RESEARCH & OPERATIONS ASSISTANT

Internal role based in Whitefish, Montana. Full time, 40 hours per week, hourly non-exempt at $25.00 per hour. Health insurance premium 100% employer paid. Start date as soon as the right candidate is found.

About the role

Two founders are building an AI prototype product, running a therapy company, raising money, and managing outside vendors simultaneously. Currently, knowledge is scattered between their minds and a rapidly growing Google Drive. This role exists to create and maintain systems that allow the founders to focus on their vision. The ideal candidate will know where everything is, what everyone owes, and what is about to fall through the cracks. In one sentence: Keep the build organized, the research honest, and the vendors moving.

Responsibilities

The role is organized into five key lanes:

• Files and Knowledge
  • Own Google Drive end-to-end: build and enforce a unified folder structure and naming conventions (dates, versions, owners).
  • Eliminate duplicates and stale drafts, ensuring one current version of every file.
  • Maintain a master index for instant file retrieval (under 10 seconds).
  • Curate the project knowledge base so it’s accessible to both AI tools and new team members.
  • Provide weekly reports on what was filed, cleaned, or remains disorganized.

  Done well looks like: A founder asks for a file and receives it without needing to ask twice.

• Research and Synthesis

  Ensure all claims are evidence-based by:

  • Addressing research questions with sources, not opinions.
  • Reviewing papers, articles, competitor sites, and market reports—summarizing the top 20%.
  • Categorizing information as proven, likely, or speculative, and labeling each clearly.
  • Flagging weak claims before they appear in pitch decks (this is the most valuable contribution).
  • Maintaining a running source library with links, dates, and one-line takeaways.
  • Tracking competitors and market changes, proactively reporting updates.

  Done well looks like: Nothing enters an investor deck that can’t withstand hard questions.

• Vendors and Outside Partners
  • Manage communications with web designers, video teams, graphic designers, marketers, contractors, and user zero.
  • Draft emails with clear asks, deadlines, and next steps.
  • Track all open items: who owes what, by when, and at what cost.
  • Proactively chase late deliverables before founders notice.
  • Collect, review, and file deliverables against original requests.
  • Maintain a live vendor tracker (contact, scope, rate, status, last touch).
  • Attend vendor calls, take notes, and own follow-ups.

  Done well looks like: No vendor thread goes cold, and no deliverable arrives unnoticed.

• Graphics and Brand Assets
  • Centralize all logos, decks, mockups, screenshots, video files, and fonts.
  • Mark current versions clearly; archive (not delete) old versions.
  • Enforce brand rules (colors, capitalization, founder credit).
  • Build simple decks and one-pagers from templates when requested.
  • Ensure the correct asset reaches the right vendor in the right format.

  Done well looks like: No one ever sends an old logo to a designer again.

• Correspondence and Founder Support

  This lane is intentionally secretarial—it’s how founders reclaim their time.

  • Writing and Correspondence
    • Compose and send emails on behalf of both founders (vendors, partners, investors, prospects, scheduling).
    • Adapt to each founder’s voice—Eris and Clayton do not sound the same.
    • Draft outreach, follow-ups, thank-yous, introductions, and polite reminders.
    • Manage inboxes: triage, sort, flag what needs a founder, and handle what doesn’t.
    • Draft and format letters, agreements, one-pagers, and simple contracts from templates.
  • Schedule and Follow-Through
    • Schedule and confirm meetings, resolve calendar conflicts, and send agendas ahead of time.
    • Take notes in working sessions (using PLAUD) and convert discussions into actionable lists.
    • Maintain a master to-do list across all workstreams.
    • Prepare materials before meetings so no one walks in unprepared.
    • Track critical deadlines (funding, legal, insurance, contracts).
    • Surface slipping tasks early, even when uncomfortable.

  Done well looks like: A founder reads a draft, changes two words, and hits send. Decisions made in meetings actually happen.

AI as Part of the Job

Daily use of Claude and other AI models is expected, not optional. Responsibilities include:

• Drafting, summarizing, restructuring, and organizing content with AI, followed by human editing.
• Writing clear prompts and diagnosing poor outputs.
• Verifying all AI-generated content—AI invents sources, numbers, and quotes, and you must catch errors before publication.
• Building repeatable AI workflows for repetitive tasks.
• Sharing better ways to use these tools; teaching the team new methods.

Hard rule: No AI output goes out unchecked. Fabricated facts are worse than no facts.

Requirements

Non-negotiable:

• Thinks in systems and logic; finds structure satisfying, not boring.
• Writes clearly and quickly in plain English.
• Can adopt someone else’s voice and tone accurately.
• Willing to perform secretarial work without ego.
• Already uses AI tools and is curious about them.
• Catches errors others miss.
• Follows through on promises without reminders.
• Manages six+ moving projects without dropping any.
• Comfortable telling founders when a claim doesn’t hold up.

Helpful but not required:

• Background in research, library science, journalism, paralegal work, or project management.
• Experience building filing or knowledge systems from scratch.
• Interest in psychology or mental health.

Deal-breakers:

• Needs a daily task list to function.
• Goes quiet when overloaded instead of flagging issues.
• Treats AI output as finished work.
• Cannot accept direct feedback.
• Considers admin or email work beneath them.

Tools

• Google Workspace (Drive, Docs, Sheets, Gmail, Calendar)
• Claude and other AI models
• A project tracker (TBD)
• Canva or Figma
• Zoom
• Basic PDF and file conversion tools

Benefits

• 401(k)
• Paid time off
• 100% employer-paid health insurance premium

Pay

$25.00 per hour.

Schedule

Full time, 40 hours per week, in person in Whitefish, Montana.