Product Strategy & Operations Associate

Kodiak Robotics Inc. was founded in 2018 and has become a leader in autonomous ground transportation committed to a safer and more efficient future for all. The company has developed an artificial intelligence (AI) powered technology stack purpose-built for commercial trucking and the public sector. The company delivers freight daily for its customers across the southern United States using its autonomous 2024 Kodiak became the first known company to publicly announce delivering a driverless semi-truck to a customer. Kodiak is also leveraging its commercial self-driving software to develop test and deploy autonomous capabilities for the U.S. Department of Defense.

We are seeking a sharp analytical and hands-on Product Strategy & Operations Associate to join our team in Mountain View CA. This role sits at the intersection of our Product Engineering and Operations teams. Youll bring structured problem-solving and an operations mindset to the questions that shape how autonomous trucks get built deployed and scaled and youll do it embedded with the people building the product. If youve been working in strategy or operations and want to get closer to product development and a Product & Eng-led organization this is that move. This role is based full-time in our Mountain View office.

In this role you will:

• Strategic Problem Solving: Scope ambiguous cross-functional problems into clear analyses and recommendations then drive them through to decisions with Product Engineering and Operations leadership.
• Process Design and Scalability: Partner closely with Program Engineering and Ops to design document and stand up processes that support operational scalability for our autonomous vehicle technology.
• Feedback Loop Management: Own the feedback loop between Field Ops and Product & Engineering translating operational needs into prioritized actionable product and engineering requirements.
• Feature Deployment & Validation: Work with cross-functional teams to rapidly test validate and deploy new product features in an operationally-intensive environment.
• Performance Monitoring: Define operational KPIs build the analyses that track product performance in the field and communicate insights and risks to stakeholders.
• Stakeholder Communication: Provide clear data-driven updates on product-related operational progress risks and mitigation plans to leadership and cross-functional teams.
• Operational Excellence: Drive attention to detail and timeliness in product deployment and operational workflows.
• Adaptability: Get gritty and operate in spaces that are not yet well defined and are subject to rapid and unexpected changes.

What youll bring:

• At least 2 year of post-undergraduate experience in strategy consulting business operations or a similar analytical role e.g. Business Analyst (McKinsey) Associate (BCG) or Associate Consultant (Bain) or an equivalent Strategy & Operations / BizOps role at a technology company.
• A degree in Industrial Engineering Operations Research or a related quantitative field or equivalent demonstrated rigor in systems thinking and process optimization.
• Strong structured problem-solving skills: you can break down an ambiguous question build the analysis and land a recommendation.
• Highly analytical with a proven ability to use data to drive process improvements and product decisions; comfort working in tools like SQL Excel/Sheets or Kibana/Elastic is a plus.
• Exceptional attention to detail and a track record of driving timely execution in complex environments.
• Outstanding people and communication skills with demonstrated experience working across diverse teams (e.g. Engineering Field Operations Product) and presenting to senior stakeholders.
• A genuine interest in product development and a desire to work alongside Product and Engineering rather than advise from the outside.
• Adeptness in leveraging generative AI tools to streamline workflows and enhance clarity and quality in stakeholder communication.
• Must be willing to work full-time in the Mountain View CA office and travel up to 25% of the time to customer and deployment locations.
• Additional experience in the following areas is also a plus:
  
  • Autonomy mobility supply chain logistics or hardware/manufacturing operations
  • Consulting or internship work on product technology or operations engagements
  • Working in both a startup and a larger company environment

What we offer:

• Competitive compensation package including equity and annual bonuses
• Excellent Medical Dental and Vision plans through Kaiser Permanente Cigna and MetLife (including a medical plan with infertility benefits)
• MetLife Legal Services Identity & Fraud Protection Hospital Indemnity Insurance Accident Insurance & Critical Illness Insurance
• Flexible PTO 10 paid holidays and generous parental leave policies
• Office perks: free catered lunch a fully stocked kitchen
• Long Term Disability Short Term Disability Life Insurance
• Wellbeing Benefits - Headspace through Cigna Calm through Kaiser One Medical Gympass Spring Health through Cigna Rula (mental health navigation)
• Fidelity 401(k)
• Commuter FSA Dependent Care FSA HSA
• Various incentive programs (referral bonuses patent bonuses etc.)