ROLE SUMMARY
The Director of Strategic Operations serves as the connective tissue between organizational strategic priorities and the cross-functional execution required to bring them to life - translating leadership's intent into structured plans, driving high-stakes initiatives from concept to launch, and serving as a trusted extension of the Chief Strategy & Product Officer across partnerships, strategy, and organizational alignment. The role is inherently ambiguous and highly cross-functional. The Director of Strategic Operations will operate without a fixed playbook and without positional authority, building alignment through influence, credibility, and rigor rather than direct reporting lines. This role runs strategic partnerships end-to-end, from contract negotiation through post-execution relationship management, and functions as the de facto source of truth during fast-moving, high-visibility initiatives. The Director of Strategic Operations will embody the confidence to voice an independent point of view - someone who will challenge assumptions, hold senior leaders accountable to commitments, and surface roadblocks candidly and proactively. This requires diplomacy and expert communication and relationship building skills.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Cross-Functional Program Leadership
- Oversee a portfolio of concurrent strategic initiatives spanning near term execution to long-term planning providing consistent progress against defined outcomes
- Support enterprise integration initiatives (e.g., shared services planning and integration priorities), coordinating across functions and business units to drive alignment and momentum
- Proactively identify scope, ownership, and timeline misalignment before it becomes a critical path risk - facilitating structured alignment sessions among senior stakeholders
- Build and maintain the central project plan, timeline, and decision log that serve as the single source of truth across fast-evolving initiatives
- Prepare agendas for leadership meetings, ensuring the right topics and stakeholders are surfaced and prioritized
- Maintain open lines of communication with sister businesses across Exclusive Collective, coordinating cross-portfolio initiatives as needed
Communication & Presentation Development
- Translate loose ideas, research & analysis, and cross-functional working sessions into polished, executive-ready decks - the primary output format for the team's strategic work
- Capture live working sessions into clear summaries and presentation materials
- Maintain a high bar for visual and narrative craft across all presentation materials, adapting tone and format to the audience
Research & Strategic Analysis
- Support the Chief Strategy & Product Officer with research into hospitality trends, competitive dynamics, and future-facing industry concepts to inform strategic decision-making
- Leverage AI tools to accelerate research, synthesis, and content development across the team's workstreams
Strategic Partnerships
- Lead end-to-end negotiation and launch of strategic partnerships (e.g., private membership clubs, complementary luxury brands), internal and external teams through contract execution and go-to-market
- Own partner relationship management post-launch, ensuring commitments are met and the partnership continues to deliver value on both sides
Documentation & Decision Governance
- Maintain living documentation (project plans, decision logs, policy briefs) with rigorous version control and a clear audit trail
- Build lightweight but durable frameworks to bring order to ambiguous, fast-moving initiatives
Independent Judgment & Constructive Accountability
- Serve as a candid, trusted advisor to the Chief Strategy & Product Officer and broader executive team - willing to voice a dissenting view or challenge a prevailing assumption when the situation calls for it
- Proactively name roadblocks - including interpersonal or performance-related ones - with tact and discretion, ensuring issues are addressed before they compound
- Exercise sound judgment in balancing respect for executive authority with the obligation to speak up when meaningful strategic or operational risk is identified
- Operate as a "trusted challenger" - fully aligned with leadership's goals, but never simply agreeable for the sake of consensus
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
- Brings structure to ambiguity - comfortable being handed a half-formed, rapidly changing initiative and building the framework, timeline, and documentation that makes it executable
- Facilitates decisive outcomes - skilled at forcing vague discussion into concrete decisions rather than letting meetings end without resolution
- Trusted extension of the Chief Strategy & Product Officer - represents the Chief Strategy & Product Officer's priorities accurately and tactfully across functions and with external partners
- Composed under pressure - when cross-functional alignment breaks down, responds by building better tools rather than escalating friction
- Uncompromising on craft - insists on polished, on-brand, professional materials even under tight deadlines
- Direct, transparent, and appropriately assertive - flags inconsistencies, conflicting information, or unresolved risk explicitly, and is comfortable respectfully pushing back on senior leaders rather than deferring by default
- Holds the room accountable - willing to name when a commitment has slipped, a decision has stalled, or an individual, regardless of seniority, is becoming a blocker, and to do so in a way that preserves trust and relationships
- Direct and transparent - flags inconsistencies, conflicting information, or unresolved risk explicitly rather than letting it pass silently
- Cross-functional fluency - equally comfortable in a Finance margin conversation, a Legal compliance review, and a partner negotiation
- Discreet with sensitive information - trusted with material nonpublic information and board-level context
QUALIFICATIONS
- 7+ years of experience supporting senior executives in a Director of Strategic Operations, Chief of Staff, or similar leadership capacity.
- Demonstrated experience leading complex, cross-functional initiatives involving internal and external groups, and Executive stakeholders
- Executive presence and confidence: proven ability to constructively challenge senior leaders, hold stakeholders accountable, and voice an independent point of view - balanced with the interpersonal skill to do so without damaging trust or relationships
- Exceptional organizational, project management, and documentation skills
- Executive presence and experience communicating directly with senior leadership
- Advanced proficiency in Excel, PowerPoint, and Word; experience building and maintaining trackers, decision logs, and executive-ready presentations
- Advanced deck and presentation design skills, with a strong sense of visual and narrative craft
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate strategic complexity into clear, concise materials
- Fluency with AI tools for research, analysis, and content development - this role requires significant, active use of AI as part of daily workflow