CONFIDENTIAL CLIENT | DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC OPERATIONS & INITIATIVES
INTERIM / CONTRACT-TO-HIRE OPPORTUNITY
Director, Strategic Operations & Initiatives
Confidential Investment Management Organization | Bethesda, Maryland
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Client / Location
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Confidential Investment Management Organization | Bethesda, Maryland
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Schedule
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40 hours per week, Monday-Friday, daytime business hours; onsite Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday; remote Wednesday and Friday
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Initial Term
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Three-month Korn Ferry contract, with a strong likelihood of extension
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Pay Range
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$75-$95 per hour, depending on experience and alignment with the role
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Conversion
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The client prefers to convert the successful consultant to a permanent employee; timing is not yet fixed and conversion will depend on business needs, performance, and mutual fit
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Benefits
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Access to medical benefits, PTO, and a 401(k) plan through Korn Ferry; no employer match
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Position Overview
An established U.S. investment management organization is seeking an experienced operations leader to serve as Director, Strategic Operations & Initiatives. Working closely with the Managing Director and leaders across the organization, this individual will translate strategic priorities into structured plans, coordinate execution across multiple business functions, and strengthen the processes, controls, and operating discipline that support the firm.
The role serves as a central coordination and execution point across Operations, Technology, Portfolio Management, Portfolio Operations, Project Management, Finance, and Client Services. The successful candidate will be equally comfortable discussing priorities with senior leadership, building practical workplans, resolving cross-functional obstacles, and working directly in the operational details needed to move an initiative forward.
This opportunity is initially structured as a three-month contract through Korn Ferry, with a strong likelihood of extension. The client has expressed a preference to convert the right individual to a permanent employee, making this best suited to a consultant who is genuinely open to a longer-term future with the organization.
Role distinction: This is not a Chief of Staff or traditional people-management position. It is an enterprise execution role for a senior operator who can lead through influence, align teams, and drive initiatives from concept through implementation.
CONFIDENTIAL CLIENT | DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC OPERATIONS & INITIATIVES
What You'll Be Responsible For
- Partner with the Managing Director to advance strategic planning, prioritization, and execution across Operations, Technology, Portfolio Management, Portfolio Operations, Project Management, and Client Services.
- Translate leadership priorities into structured workplans with clear objectives, owners, milestones, deliverables, dependencies, and measurable progress updates.
- Serve as a central liaison across departments, facilitating communication, alignment, issue resolution, and timely execution of firm-wide priorities.
- Lead cross-functional initiatives from concept through implementation, maintaining momentum and accountability even when participating teams do not report directly to the role.
- Assess operational workflows and identify opportunities to improve efficiency, consistency, scalability, controls, and risk management.
- Standardize and streamline procedures, documentation, governance, and internal operating practices across teams.
- Lead change-management efforts by gathering and synthesizing user feedback, identifying adoption challenges, and translating insights into practical enhancements to processes, systems, and workflows.
- Oversee key vendor relationships, including due diligence, performance monitoring, service evaluation, requests for proposal, issue escalation, and cost management.
- Partner with Finance on budgeting, forecasting, departmental cost oversight, and centralized invoice review and processing across multiple functions.
- Support senior-management commitments and inquiries by coordinating responses, analyzing issues, prioritizing next steps, and ensuring appropriate follow-through.
- Provide oversight of selected operational infrastructure and administrative processes, including hardware inventory review, Bloomberg administration, and departmental invoice management.
- Participate in highly visible special projects, working groups, operational reviews, and strategic initiatives as business needs evolve.
- Create clear, decision-ready reporting that gives leadership visibility into status, risks, dependencies, decisions required, and recommended actions.
CONFIDENTIAL CLIENT | DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC OPERATIONS & INITIATIVES
What You Bring
- Bachelor's degree required; an advanced degree is preferred.
- At least 10 years of progressive experience within an asset-management or investment-management organization, with meaningful exposure to operations, portfolio operations, technology, or closely related functions.
- A demonstrated record of leading complex, cross-functional initiatives and driving projects from initial concept through execution.
- Strong process-improvement capabilities, including the ability to identify inefficiencies, strengthen controls, reduce operational risk, and implement sustainable solutions.
- Experience leading operational change and building adoption across multiple stakeholder groups.
- Exceptional organization, project execution, analytical, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to operate at strategic and tactical levels simultaneously.
- Strong executive presence and communication skills, with the credibility to influence stakeholders without relying on formal authority.
- A high level of ownership, accountability, judgment, discretion, and follow-through in a fast-paced, highly regulated environment.
- The ability to work onsite in Bethesda every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, together with genuine interest in a potential long-term conversion to permanent employment with the organization.
Relevant Candidate Backgrounds
Strong candidates may come from one or more of the following functions within an investment manager, ETF issuer, mutual fund company, or institutional asset manager:
- Operations or Portfolio Operations leadership
- Business Operations, Strategic Operations, Strategic Initiatives, or enterprise execution
- Enterprise Program Management or Project Management Office leadership
- Operational Excellence, process improvement, controls transformation, or cross-functional change-management leadership
Ideal Working Style
The successful candidate will be a structured, hands-on operator who builds alignment across functions, creates accountability through credibility rather than formal authority, separates root causes from symptoms, and translates broad or evolving priorities into practical plans, decisions, and completed deliverables.
About Korn Ferry
Korn Ferry unleashes potential in people, teams, and organizations. We work with our clients to design optimal organization structures, roles, and responsibilities. We help them hire the right people and advise them on how to reward and motivate their workforce while developing professionals as they navigate and advance their careers. To learn more, please visit Korn Ferry at www.Kornferry.com
