Work Design Architect
The Opportunity
Ai is making individual work faster. However, the harder and more valuable problem is making organizations move faster. Organizations need to understand their processes precisely, explicitly, and in a machine-accessible way. This is known as process legibility. Most R&D organizations lack this.
The Role
The Work Design Architect owns the layer above individual productivity — the operating system that makes organizational decision-making faster, more coherent, and increasingly self-sustaining. The Work Design Architect builds the operating system that fixes these issues.
- Own and steward the R&D Operating Blueprint — keep it current as the organization evolves, run periodic health checks, and make redesign calls when something isn't working
- Lead operating rhythm work: forum design, cadence changes, redesigns, and post-mortems — the ongoing drumbeat of keeping the operating model healthy
- Serve as the internal expert on AI-native process design — the go-to voice for "how do we build this as a system, not a document"
Qualifications
- Deep experience in program management, organizational design, or operating model work — you think in systems, not projects
- A genuine point of view on how AI changes organizational dynamics, not just individual workflows — "decisions are now the bottleneck" should land immediately
- Demonstrated ability to design and implement operating models, not just document existing ones
- Experience working across a technical organization without authority — your influence comes from craft and accessibility, not the org chart
- Comfort making complex systems thinking legible to skeptical, busy audiences
- A "first-hire" mindset — you build structure where none exists and don't wait for permission to start
What You Should Have
- Deep experience in program management, organizational design, or operating model work — you think in systems, not projects
- A genuine point of view on how AI changes organizational dynamics, not just individual workflows — "decisions are now the bottleneck" should land immediately
- Demonstrated ability to design and implement operating models, not just document existing ones
- Experience working across a technical organization without authority — your influence comes from craft and accessibility, not the org chart
- Comfort making complex systems thinking legible to skeptical, busy audiences
- A "first-hire" mindset — you build structure where none exists and don't wait for permission to start
Location
This hybrid role is based in our Austin, Chicago, DC, or NYC office. In-office attendance is required on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday and may increase based on project-based needs and changes to Upside’s in-office policy over time.
Compensation
The US base salary range for this full-time position is $198,000 - $215,000 + equity + benefits. The final starting pay will be determined based on job-related skills, experience, qualifications, work location, and market conditions.