Purpose of the Job
The Operations Manager - USA is responsible for the day-to-day operational management of RapidAIM's site in California, ensuring safe, efficient, and reliable execution of assembly, deployment, and delivery activities. This is a hands-on role, working directly on-site and with a small casual/seasonal team to keep operations running smoothly and to standard.
Reporting to the Head of Operations in Australia, this role helps maintain alignment with existing operational standards and reporting processes, and works closely with colleagues across commercial, product, and technical teams to keep operations running effectively as the business grows. There will be some liaison across international time-zones so a flexible approach is highly valued.
Responsibilities
- Day-to-Day Operations Management
- Manage daily operations at the US site, ensuring safe, reliable, and efficient execution of assembly, deployment, and customer delivery tasks
- Plan and prioritise daily work schedules and assignments
- Track key metrics including productivity, quality, cost, and delivery performance, and report on these to the Head of Operations
- Drive data-informed decision-making aligned with business objectives
- Maintain a hands-on presence, working directly alongside staff and on-site operations
- Report regularly to the Head of Operations (Australia) on site performance, risks, improvement opportunities and any issues
- Liaise with commercial, product, business support, and technical colleagues as needed to keep operations running smoothly and support product development.
- Process Improvement
- Follow and maintain SOPs, workflows, and quality standards; suggest improvements where gaps are identified and drive standardisation whilst maintaining flexibility for US market needs.
- Look for practical opportunities to improve efficiency and reduce waste in day-to-day operations
- Apply basic continuous improvement practices (e.g. root cause analysis) to resolve recurring issues
- Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, reduce waste, and increase scalability
- Facility & Equipment
- Manage day-to-day facility operations, ensuring equipment is maintained and issues are resolved promptly
- Keep facility layout and workflows organised for efficient use of space and resources
- Coordinate with vendors and internal teams to keep the site operationally ready
- Ensure the site complies with applicable safety, environmental, and operational regulations
- Assembly, Inventory & Logistics
- Coordinate assembly activities, inventory levels, and logistics for the site
- Flag capacity constraints or demand changes to the Head of Operations for planning purposes and assist with capacity planning alignment to growth forecasts
- Liaise with commercial contacts as needed on operational capability
- Manage relationships with local suppliers and escalate supply risks as they arise
- Team Coordination
- Manage and support the casual/seasonal team on-site and at locations throughout California.
- Foster a culture of safety, accountability, and continuous improvement among the team
- Manage onboarding and day-to-day coaching of team members
- Work with the People Team to support hiring and develop succession pipelines and long-term capability in operations.
- Technology & Ag-Tech Support
- Support the operational rollout of RapidAIM's sensing and data technologies on-sites
- Provide field-level feedback to Product and Engineering on how technology performs in real-world conditions
- Partner with Product, Engineering, and R&D to deploy and optimize technology solutions
- Look for opportunities to improve day-to-day performance through the tools and technology already in use
- Stay informed on relevant ag-tech and operational innovations
- 7. Safety, Quality & Compliance
- Maintain a safety-first approach in day-to-day work and support building a strong safety-first culture
- Ensure compliance with all relevant workplace health, safety, and environmental regulations
- Maintain consistent quality standards in daily operations
- Conduct incident investigations and help implement corrective actions, escalate when required.
Skills, Experience, and EducationRequirements
Required
- 5+ years of experience in physical operations management.
- Proven experience managing site-level operations (manufacturing, ag-tech, industrial, logistics, or similar)
- Strong track record of managing and delivering to KPIs (safety, cost, throughput, quality)
- Experience managing and developing operational teams
- Knowledge and experience of managing OSHA requirements.
- Exposure to seasonality and workforce planning
- Comfortable working on-site in an agricultural/field-adjacent environment
Preferred
- Experience in ag-tech, food production, or agricultural operations
- Experience managing cross functionally with field ops, supply, and commercial teams.
- Background in scaling operations in startup or high-growth environments
- Exposure to automation, hardware-enabled, or technology-driven operations
- Experience working in cross-regional or global organizations
- Degree in a relevant subject e.g. agribusiness, agriculture engineering, operations management, business management etc.
