Operations Lead

The Role

This is the person who makes the organization run, and takes on the problems that don't yet have an owner.

You'd work directly with the CEO. Part of the job is the operational backbone: interfacing with Convergent Research on HR, contracts, and vendors, some administrative work, and building the systems a growing research organization needs.

And it also includes the work that has no obvious owner yet. You might spend a week figuring out whether a new clinical site is worth pursuing, and what it would take. You might sit in on a scientific strategy session and leave with a piece of it. You might build the case for a funding proposal, work out how we should think about IP for a nonprofit that expects to spin things out, or go find out what it would actually cost to run studies abroad. At this size, the interesting problems are abundant, and the people who can tackle them are in short supply – if you can take one on, it's likely yours.

In your first six months, you'd take over the operational interface with Convergent. You'd help close candidates for several of our open searches. You’d help us build out our spaces in the Bay Area and Seattle. You'd get board and funder reporting onto a regular cadence. You'd help define and establish our partner agreements with hardware collaborators, clinical sites, and universities. And you'd have found at least one problem we didn't know we had and fixed it.

What You’ll Do

Interface with Convergent Research on finance, HR, contract, and vendor relations

Run recruiting, including some sourcing, owning scheduling and candidate experience, and onboarding

Own the operational side of our partnerships with hardware and research collaborators, alongside the scientific leads

Help prepare board materials, funder reports, and proposal packages, and keep the commitments in them tracked

Set up internal systems, processes, and documentation that streamline our work

Take on open-ended problems: evaluate an opportunity, research a question, unblock a project, and come back with a recommendation

Help build Arbor’s culture

Who We’re Looking For

Two backgrounds could work.

An experienced operator. You've run operations or business functions at a startup, research institute, or lab. You've built these systems before and do it better and faster each time.

A strong generalist. You've spent a few years at a startup, a research group, investment firm, or in a policy, program or consulting role. You’ve been the person who does the thing that nobody else could or thought to figure out. You haven't run an organization before, but you want to.

Either way, we're looking for:

Evidence you've built something operational where nothing existed, and made it work

The judgment to know which problems need a system and which just need someone to handle them

Strong writing ability

Enough technical curiosity and knowledge to follow a scientific or engineering conversation and know what matters

Directness without friction – you say what you think, ask when you don't know, and aren't looking to compete with your colleagues

You don't need a neuroscience background. You do need to want one.