Strategic Business Operations Manager

Rakuten

Strategic Business Operations Manager at Rakuten translating strategy into effective operating mechanisms. Collaborating with senior leadership to improve planning, decision quality, and execution efficiencies.

Posted 6/5/2026full-timeSan Mateo • California • 🇺🇸 United StatesSeniorLead💰 $78,651 - $135,216 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Translate annual and multi-year strategic priorities into clear operating plans, milestones, and review cadences that connect leadership intent to measurable outcomes.
Structure executive and leadership discussions, including OKR and priority-setting forums, to surface tradeoffs, drive decisions, and ensure commitments are documented and followed through.
Own and continuously improve the company’s enterprise operating rhythm, including executive planning sessions, leadership offsites, All Hands, and quarterly and annual business reviews.
Maintain enterprise-level visibility into critical initiatives, dependencies, risks, and outcomes, surfacing issues early and aligning leaders on mitigation and course correction.
Design and maintain KPI frameworks, dashboards, and reporting mechanisms that inform executive decision-making and reinforce accountability.
Develop executive-ready insights, recommendations, and materials for senior leadership consumption.
Contribute to competitive and market analyses in support of decision-making, partnering with relevant internal teams and Rakuten international as needed.
Use Claude and similar AI tools to produce first-pass drafts of executive materials and rapid competitive scans; build simple, repeatable prompt/agent workflows to standardize outputs and reduce cycle time for exec cadence.

Requirements

What you’ll need

Proven ability to operate independently in highly ambiguous environments with limited precedent.
Demonstrated experience partnering directly with senior executives and influencing outcomes without formal authority.
Strong executive presence with the ability to adapt communication style and persuade diverse stakeholders.
Experience shaping enterprise operating models, planning processes, or decision frameworks.
Highly analytical, with the ability to synthesize complex information into clear, executive-ready insights.
Motivated by improving how an organization runs rather than owning a single function or team.
Experience utilizing generative AI tools (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT, Bard) for content creation and workflow automation in a professional setting.
Bachelor's Degree required
7+ years of experience in Strategy & Operations, Business Operations, Consulting, Corporate Strategy, or a Chief of Staff-adjacent role; 8–10+ years preferred.

Benefits

Comp & perks

Discretionary bonus
Health insurance
Vision insurance
Dental insurance
401k matching
PTO
Volunteer Time Off (VTO)
Other employee benefits as the company implements

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

KPI frameworksdashboardsreporting mechanismscompetitive analysismarket analysisexecutive decision-makingplanning processesdecision frameworkscontent creationworkflow automation

Soft Skills

executive presencecommunicationpersuasionanalytical skillssynthesis of complex informationindependenceinfluencing outcomesadaptabilitymotivation for organizational improvementstakeholder management

Certifications

Bachelor's Degree