Head of Investor Relations - Ouster

POSITION SUMMARY

Ouster is scaling as a leader in sensing and perception for Physical AI, bringing together high-performance digital lidar, cameras, AI compute, perception software, and AI models to enable real-world autonomy across industrial, robotics, automotive, and smart infrastructure markets. As a dedicated Investor Relations leader, you will strengthen Ouster’s engagement with the capital markets, sharpen the company’s strategic narrative, and help investors understand how Ouster’s differentiated technology platform, expanding customer ecosystem, and execution against long-term growth and profitability priorities position the company for increasing relevance in the public markets. This role is critical to elevating Ouster’s market visibility, reinforcing transparency with financial stakeholders, and shaping how the investment community understands Ouster’s leadership in building a safer, smarter, and more automated physical world.

This senior leadership-level role is the integration point between the executive team, the Board, sell-side research analysts, and the institutional investor community - translating business strategy and operating results into a clear, credible, and differentiated investment narrative.

The ideal candidate has built or scaled an Investor Relations program inside a publicly traded company, carries established relationships across the sell-side research community, and has a proven playbook for growing and diversifying an institutional shareholder base through capital markets days, non-deal roadshows, and investor conferences. Candidates must be able to demonstrate the ability to leverage AI-powered platforms and data analytics tools to enhance investor targeting, streamline communications, surface actionable market insights, and elevate the overall effectiveness of the investor relations function.

As the Head of Investor Relations, you will need to operate equally well as a strategist shaping the narrative with the CEO and CFO and as a hands-on operator managing the mechanics of quarterly earnings, analyst logistics, and investor targeting. This role also requires the ability to pivot internally and ensure clear, consistent messaging between our internal and external communications through partnership with marketing, PR, and our business leadership.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Corporate Strategy & Investor Messaging

• Partner directly with the CEO, CFO, and executive leadership team to shape and continuously refine the company’s investment thesis, equity narrative, and key messaging pillars.
• Build a single, cohesive strategy that aligns Investor Relations, corporate Marketing, Communications/PR, and business-unit leaders around one consistent story across every external-facing channel - earnings materials, press releases, website, social, and events.
• Own the end-to-end quarterly earnings process: press releases, prepared remarks, investor presentations, Q&A preparation, and the underlying financial and operating models.
• Develop and maintain the annual IR calendar, communications plan, and issues/crisis-management playbook in close coordination with PR and Legal.

Sell-Side Analyst & Research Coverage

• Serve as the primary relationship owner for sell-side equity research analysts across bulge-bracket, mid-market, and boutique firms covering (or positioned to cover) the stock.
• Proactively manage and expand quality research coverage; lead outreach and onboarding for new analyst coverage initiations.
• Track and synthesize sell-side models, consensus estimates, and published research; brief management regularly on Street sentiment, model assumptions, and areas of misperception.
• Coordinate and host non-deal roadshows (NDRs), analyst site visits, and one-on-one / small-group analyst meetings.

Institutional Investor Development

• Design and execute a systematic institutional investor targeting and outreach program to grow and diversify the shareholder base across growth, index, and technology-oriented investors.
• Plan and lead flagship investor events, including Capital Markets/Analyst Days, investor conferences, non-deal roadshows, and reverse roadshows at company headquarters.
• Own the IR CRM and surveillance platform (e.g., Q4, Ipreo/IHS Markit, Nasdaq IR Insight) to track investor engagement, ownership changes, and the effectiveness of targeting efforts.
• Monitor trading activity, the shareholder register, and 13F/ownership analysis to identify emerging holders, model buy-side positioning, and flag activist or activist-adjacent risk early.
• Be a steward and key leadership voice in the development of Ouster’s ESG strategy.

Cross-Functional Partnership

• Develop and maintain a deep understanding of Ouster’s operations, financial performance and business strategies through ongoing interface and fact-finding meetings with Ouster’s executives
• Act as the linchpin between Investor Relations, Marketing, Corporate Communications/PR, Legal, and the broader business to ensure one unified voice across investor, media, employee, and customer-facing messaging.
• Partner with FP&A and Accounting on guidance-setting, KPI selection, and consistency between external disclosures, internal forecasts, and Board reporting.
• Work with Legal/General Counsel on Regulation FD compliance, disclosure controls, and review of SEC filings (10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, proxy statement).
• Support the Board and Audit Committee with market perception reports, competitive intelligence, and peer benchmarking ahead of key meetings.

Market Intelligence & Reporting

• Commission and deliver periodic market perception studies, shareholder analyses, and peer/competitor benchmarking to the executive team and Board.
• Monitor macro, sector, and peer-company trends; translate market signals into actionable recommendations for management and the Board.
• Track and report core IR KPIs - analyst coverage and ratings mix, ownership composition, trading liquidity and float, valuation multiples versus peers, and say-on-pay/ESG sentiment.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

• Has the ability to be a leader and drive consensus and thought leadership both internally and externally of Ouster
• 8-12+ years of progressive experience in Investor Relations, equity research, sell-side coverage, or corporate finance, including direct IR leadership at a publicly traded small- or mid-cap company.
• Demonstrated track record building an IR program and messaging framework from the ground up, or substantially elevating an existing one.
• Established, portable relationships with sell-side equity research analysts across major bulge-bracket, mid-market, and boutique firms.
• Direct experience planning and executing capital markets days, non-deal roadshows, and investor conference participation.
• Strong command of financial statements, valuation methodologies, and capital markets/trading dynamics relevant to small- and mid-cap equities.
• Proven ability to partner cross-functionally with Marketing, Communications/PR, Legal, and business-unit leaders to build one cohesive external narrative.
• Well organized with ability drive projects through to completion
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to distill complex financial and technical concepts into clear, compelling messaging for a range of audiences.
• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Economics, Accounting, Business, or a related field; MBA, CFA, or IR-specific credential (e.g., CIRI, IRC) a plus.
• Working knowledge of Regulation FD, SEC disclosure requirements, and public-company governance.
• Proficiency with IR/CRM and market-intelligence platforms (Q4, Ipreo/IHS Markit Ownership, Nasdaq IR Insight), Bloomberg/FactSet, and financial modeling in Excel.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Prior corporate IR experience in a mid or large cap company and/or sell-side equity research or investment banking experience.
• Experience in technology, hardware, industrials, or another complex-technology growth sector.
• Experience with ESG/sustainability reporting, index-inclusion strategy, and proxy advisory engagement (ISS, Glass Lewis).
• Track record of measurably growing and diversifying an institutional shareholder base at a public company.

KEY COMPETENCIES

• Strategic storyteller - translates business strategy and operating performance into a compelling, differentiated investment narrative.
• High-EQ relationship builder - earns credibility quickly with the C-suite, Board, sell-side, and buy-side alike.
• Precision under deadline - owns high-stakes financial materials with zero tolerance for error on a fixed quarterly cadence.
• Player-coach mentality - equally comfortable setting strategy and rolling up sleeves as a lean team’s primary operator.
• Composure and judgment - navigates volatile market trading dynamics, activist scrutiny, and market pressure with steady, disciplined communication.

We acknowledge the confidence gap at Ouster. You do not need to meet all of these requirements to be the ideal candidate for this role.

Ouster is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer that pursues and hires a diverse workforce. Ouster does not make employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, ethnic or national origin, nationality, sex, gender, gender-identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, military status, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal laws. Ouster also strives for a healthy and safe workplace, and prohibits harassment of any kind. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Ouster considers qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.