Business Operations Specialist

Business Operations Specialist

Itron is innovating new ways for utilities and cities to manage energy and water. We create a more resourceful world to protect essential resources for today and tomorrow. Join us.

The Business Operations Specialist will play a key role in supporting the business operations function for the Resiliency Solutions business unit. This individual will partner closely with FP&A, business unit leaders, and cross-functional teams to deliver insightful analysis, drive operational discipline, and ensure the business unit meets key financial and operational targets including revenue, gross margin, operating income, and annual recurring revenue (ARR). This role blends data-driven analysis, operational execution, financial partnership, and leadership of strategic initiatives to scale and optimize business unit performance in a customer-centric, accountable, and collaborative manner. The ideal candidate is highly analytical, detail-oriented, and capable of translating complex operational and financial data into clear, actionable business insights that support informed decision-making.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Partner authentically with FP&A and business unit leadership to monitor performance against financial and operational KPIs, ensuring accountability to targets and execution of action plans.
• Support ongoing review of cost structures, service delivery models, and productivity metrics to drive sustainable performance and customer value.
• Develop a strong understanding of project-level budgets and financial performance to support achievement of revenue, gross margin, operating income, and ARR goals.
• Support cost planning and optimization initiatives, including:
  • Infrastructure investments such as hosting and cloud costs
  • Headcount planning, investment prioritization, and productivity optimization

KPI Management & Operational Insights

• Define, track, and report key operational and financial metrics that enable agile decision-making and transparency.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives to enhance performance against KPIs.
• Develop and maintain dashboards and recurring reporting that improve business visibility and enable leaders to act quickly and confidently.

Strategic Analysis & Process Improvement

• Identify, lead, and support process improvement initiatives across the business unit with a focus on scalability, efficiency, and customer outcomes.
• Design and implement standardized, repeatable processes that support growth within a regulated Utilities & Energy technology environment.
• Lead change management efforts by:
  • Communicating new processes and workflows clearly to stakeholders
  • Coordinating and supporting training as needed
  • Driving adoption across cross-functional teams through collaboration and influence

Costing & Margin Optimization

• Support and coordinate the implementation of time-tracking processes to better understand how implementation, customer success, and technical support teams allocate effort.
• Partner cross-functionally to define project and task structures that support accurate time tracking across customer projects, SaaS initiatives, and indirect cost activities.
• Develop sustainable and transparent processes for allocating cost of sales between direct and indirect costs based on project setup and time-tracking data.

Automation, Reporting & Tools

• Lead the development of automated reporting and dashboards to support business operations and executive decision-making.
• Identify and champion opportunities for automation that improve data accuracy, efficiency, and scalability.

Executive & Cross-Functional Support

• Lead and/or support cross-functional initiatives on behalf of the business unit, demonstrating accountability and ownership.
• Prepare materials for corporate operations reviews, end-of-quarter revenue reviews, and bookings reviews.
• Provide ad hoc analysis and insights to support evolving business needs and strategic priorities.

Required Skills & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in business, finance, economics, or a related field.
• 2–5 years of experience in business operations, FP&A, or a related analytical role.
• Strong financial and operational acumen, including understanding of revenue models, margins, cost structures, and ARR.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel; experience with business intelligence tools (Power BI preferred).
• Ability to clearly communicate financial and operational insights to non-finance stakeholders in an authentic and collaborative manner.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities in an agile, fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated analytical, problem-solving, and project management capabilities.
• Proven ability to collaborate cross-functionally and influence stakeholders at multiple levels with accountability and professionalism.

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Experience with ERP and financial reporting systems (e.g., NetSuite, Oracle EBS, or cube-based reporting tools).
• Experience working in a SaaS or subscription-based business model, ideally within a technology company serving the Utilities & Energy sector.

Benefits Info: This position also includes a competitive benefit package including; financial, social, health and wellbeing programs, paid vacation, 401k matching, employee stock purchase program, hybrid work schedule, and more!

The successful candidate's starting salary will be determined based on permissible, non-discriminatory factors such as skills and experience and may vary by location. The base salary is $75,000-124,500 annually.