Business Operations Factory ONE

Europes defense industrial base cant respond at the speed modern conflict demands. Legacy suppliers operate on month-long timelines. Tribal knowledge is retiring. Supply chains are fragile. SAEKI is building the operating system for autonomous factories - the infrastructure that lets Europe manufacture mission-critical components at software speed.

Weve just opened Factory ONE in Munich: a 8000 m² production facility with 5-axis CNCs industrial robots and large-scale 3D printers shipping hardware to defense and space customers. The factory works. Now we need to build the operating layer around it - the systems processes and discipline that let us scale from Factory ONE to Factory N without losing the speed that got us here.

Youll be the first dedicated business operations hire working directly with Andrea (CEO) and Nic (Chief of Staff) to turn ramp-up improvisation into systems that scale. This is a generalist BizOps role with real ownership: you own the operational backbone of a company shipping mission-critical hardware.

Concretely that means youll own the boring-but-essential infrastructure - vendor contracts financial operations German compliance people ops - and drive the projects that determine whether we ramp cleanly or stall. When something needs a process you build it. When something needs a decision you frame it for Andrea or Nic and push it through.

This is not a role with a clean job description. The first six months are about figuring out what SAEKI needs operationally and building it.

Concretely youll own:

• Operational systems and playbooks. Were at ramp-up. Theres no handbook youll write one. The processes you put in place are what well scale on as we move toward Factory TWO.
• Vendor contract and financial operations. Vendor selection contracts procurement budget tracking Steuerberater liaison. Youre the person who catches the line item nobody else catches.
• People ops and German compliance. HR and payroll coordination (contracts Lohnabrechnung liaison Krankenkasse Elternzeit work permits) plus the full Behördengang stack (Gewerbeamt Finanzamt Berufsgenossenschaft). Table stakes not the point of the role but you need to run it.
• Site customer and compliance operations. Hosting defense and space customers coordinating shipments visitor management compliance reporting (HSE audit trails policy documentation). Nothing classified; plenty of disciplined.
• CEO and CoS right hand. Acting as the operational extension of Andrea and Nic. Taking work off their plate surfacing decisions cleanly and driving projects to completion across whatever the company needs that week.

• Operators track record. Youve run business operations or a strong generalist function at a fast-moving company - startup BizOps founding ops at Series A/B consulting operator combo or youve been the chief-of-staff-style force multiplier somewhere serious. Were open on seniority: two years of intense ramp-up experience beats ten years of process maintenance.
• German admin fluency. Youve navigated the German bureaucratic landscape before - HR payroll Behördengänge vendor contracts. You know which forms matter and which ones dont. This is non-negotiable - youll be the person dealing with German authorities daily.
• Financial and analytical fluency. Comfortable in spreadsheets comfortable reading contracts comfortable pushing back on a vendor quote. You dont need to be a CFO but you need to be the person who catches the line item nobody else caught.
• Startup operator instinct. Comfortable with ambiguity missing handbooks and the reality that youll define the role as you do it. Not my job isnt in your vocabulary during ramp-up.
• Owners mindset. You spot the gap close it and tell Andrea or Nic after the fact. You dont need to be told twice.
• Discretion. Youll see sensitive material - HR finance customers site security. Confidentiality is must.
• Language. Fluent German (mandatory). Strong English (company language).
• Location. Munich on-site at Factory ONE.

• Pure analysts who want a clean strategy seat. We build we ship we deal with the German admin grind. If you cant get your hands dirty alongside the analytical work this isnt the role.
• People who need a detailed job description to know what to do next. The role will flex with what the company needs that quarter.
• Process maintainers. Were building from scratch. We need someone who designs the playbook not someone who runs an existing one.
• Thats how weve always done it thinkers.

• Mission. Rebuild the industrial sovereignty of the West. The work you do keeps the rest of the company shipping mission-critical hardware for defense and space.
• Direct impact. You work shoulder-to-shoulder with the CEO and Chief of Staff. What you build fix or flag reaches the top of the company same-day.
• The Environment. A 5000 m² state-of-the-art facility 5-axis CNCs industrial robots large-scale 3D printers. Not a cubicle in sight.
• The Team. Special Forces model. Everyone senior everyone ships. No politics no bureaucracy. Direct feedback high standards.
• Compensation. competitive base depending on experience plus meaningful equity.
• Location. Factory ONE in Munich.

• Resume. Show us the operational complexity youve handled the messier the better.
• Cover letter. Why this mission Why now And: tell us about a system you built from zero thats still in use after you left.