GTM Systems Operations Program Manager - Confluent

Introduction

At IBM Global Sales, we bring together innovation, collaboration, and expertise to help clients solve their most complex business challenges. Working across industries and geographies, you’ll partner with colleagues, clients, and partners to co-create solutions that drive digital transformation and lasting impact.Success in Global Sales is built on curiosity, empathy, and collaboration. You’ll connect technical understanding with strong people skills, building trusted relationships and shaping solutions that improve business and society. With world-class onboarding, continuous learning, and a supportive culture, IBM offers the tools and opportunities to grow your career. Join us and be part of a global team that’s passionate about driving innovation and making a difference.

Your role and responsibilities

About the Role

As a Staff GTM Operations Manager, you are a master of execution and oversight. You don’t just follow processes—you build, monitor, and refine them to ensure global consistency. You will own the monthly close processes, lead complex system enhancements, and serve as a bridge between Sales, Finance, and Legal. This role requires a high degree of independence and the sophisticated judgment needed to manage vendor contracts and medium-scale fiscal decisions.

What You Have

Operational & Financial Literacy: Advanced understanding of operations theory paired with a solid grasp of revenue concepts. You can connect a line item in a contract to its impact on the company’s bottom line.

Contractual & Risk Acumen: Proven ability to dissect complex legal documents to identify operational risks and key obligations.

Data Fluency: Expert proficiency in Salesforce and reporting tools. You don't just pull data; you interpret trends and provide the "so what" to leadership.

Resource Management: Ability to accurately estimate the Level of Effort (LOE) for yourself and others, ensuring projects stay on track and within budget.

Mentorship Mindset: A track record of providing technical and career guidance, coaching peers and junior staff to elevate the team's collective competency.

What You Will Do

Own the Operational Lifecycle: Lead core activities for large, high-complexity projects, including the onboarding of process contracts from "Closed-Won" through to "Closeout."

Drive Financial Governance: Act as the leader of monthly close processes, ensuring team adherence to governance standards and providing accurate, timely status reports.

Optimize the Stack: Oversight of operational system enhancements and the development/rollout of global policy and process improvements.

Solve Complex Bottlenecks: Anticipate issues requiring ingenuity and innovation, solving problems that span multiple projects or functional domains.

Manage Vendor Ecosystems: Own and manage critical vendor relationships, maintaining the authority to make fiscal decisions regarding procurement and contracts.

Strategy & Vision Support: Contribute directly to the operational roadmap and long-term vision, ensuring that departmental OKRs are supported by robust processes and metrics.

Inspire Collaboration: Lead cross-functional collaborations and participate in special interest communities to stay at the forefront of industry best practices.

Required technical and professional expertise

Operational & Financial Literacy: Advanced understanding of operations theory paired with a solid grasp of revenue concepts. You can connect a line item in a contract to its impact on the company’s bottom line.

Contractual & Risk Acumen: Proven ability to dissect complex legal documents to identify operational risks and key obligations.

Data Fluency: Expert proficiency in Salesforce and reporting tools. You don't just pull data; you interpret trends and provide the "so what" to leadership.

Resource Management: Ability to accurately estimate the Level of Effort (LOE) for yourself and others, ensuring projects stay on track and within budget.

Mentorship Mindset: A track record of providing technical and career guidance, coaching peers and junior staff to elevate the team's collective competency.

IBM is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal-opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, caste, genetics, pregnancy, disability, neurodivergence, age, veteran status, or other characteristics. IBM is also committed to compliance with all fair employment practices regarding citizenship and immigration status.