Operations Director

Operations Director

We are hiring a senior Operations Director to run how Amini delivers, internally and for our customers. This is a permanent role. For the first 6–9 months you will also step up as acting COO while our COO is on maternity leave.

Our COO runs the business internally so that we deliver to a high standard all that we have committed to. You will own that internal engine: turning signed deals into successful customer deployments, making the numbers work, and making sure every team's plans add up to one company strategy.

During the cover period you take on the COO's full remit, including finance, legal, compliance, company secretarial, the ESOP plan and investor reporting. When the COO returns, you continue as Operations Director, leading commercial operations, customer delivery, the PMO and cross-company planning, with a remit we will shape together based on how the cover period goes.

Key responsibilities include:

1. Commercials, proposals and tenders

- Lead the coordination of customer proposals, tenders and presentations, pulling together Commercial/BD, Technology, Data Science, Finance and Legal input into strong, on-time submissions.

- Own commercial structuring and pricing: pricing models, deal economics, margin and contract terms, working with the CEO to win the right deals on the right terms.

- Build repeatable bid processes, templates and pricing tools so the company can respond to more opportunities, faster.

- Act as the bridge between what is sold and what can be delivered, so commitments are realistic and profitable.

2. Customer onboarding and delivery

- Own the customer journey from contract signature through onboarding to live, long-term delivery.

- Oversee delivery across the customer portfolio, working with customers' local Program Managers to track every deliverable, milestone and dependency.

- Lead executive-level customer governance, such as steering committees and quarterly reviews, alongside the CEO.

- Spot delivery risks early, resolve escalations and keep customer satisfaction high.

- Build scalable onboarding and delivery processes as we take on larger and more complex customers.

3. Strategy, planning and executive coordination

- Coordinate the executive team to set and run the company's strategic plan, including annual and quarterly planning cycles and OKRs.

- Make sure departmental strategies, plans and roadmaps fit together and deliver the overall plan.

- Run the operating rhythm of the business: exec meetings, business reviews, KPIs and decision tracking.

- Hold teams accountable for delivery against plan and surface trade-offs for the CEO and exec team to decide.

4. PMO and cross-company delivery

- Lead the PMO, which coordinates projects and deliverables across every function of the business.

- Keep one clear view of priorities, resourcing, dependencies and risks across all teams and customer programmes.

- Provide clear, regular reporting to the CEO, exec team and board on progress and delivery health.

5. Finance, legal and governance (acting COO, maternity cover period)

- Strategic finance: financial planning, budgeting, forecasting and runway management, working through the Head of Finance.

- Investor reporting: prepare investor and board reports and board packs, and support fundraising and due diligence as needed.

- Legal and contracts: oversee customer, partner and supplier contracts and manage external legal advisers.

- Compliance and company secretarial: keep statutory filings, governance, policies and regulatory compliance in order across all entities.

- ESOP: run the employee share option plan, including grants, vesting, records and communication to staff.

6. Team leadership

- Line-manage and develop the Head of Finance, Operations Associate and PMO Lead.

- Build a high-performing, low-ego operations team, and hire as the business grows.

- Act as a senior leader in the company, modelling our culture and values.

What you will bring:

• 10+ years in operations, strategy, commercial or consulting roles, with at least 3–5 years in a senior leadership role (Operations Director, COO, Chief of Staff, VP Operations or similar).
• Experience running operations in a scaling B2B technology, data or SaaS business, ideally venture-backed.
• A track record of leading complex enterprise customer delivery and onboarding programmes.
• Hands-on experience with commercial structuring, pricing and leading large proposals or public and private sector tenders.
• Strong financial literacy: budgeting, forecasting, runway planning and investor or board reporting.
• Working knowledge of contracts, compliance, company secretarial matters and share option schemes, and experience managing external legal and accounting advisers.
• Experience leading strategic planning and coordinating an executive team.
• Experience managing and developing people, including senior finance and project professionals.

Nice to have:

• MBA, accounting or finance qualification, or a legal background.
• Experience with governments and public sector contracts, digital or AI infrastructure (data centres, telecoms, cloud), or emerging markets across Africa, the Caribbean or the wider Global South.
• Experience stepping into a broader role at short notice, such as interim or cover leadership.