Operations Director

Operations Director
Permanent, full-time | Remote with travel as required | Preferred locations: Barbados, Kenya, the UK or the UAE (flexible for the right person) | Start ASAP

ABOUT AMINI

Amini builds the technology backbone the Global South needs to run AI on its own terms: the data, computing power and networks that let governments and businesses own their digital future, instead of depending on outside platforms. Our work has been recognised by TIME100 AI, MIT Solve and the World Economic Forum.

We started in 2022 with AI tools for small-scale farmers, reaching nearly 500,000 across Africa. Scaling showed us the real gap was underneath the apps: government records trapped on paper, and AI running on computing power rented from abroad. So we now build the foundations ourselves: renewable-powered data centres (with Foxconn), local mobile and internet networks, AI that digitises government records, and secure data platforms that local developers build on. In Barbados, this has delivered the country’s own secure cloud and mobile network, digitised government records, and locally built apps such as ChatBB and BRIDGE.

What we offer. A complete stack, from archives to servers, closing the three gaps that stop countries running their own AI: data, compute and talent. It spans sovereign AI-ready data centres deployed in-country; cloud and private 4G/5G networks; AI that turns paper records into clean, machine-readable data; a national data platform connecting data across systems; and AI applications for government, citizens and sectors such as policing and agriculture, all backed by engineers on the ground.

Who we work with. Government ministries that need better data, faster policy-making and stronger coordination, such as ministries of finance and ICT and prime ministers’ offices; national agencies holding valuable but hard-to-access records, such as police, land registries and health authorities; and enterprises in mining, telecoms, agriculture, logistics and energy that need connectivity and AI-ready data infrastructure.

How we work. Our values are Collaboration, Trust, Integrity, Humility and Passion. Our team is small, highly skilled and non-hierarchical: we share credit openly, are honest about what we don’t know, and pull toward shared goals rather than defend titles.

Why join us now. We are small enough for one senior person to shape a whole part of the business, and grounded in real contracts with real governments. What we build has grown more complex, and we need senior leaders who can operate at that level. With 1.2 billion young people across the Global South reaching working age in the next decade (World Bank), the stakes are high

ABOUT THE ROLE

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

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 (Technology, Engineering, Data Science, Finance, People and Culture, Commercial/BD, Ecosystem, Operations and Customer Delivery) 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

Experience

• 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.