{"id":3721005,"url":"https://alion.io/job/smokeball-strategy-and-operations-manager","title":"Strategy and Operations Manager","company":{"id":58812,"name":"Smokeball","domain":"smokeball.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/smokeball","size_band":"51-200","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Rippling","truth_index":null},"role":"Management","role_family":"Management","seniority":"middle","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Chicago, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":105000,"max":120000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":120000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":3,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[],"status":"closed","first_seen_at":"2026-11-03T22:15:23Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-03","last_verified_at":"2026-11-05T17:43:23Z","board_verified":false,"closed_at":"2026-11-05T17:43:23Z","days_open":1,"trust":{"level":"not_scored","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":1},"description":"About Smokeball\nSmokeball powers people-law. Our legal practice management software lightens the administrative burden, so legal professionals can serve those who need them most. With offices in Australia, the US, and the UK, culture plays a big part in our success, and our clear purpose and vision motivate us daily.\nAbout the Job\nBig ambitions, exciting challenges, and the chance to help build something from the ground up! We're looking for a driven, strategic and hands-on Strategy & Operations Manager to help bring our big ideas to life.\nWorking directly with our President, you'll play a key role in bringing Smokeball's AI into the US market, driving strategic initiatives, connecting teams and helping shape how we grow.\nThis isn't your typical strategy or project management role. We're after someone who loves solving problems, thrives in a fast-paced environment, thinks big but isn't afraid to roll up their sleeves and get things done.\nIf you're entrepreneurial, love a challenge and want to make a real impact in a growing business, this could be the opportunity for you!\nThis is a hybrid role based in our office in Chicago, IL. All Chicagoland employees are required to be in the office on Wednesdays and Thursdays.\nKey Responsibilities\nOwn critical cross-functional projects from planning through execution, beginning with launching AI products \nPartner with the President to turn strategic priorities into actionable initiatives, track commitments, and prepare leadership materials\nConnect AI focused US teams with global company resources, aligning stakeholders and managing dependencies\nBuild processes for managing priorities, tracking initiatives, and facilitating leadership meetings\nResearch opportunities, analyze alternatives, and develop clear, practical recommendations, then own implementation\nAnticipate risks, resolve bottlenecks, and know when to solve independently versus escalate\nLead special projects such as vendor evaluations, operational improvements, partnership coordination, and business planning\nSynthesize complex information into executive-ready communications\nRoll up your sleeves on research, analyses, presentations, and vendor coordination as needed\nSkills & Experience\n3-5 years of experience in management consulting, strategy and operations, business operations, or a similarly demanding environment (exceptional earlier-career candidates encouraged to apply)\nProven ability to independently own complex initiatives, work across functions, and deliver results\nExceptional analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to structure ambiguous problems and evaluate tradeoffs\nStrong organizational and project management skills, with great attention to detail across competing priorities\nExcellent written and verbal communication skills, including presenting recommendations to senior leadership\nStrong interpersonal skills and the confidence to influence senior stakeholders and drive accountability without formal authority\nProactive, resourceful mindset with a bias for action\nComfort in fast-paced, entrepreneurial environments where processes may not yet exist\nProficiency with spreadsheets, presentations, data analysis, and modern project management and collaboration tools\nNice to Have\nExperience in a startup, early-stage, or high-growth environment\nExperience supporting a product or market launch\nExperience working with global or cross-border teams\nFamiliarity with legal tech, SaaS, or professional services\nCompensation\nBase range of $105,000 - $120,000\nWhat's in it for you?\nCompetitive Salary\nWork-Life Balance: 20 vacation days, 3 reboot days, birthday off, volunteer time, and more!\nBenefits: Excellent medical, dental, vision coverage. 401(k) match, & monthly wellness stipend\nParental leave\nOffice lunch and loads of snacks\nAnd of course...the SWAG!\nWant to Know More?\nWhy do we do what we do? Where did the name ‘Smokeball’ come from? What are our values? Learn more here!\n*Smokeball values diversity & inclusion and is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. Smokeball considers all individuals seeking employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected characteristic.\nIf you’re excited about this role, we encourage you to apply even if your experience doesn’t check every box.","description_format":"text","description_chars":4447,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":3,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Parental leave"],"hiring_locations":[],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Document Management","Legal Services","Legal Software"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-11-04T02:40:12Z"},{"event":"close","at":"2026-11-05T17:43:23Z"}],"visa":[{"country":"US","licensed_sponsor":true,"adverts_offering_sponsorship_24m":0,"sanctioned_now":false,"evidence":"H-1B filings in 12 months: 3","filings_12m":3,"filings_prev_12m":3,"green_card_filings_12m":0,"median_offered_wage_usd":82500,"route":null,"cap_exempt":false,"checked_at":"2026-11-09T07:32:21+00:00","sources":["US Department of Labor: LCA disclosure data (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3)"],"filings_for_role_12m":0}],"liveness":null,"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":120000,"is_top_pay":true},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/smokeball-strategy-and-operations-manager","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/smokeball-strategy-and-operations-manager.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-10T09:50:57Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":22867,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-11-11T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":58812},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=58812"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fsmokeball-strategy-and-operations-manager"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":2,"usd":0.2},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fsmokeball-strategy-and-operations-manager"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fsmokeball-strategy-and-operations-manager"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/smokeball-strategy-and-operations-manager\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fsmokeball-strategy-and-operations-manager"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":3721005}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"smokeball.com","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":3721005},"note":"people open to offers who fit this vacancy"}],"note":"The same data through MCP tools: https://alion.io/mcp/open needs no sign-in (compact searches, postings, people); https://alion.io/mcp with an Alion account has everything. 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