Director of Operations

Sans is on a mission to build the next great consumer hardware brand, with a laser focus on products that help people live healthier lives at home. We started with a category-leading air purifier before expanding to a best-in-class countertop water purifier that actually works to eliminate harmful contaminants – and our product roadmap is just getting started.

We’re a small, ambitious team that believes deeply in our ability to create a meaningful consumer brand. We move fast, learn quickly, and consistently outperform much larger competitors.

The Sans Strategic Operations team plays a critical role in sourcing, developing, manufacturing, and delivering differentiated, healthier-home products to our customers. This team is accountable for scaling and improving our business operations to support our rapid growth. 

The Strategic Operations Director will lead essential projects across sourcing, manufacturing / packing, packaging, freight / logistics, fulfillment, and supply planning. They will identify and solve a broad array of critical and complex problems and will be responsible for developing our Strategic Operations function as we continue to scale. The role reports directly to the CFO and will manage 2 existing team members. They will also work closely with our co-founders, Head of CX, Chief of Staff, and creative team, along with the rest of the Sans team.

The ideal candidate will be data-driven and analytical, skilled in developing business relationships, and have a passion for and experience in operations. They should be highly detail-oriented and able to see and build the bigger picture for an exciting future.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Lead Sans’ most critical strategic operations projects – defining and scoping new projects, leading analysis and execution, and helping build out the future state of the operations organization

• Lead the Strategic Operations team at Sans – hiring and developing a high performing team as we scale to support our rapid growth

• Lead strategic sourcing – identifying new suppliers, manufacturers, and packers to support new product launch goals and working with our existing suppliers to improve quality and reduce cost. 

• Support manufacturer / packer / packaging operations – managing day-to-day relationships and processing including ordering, quality, testing, and cost optimization with support from Procurement Manager

• Manage supply planning – working closely with Finance and Marketing to optimize inventory planning and management 

• Lead freight / logistics / fulfilment management – managing day-to-day relationships with our 3PL, managing operational performance, and conducting analysis to identify and execute improvement opportunities

• Be a leader in our operations team and help develop the people and technology infrastructure required for a high performing Strategic Operations function in a consistently growing and evolving role
• Manage and mentor overseas Procurement Manager and Operations Analyst

Requirements

Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree and equivalent work experience in a highly analytical role
• 5-8+ years of experience in operations at a large CPG / Retailer, or a startup
• Experience with overseas manufacturers
• Experience managing / working with a 3PL partner
• Experience in supply planning and inventory management 
• Experience architecting an operations organization from the ground up (e.g. implementing processes, rigor, ways of working, etc.)
• Startup / e-commerce experience or passion is a plus

Interpersonal:

• Strong leadership & communication skills: listen, reflect, proactively learn, and thoughtfully mentor 
• Ability to work effectively with different groups of individuals – a team player
• Ability to manage multiple moving pieces – hard working, organized, and results oriented individual 
• Strong time management and prioritization skills
• Excitement for startups and building a company from the ground up

Benefits

• Base salary $160,000-$180,000 based on experience, plus discretionary bonus and equity
• Option for fully paid medical, dental, and vision
• Opportunity to contribute to 401k
• Unlimited PTO plus 11+ paid holidays
• LA-based hybrid team. Office in Culver City