DescriptionThe Digital Operations Director is responsible for increasing 1898 & Co.'s digital delivery capacity by defining, governing, and operating a global practice-wide Digital Operating Model (DOM) that converts technology, platforms, vendors, and digital labor into reliable, secure, and cost-effective delivery capacity.
This role is accountable for digital capacity planning, technology and device lifecycle governance, security and compliance alignment, and enterprise standards that enable decentralized execution. The Digital Operations Director coordinates closely with business line leaders, corporate IT, security, and risk partners to ensure digital delivery is resilient, auditable, and aligned with business priorities.
This role ensures that digital operating decisions measurably improve day-to-day digital production for delivery teams by reducing friction, increasing throughput, and improving predictability for Digital Delivery Managers embedded in the business.
- Define, maintain, and evolve the global practice-wide Digital Operating Model, including architecture standards, operating processes, resourcing patterns, and performance measures that enable scalable digital delivery.
- Ensure the Digital Operating Model directly improves frontline digital production by enabling consistent platforms, predictable operating conditions, and reduced delivery friction for Digital Delivery Managers.
- Partner with Digital Delivery Managers to identify systemic constraints that limit digital throughput, delivery velocity, or quality, and evolve the operating model to remove those constraints at scale.
- Coordinate the enterprise digital architecture and platform roadmap in partnership with business lines and corporate IT to ensure alignment with delivery priorities and long-term scalability.
- Identify, prioritize, and drive the reduction of unnecessary technical debt that limits delivery capacity, increases operational risk, or inflates cost.
- Balance adoption, performance, cost management, and user experience in all digital operating decisions.
- Translate digital operating standards, platforms, and governance into measurable increases in usable digital delivery capacity.
- Define and monitor capacity-related performance indicators, including throughput, delivery predictability, platform availability, and rework, in partnership with Digital Delivery Managers.
- Ensure digital tools, platforms, and operating practices reduce administrative burden and enable delivery teams to focus on client-facing digital production.
- Support decentralized execution by providing clear standards, shared services, and operating clarity while allowing business lines to retain delivery ownership.
- Drive cost efficiency through disciplined lifecycle management of digital tools, platforms, and devices.
- Establish performance-based refresh cycles and modern device lifecycle strategies, including Device as a Service and managed lifecycle services where appropriate.
- Improve asset utilization, reduce unnecessary spend, and ensure technology investments scale in proportion to delivery value.
- Advocate for and enable the adoption of GenAI and agentic AI capabilities that automate low-value administrative work, augment decision-making, and increase digital delivery capacity.
- Partner with business lines and corporate technology teams to ensure AI use cases are practical, secure, and tied to measurable operational and delivery outcomes.
- Ensure AI adoption aligns with governance, security, compliance, and ethical standards.
- Integrate security and compliance requirements into the Digital Operating Model as core operational capabilities rather than standalone checkpoints.
- Improve cyber hygiene and regulatory compliance in partnership with corporate IT and security teams, including endpoint management practices that accelerate patching, reduce vulnerability exposure, and protect the Digital Employee Experience.
- Ensure digital platforms and delivery models support defined disaster recovery and business continuity requirements.
- Coordinate and support regular third-line and external audit activities to validate security, compliance, and control effectiveness.
- Establish and monitor operational performance targets, including SLAs, SLOs, and KPIs for centralized digital platforms and services.
- Ensure performance measures include indicators of frontline digital delivery health and capacity enablement, not solely platform reliability or compliance metrics.
- Provide transparent visibility into digital operating performance, constraints, and improvement opportunities to business and digital delivery leaders.
- This role partners closely with business line leaders, Digital Delivery Managers and Directors, corporate IT, security and risk teams, finance, procurement, vendors, and enterprise governance bodies.
- The Digital Operations Director influences outcomes through defined standards, shared operating forums, data transparency, and peer accountability rather than formal reporting authority. Decisions are guided by enterprise standards, escalated through operating forums when
- exceptions are required, and reinforced through measurable performance outcomes.
- Responsible for the recruitment, development, training, and retention of staff.
- Responsible for conducting performance evaluations for department staff.
- Provide leadership, guidance, and instruction to the department.
- Responsible for interpreting the organization's policies, purposes, and goals to staff.
- Responsible for overall QA/QC process adherence.
- Enforce compliance with company and site safety policies.
- Performs other duties as assigned.
- Complies with all policies and standards.
Qualifications - Bachelor Degree in engineering, business, or related degree from an accredited program and 13 years relevant consulting experience and 13 years relevant consulting experience required.
- Excellent business acumen with proven success managing consulting engagements.
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to quickly and efficiently interpret large data sets.
- Ability to uncover customer needs, develop recommendations and deliver them persuasively.
- Expert facilitation, collaboration, organization, and problem-solving skills.
- Strong understanding of financial concepts.
- Excellent planning and analytical skills.
- Must demonstrate excellent oral and written communication skills; strong interpersonal skills; and the ability to clearly and effectively present complex information to all levels of employees, management, and clients.
This job posting will remain open a minimum of 72 hours and on an ongoing basis until filled.
Job Information Technology
Primary Location US-MO-Kansas City
Schedule: Full-time
Travel: Yes, 50 % of the Time
Req ID: 262213
Job Hire Type Experienced #LI-SS #E98 N/A
