Director of Strategy & Operations
Designer Fund is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage tech companies using design to improve health, sustainability, or prosperity for people. It backs founding teams, particularly those with design backgrounds, across sectors like fintech, healthcare, climate tech, and developer tools.
About Designer Fund
Designer Fund is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in tech companies leveraging design to drive positive outcomes in health, sustainability, and financial prosperity. Its portfolio spans a wide range of sectors including financial infrastructure (Stripe), preventative health (Omada), collaborative tools (Notion), developer tools (Netlify), product management (Linear), payroll and benefits (Gusto), design tools (Framer), and healthcare infrastructure (Commure), among dozens of other companies across fintech, climate tech, healthcare, EdTech, and AI. The firm also runs 'Designer Founders,' a community and platform highlighting designers who have gone on to found and lead companies, reflecting its focus on backing design-driven founders and design-centric startups from early stages through growth and acquisition.
Skills
About the Role
You will lead part of Via's West Coast portfolio, starting out by directly managing markets and a team of Field Operations Managers, then quickly growing to manage a team of General Managers and Operations Managers. You will set and execute regional operating strategy and ensure safe, reliable, high-quality service across a large, fast-growing, and increasingly complex book of business. You'll lead through scale and ambiguity, develop strong frontline leaders, and partner effectively with transit agency stakeholders, commercial teams, and central functions as the region launches new markets, expands existing contracts, and stands up new service types.
Requirements
- Proven experience in an operational leadership role, ideally with P&L responsibility
- Demonstrated ability to develop and execute business strategies successfully
- Track record leading high-growth or transformation environments, scaling teams, launching new lines of business, or integrating acquisitions/service expansions
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, capable of working with and influencing stakeholders at all levels
- Analytical and problem-solving skills
- Strong comfort working in a fast paced environment, operating in ambiguity, managing multiple tasks simultaneously, and taking on responsibility
- Operational fluency across people-intensive, regulated, 24/7 businesses; comfort with labor planning, safety culture, and compliance
- 10+ years of experience, ideally with a combination of consulting and operating experience
- Bachelor's Degree with a record of exceptional academic and professional achievement
- Willingness to travel extensively across the West Coast (~25%, higher during launch periods)
Responsibilities
- Lead, coach, and develop a team, setting clear expectations, cadence, and accountability
- Run a consistent regional operating rhythm
- Build leadership depth by hiring, promoting, and performance-managing regional talent
- Foster a culture of safety, compliance, operational excellence, and partner trust across the region
- Own regional P&L outcomes in partnership with Finance and market GMs
- Set regional targets and remain accountable to KPIs such as service reliability, on-time performance, seat availability, safety, driver staffing, vehicle readiness, and customer experience
- Drive root-cause problem solving on underperforming markets and escalate risks early with clear mitigation plans
- Partner on annual and quarterly operating plans, staffing models, and scenario planning for growth
- Translate regional priorities into actionable market strategies
- Lead the region through new service types and operating models
- Prioritize resources across markets during launch surges, staffing constraints, and partner-critical periods
- Represent Operations in regional strategy discussions with Commercial, Service Design, Product, and Partner Success
- Serve as a senior operational counterpart to agency leadership on high-stakes markets
- Build trust through transparent performance reporting, proactive communication, and credible remediation when service misses occur
- Navigate complex regulatory and contractual environments
- Partner with Commercial, Enablement, Service Design, Remix, Safety, Fleet, HR, and Finance to align operations capacity with growth and product roadmap
- Influence technology and process adoption to improve regional efficiency and visibility
- Contribute to company-wide operations priorities
Benefits
- Free medical plans
- 401K matching
- Equity/RSU package