Operations Associate

Who we are Aquanta is turning one of the most common home appliances in North America, the water heater, into a smart, grid-connected energy asset. There are more than 125 million water heaters across the continent. Together they are one of the largest untapped sources of energy efficiency and flexible energy storage on the grid. Our market-leading, award-winning water heater controller and IoT platform does two things. Homeowners get savings, control, and peace of mind. Utility partners can aggregate thousands of water heaters into a flexible resource that shifts load, reduces peak demand, and cuts carbon emissions. As utilities invest in demand flexibility, electrification, and virtual power plants, that work matters more every year. Our small team based in McLean, VA has been leading the charge to unlock that opportunity for over a decade. The role This is a hands-on operations role at a company that designs, builds, and ships real hardware. You'll help run core day-to-day operations, including customer support, supply chain, and inventory, and build the tools that make them run better. We want someone who does both at once. Many of our tools and processes were built on legacy systems, and we're modernizing them with AI, starting with our Zendesk support workflows and supply chain tracking. You'll learn the work firsthand, spot what's broken, and build better systems while keeping daily operations running smoothly. Everyone at Aquanta wears several hats. You'll get broad exposure to how a hardware and energy management company actually runs, and real ownership from day one. What you'll do Support our customers. Answer questions and troubleshoot device issues through Zendesk. Spot recurring problems and pass them to the product team. Manage inventory and fulfillment. Track stock levels, purchase orders, and shipments with our manufacturing and fulfillment partners. Handle returns and replacements. Keep the supply chain running. Coordinate with suppliers and logistics partners, forecast needs, and flag risks before they become delays. Build tools that make the work better. Use AI to modernize how we operate, from Zendesk triage and help content to inventory dashboards and supply chain automations. You'll build as you go, not after. Support utility programs. Help run day-to-day operations for our utility partnerships, including device tracking, enrollment support, and program reporting. Own the data. Keep inventory, sales, and support records accurate, and maintain the reports the team relies on. Pitch in wherever needed. Support product launches, pilots, vendor management, and industry events. Who you are You're early in your career, with up to three years of experience, or a recent degree in supply chain management, operations, industrial engineering, business, or a related field. You have coursework, internships, or real-world experience in supply chain, logistics, manufacturing, or hardware operations. You're a doer who has used AI tools like Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor to write scripts, automate workflows, and build working tools. When you see a manual process, you see how to fix it. You don't need to be a software engineer. You're organized and detail-oriented, and you can keep many things moving at once. You take ownership and follow through. You also ask questions early rather than getting stuck. You communicate clearly and patiently with customers, teammates, and vendors. You want your work to matter and are motivated by building a cleaner, more resilient energy system. Nice to have Experience with Zendesk, ERP or inventory systems, or tools like Airtable, Zapier, or n8n Experience with and understanding of supply chain management and quality best practices Basic Python, SQL, or JavaScript Interest in IoT, energy, or climate tech Bilingual (e.g., Spanish or Chinese) A side project, class project, or tool you built that you can show us Why Aquanta Real impact. You'll keep customers happy and products moving, and the improvements you make will shape how the company runs. Hands-on learning. You'll gain experience in supply chain, hardware, customer operations, and AI-driven automation all at once. Meaningful mission. You'll help make the grid cleaner and more flexible, one water heater at a time. Room to grow. As the company scales, so does your role. Compensation: $60,000—$70,000 We prefer candidates who can work from our McLean office regularly. There's no substitute for in-person collaboration on a small team. How to apply: Email your resume and LinkedIn profile to View email address on click.appcast.io with the subject line "Operations Associate – Your Name." Tell us about something you've built with AI, such as a script, a workflow, or a small tool, and include any other relevant materials. Aquanta is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applicants of all backgrounds and are committed to building an inclusive team.