Strategy & Operations Manager

Array Labs; Redwood City (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity compensation

Health, dental, vision

401(k) with company match

Commuter benefits

Job summary

Array Labs, a California-based space tech startup, seeks a Strategy and Operations Manager to be the first dedicated Ops hire. You will report to the COO and own the infrastructure that keeps the company running, shaping the function as you go.

This role operates in ambiguity, prioritizes needs without direction, and moves quickly to implement improvements across operations, people, and vendor management.

Qualifications

• 5–10 years of operations experience in early-stage startups or fast-growing teams.
• Experience coordinating vendors, facilities, people ops, and cross-functional work.
• Strong organizational instincts with ability to juggle competing priorities.
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity with minimal direction.

Responsibilities

• Manage day-to-day operations for Array Labs.
• Design and implement lightweight internal processes and workflows; standardize core ops.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams (Engineering, Marketing) to guide operational tooling and infra.
• Support people operations: onboarding, off-boarding, policy docs, benefits coordination.
• Own vendor relationships and procurement, from sourcing to contract negotiation and management.
• Coordinate event and travel logistics for customer visits, interviews, conferences, and offsites.
• Propose creative operational solutions to complex, ambiguous technical problems.

Skills

Operations experience

Vendor & facilities management

Organizational skills

Ambiguity tolerance

Job description

About Us

Array Labs is building the world’s most advanced earth observation satellites.

Traditional satellite imagery is flat, slow, and expensive. Array is different. We’re developing a coordinated fleet of radar satellites that creates a continuously updated, high-resolution 3D view of the Earth, in any weather, day or night.

We design and build our satellites end-to-end, from the hardware in orbit to the software we use to process the data on the ground.

Our goal is to give government and commercial organizations, in disaster response, defense, infrastructure and environmental monitoring, telecommunications, and beyond, a faster, clearer picture of a changing world, allowing them to act with greater speed, confidence, and precision.

About the Job

Array Labs is looking for a Strategy and Operations Manager to be the first dedicated Ops hire on a small, fast growing team. You'll report directly to the COO and own the infrastructure that keeps the company running. There's no playbook, so you’ll have the chance to shape the function, building out processes as you go.

This is an individual contributor role for someone who is comfortable operating in ambiguity without structure. You'll be expected to identify areas for improvement, prioritize needs without direction, and have the judgement needed to move quickly to make things happen.

Responsibilities

• Manage day-to-day operations for Array Labs
• Drive foundational improvements that help scale our operation, including: designing and implementing lightweight internal processes and systems, standardizing core workflows to reduce friction as the team grows
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams (e.g., Engineering, Marketing) and with the Chief of Staff to guide decision making in operational tooling and infrastructure
• Augment people operations, including onboarding, off‑boarding, policy documentation, and benefits coordination
• Own vendor relationships and procurement, from sourcing and contract negotiation to ongoing supplier management
• Manage event and travel logistics for customer office visits, candidate on‑site interviews, conferences, demos, and company offsites
• Contribute creative operational solutions to complex and ambiguous technical problems

Basic Qualifications

• 5–10 years of operations experience, with meaningful time at an early‑stage startup, where processes and structure were still being developed
• Broad operational experience spanning work with vendors, facilities, people ops, and cross‑functional coordination
• Strong organizational instincts and the ability to juggle competing priorities
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity with minimal direction

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Prior experience as an early or first operations hire
• Experience working at a consulting, investment banking, hardware, aerospace, or defense company
• Exposure to government contracting businesses or environments

Compensation & Benefits

Our hiring and compensation strategy is simple: find uncommonly good people and pay them uncommonly well.

We offer high flexibility between salary and equity‑based compensation. Final candidates can choose from three compensation mixes: low, medium, or high equity. Equity is a significant component of total compensation, and we aim to provide meaningful ownership for this role.

Full‑time employees also enjoy a comprehensive benefits package including health, dental, vision, a 401(k) with company match, commuter benefits, and more.

120000 - 170000 USD a year

ITAR Requirements

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Array Labs is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions are made on the basis of merit, competence, and job qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by gender, color, race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, religion, age, gender identity, veteran status, disability status, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

If you require a reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please let us know.