives that span multiple organizations and global teams.
• Align stakeholders across Product Management, Engineering, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, Finance, HR, and Sales.
• Remove barriers to execution and accelerate decision-making.
• Build strong partnerships across functions to drive business results.
• Product & Business Transformation
• Drive initiatives that improve scalability, productivity, and organizational effectiveness.
• Champion digital transformation, process simplification, automation, and AI-enabled workflows.
• Identify opportunities to improve forecasting, reporting, operational efficiency, and business insight.
• Lead continuous improvement efforts that enhance execution and decision quality.
• Strategic Program Leadership
• Lead or coordinate business-critical initiatives, including:
• New Product introduction, commercialization and production ramps
• Margin improvement programs
• Cost reduction initiatives
• Operations and supply-chain transformation
• Business scaling programs
• Mergers, acquisitions, and integration efforts
• Executive strategic initiatives
• Executive Communications & Decision Support
• Develop executive-level business reviews and presentations.
• Provide data-driven analysis and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Support major customer engagements, strategic planning activities, and leadership reviews.
• Ensure leaders have timely visibility into business performance, opportunities, and risks.
• Organizational Development
• Support workforce planning and organizational design.
• Partner with leaders to build high-performing teams.
• Strengthen talent pipelines, succession planning, and leadership development.
• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

Required Experience

KEY SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

• 15+ years of business, operations, product, engineering, or related leadership experience.
• Track record of successfully driving cross functional teams successful outcomes
• Proven success operating in complex technology-based businesses.
• Strong experience leading cross-functional initiatives across multiple organizations.
• Demonstrated ability to drive business performance through data, metrics, and operational discipline.
• Experience partnering with senior executives and influencing decisions at the leadership level.
• Strong financial and business acumen, including planning, forecasting, investment analysis, and performance management.
• Outstanding communication, organizational, and stakeholder-management skills.

Preferred Experience

• Experience in networking, telecommunications, optical networking, semiconductors, photonics, data infrastructure, or related technology sectors.
• Experience with product development, product introduction, and manufacturing scale-up.
• Exposure to mergers and acquisitions, due diligence, or post-merger integration.
• Experience leading business transformation or AI-enabled operational initiatives.
• MBA or advanced technical degree preferred.

Leadership Characteristics

We're looking for a leader who is:

• Strategic: Understands the big picture and converts vision into action.
• Results-Oriented: Delivers measurable business outcomes.
• Accountable: Takes ownership and follows through on commitments.
• Collaborative: Builds trust and alignment across organizations.
• Disciplined: Brings rigor, structure, and clarity to complex challenges.
• Transformational: Continuously improves how work gets done.
• Trusted: Influences through credibility, integrity, and sound judgment.

Why This Role Matters

This position is more than a business operations role. It is an opportunity to become a strategic operating partner to senior leadership, influence the direction of a critical business, and drive meaningful impact across product strategy, execution, growth, and transformation.

The successful candidate will help shape the future of the organization while developing broad executive exposure and a path toward larger business leadership responsibilities.