Strategy Operations Associate, Growth

Strategy & Operations Associate

Gallatin AI is hiring a Strategy & Operations Associate to serve as the principal execution arm for our Head of Growth. This is a rare opportunity for an ambitious, early-career operator to work shoulder-to-shoulder with a senior commercial leader across the full surface area of go-to-market business development, sales operations and CRM, market and competitive analysis, and partnership development inside one of the fastest-moving companies in defense tech.

You will stand up and run the operating systems that make the commercial function scale: pipeline instrumentation, account dossiers, competitive intelligence, partnership infrastructure, and the playbooks the rest of the team plugs into. You will be the connective tissue that turns commercial strategy into executed motion closing the gaps the Head of Growth doesn't have time to close, and freeing executive bandwidth for the largest strategic and customer-facing moves. You will lean heavily on modern AI tooling to do the work of a much larger team.

This role is built for someone who wants the responsibility curve of an early-stage operator: ambiguous problems, high autonomy, real customers, and a direct line into how a defense AI company gets to scale. The right candidate sees this as a launchpad not a back-office support function.

What You'll Do

Business Development

• Support the Head of Growth in identifying, qualifying, and advancing opportunities across DoW, allied government, and enterprise defense customers.
• Build account dossiers, capture briefs, and customer-specific value narratives that arm the commercial team for high-stakes conversations.
• Drive follow-through on commercial commitments so no thread, request, or follow-up falls through the cracks between meetings.
• Represent Gallatin in early customer conversations, conferences, and partner forums as the role matures.

Sales Operations & CRM

• Own the day-to-day health of the CRM pipeline hygiene, opportunity stages, contact data, and activity instrumentation.
• Build dashboards, forecasting views, and pipeline reports that give the Head of Growth and senior leadership a clear, real-time view of commercial performance.
• Design and continuously improve sales processes, playbooks, and workflows as the commercial team scales.
• Stand up and maintain the tooling stack (CRM, enrichment, intelligence, outbound) and own the integrations between systems.

Market & Competitive Analysis

• Conduct structured market analysis across defense technology, AI, and logistics segments sizing opportunities, mapping competitors, and surfacing the signals that should shape Gallatin's commercial posture.
• Track program-of-record activity, budget cycles, RFIs/RFPs, and primes / non-traditionals relevant to Gallatin's roadmap.
• Synthesize findings into crisp written briefs and decision-grade memos for the Head of Growth, CEO, and Board.

Partnership Development

• Help build and operate Gallatin's partner ecosystem primes, systems integrators, technology partners, and channel relationships across defense and adjacent markets.
• Manage the partnership pipeline end-to-end: sourcing, structuring, contracting support, joint pursuits, and ongoing partner enablement.
• Coordinate cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, and Legal to translate partnership intent into executed agreements and joint motion.

AI-Native Operating Style

• Treat modern AI tools as a default extension of your workflow from research and synthesis to outreach, modeling, and CRM automation.
• Continuously identify where AI can compress cycle time on commercial work and rebuild those workflows so the function scales without proportional headcount.
• Codify the prompts, workflows, and patterns that work so the rest of the commercial org compounds on your wins.

What We're Looking For

• Minimum 3 years of professional experience for candidates with an MBA or U.S. military service; 6+ years of defense technology experience for candidates without an MBA or military background.
• MBA from a top program, U.S. military veteran status, or 6+ years working inside the defense technology ecosystem ideally a combination.
• Track record of operating with high autonomy in ambiguous, fast-moving environments startup, consulting, defense tech, military staff role, or similar.
• Strong commercial instincts comfortable in front of customers, partners, and senior stakeholders; able to qualify opportunities and move them forward.
• Hands-on fluency with CRM systems (HubSpot, Salesforce, or similar) and the broader sales-operations toolchain enrichment, sequencing, intelligence, BI.
• Demonstrated comfort with modern AI tools as part of daily work; able to build prompts, workflows, and lightweight automations that compound output.
• Sharp analytical and structured-thinking skills can size a market, model a pipeline, or pressure-test a partnership thesis without hand-holding.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication; able to produce decision-grade briefs, customer-facing materials, and internal updates with minimal editing.
• High agency, low ego, and a strong service orientation toward the Head of Growth and the broader commercial team.
• Willingness to travel up to 25% of the time, including to government and customer sites.
• Ability to obtain and maintain relevant security clearances.

Bonus Points

• Prior experience at a Series AC defense or dual-use technology company.
• Direct exposure to DoW acquisition processes, OTAs, SBIRs, or non-traditional contracting vehicles.
• Background in management consulting, investment banking, corporate development, or a top-tier BD/strategy function.
• Existing relationships across primes, defense innovation organizations (DIU, AFWERX, SOFWERX, etc.), or relevant program offices.
• Demonstrated history of building AI-powered workflows that materially changed the output of a team.

Mission and Identity

We are building the system that enables faster, smarter logistics decisions in contested environments, and we're doing it with a team of seasoned entrepreneurs, operators, and technologists who have built and scaled solutions in this space before. We hold ourselves to an extremely high standard. We value clear thinking, direct communication, and the kind of ownership that doesn't stop until something actually works.

Our mission is to create decision advantage when the stakes are the highest. If we succeed, the system doesn't just run; it gets smarter. We're not building AI for its own sake. We're building it because faster, smarter decisions in the most demanding environments on earth can't wait. If you want to work somewhere the stakes are real and the mission is urgent you'll fit in here.

Why Gallatin?

The logistics infrastructure that supports America's warfighters and humanitarian disaster responders is overdue for transformation, and we are building it. From defense operations to disaster response, we're solving the hardest problems that keep missions moving when it matters most. Join a team where the mission is the point.

Compensation

Gallatin offers competitive compensation commensurate with experience. Actual compensation may vary based on experience, skills, and location. In addition to base salary, we offer a generous equity grant, full healthcare coverage, 401k, unlimited PTO, and the perks of working in a high-caliber, mission-driven environment.

Gallatin is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

This position may require the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance. The successful candidate must be able to work in a classified environment when necessary.

We comply with the United States Department of Labor's Pay Transparency provision.