Manager, Strategic Projects

About this job

Handshake is a prominent platform connecting millions of job seekers, employers, and educational institutions, and it now operates a fast-growing AI data business supporting frontier AI labs. As a Manager, Strategic Projects in India, you will lead a team of Strategic Project Leads at the center of critical AI data and evaluation work. On a normal day, you will act as the crucial link between customers, researchers, procurement partners, and internal teams. Your time involves driving project delivery, managing operational workflows, tracking performance metrics like quality and throughput, unblocking team members, and collaborating with Product and Engineering to improve internal systems. This is a high-intensity, high-visibility role in a fast-paced environment where priorities can shift rapidly, requiring you to balance high-level systems thinking with hands-on operational execution.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage a team of Strategic Project Leads across multiple complex AI data and evaluation projects.
• Drive on-time and high-quality delivery for custom data pipelines and expert labeling workflows.
• Translate researcher and customer requirements into clear project plans, scopes, and operational workflows.
• Own portfolio performance metrics including quality, throughput, SLAs, utilization, and margin.
• Ensure an excellent experience for Handshake Fellows to produce scalable, high-quality data.
• Partner with Product and Engineering to enhance internal tooling, workflows, and operational systems.

Requirements

• 7+ years of experience in operationally intensive roles such as strategy and operations, data operations, or marketplace operations.
• 2+ years of experience managing high-performing teams in fast-paced, execution-focused environments.
• Experience leading complex, multi-stakeholder projects from definition through delivery.
• Ability to manage performance metrics like quality, throughput, SLAs, utilization, and margin.
• Strong communication skills to align cross-functional partners including researchers, customers, and internal teams.
• Capacity to thrive in high-intensity settings with shifting priorities and flexible working hours.

Good to have

• Prior experience in investment banking, private equity, or management consulting.
• Background in AI data operations, machine learning operations, or technical services.
• Experience operating in early-stage or high-growth startup environments.

Who should apply

This role suits experienced operational leaders who thrive in high-intensity, fast-moving environments and want to own a critical piece of the Handshake AI delivery engine. Ideal candidates bring a strong background in strategy and operations, management consulting, investment banking, or data operations, alongside proven people-management skills. You should be comfortable balancing high-level process design with detailed execution and ready to handle flexible hours during critical program launches. Freshers cannot apply as the position requires specific years of operational and management experience.

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