Handshake · 2 weeks ago
Head of Strategic Projects, Handshake AI
San Francisco, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Director/Executive
7+ years expHandshake is a career network for the AI economy, connecting knowledge workers with educational institutions and employers. As the Head of Strategic Projects, you will lead an AI delivery pod, managing a team to ensure high-quality delivery of AI training and evaluation datasets while driving operational excellence and collaboration across departments.
College RecruitingData Collection and LabelingEmploymentHuman ResourcesRecruiting
Responsibilities
Owning and leading an AI delivery pod of 8 or more team members (managers and individual contributors) across complex, high stakes data and evaluation projects
Running Weekly Business Reviews that track pod performance, drive alignment on metrics, and set clear priorities for SPLs and managers
Operating as the GM of your pod, responsible for business outcomes, throughput, quality, and the operational P and L for your portfolio
Partnering cross functionally with Product, Growth, and Research to translate evolving data strategies into executable project scopes, systems, and resourcing plans
Ensuring high quality delivery of AI training and evaluation datasets, including scoping, workflow design, and system level guardrails for quality and scalability
Driving systems level improvements that increase efficiency, quality, and capacity, and that can be adopted across other pods and teams
Developing leaders and ICs on your team, through coaching, clear expectations, developmental feedback, and growth opportunities
Fostering a high performing culture built on close collaboration, transparency, and a commitment to operational excellence that raises standards across Handshake AI
Qualification
Required
7+ years in operationally intensive or execution heavy environments, such as AI data operations, marketplace operations, technical services, or strategy and operations
At least 3+ years of leadership experience managing teams, ideally including multi layered teams with managers and ICs
Proven success driving cross functional outcomes in ambiguous, fast paced settings where stakes and expectations are high
Preferred
Prior experience in investment banking, private equity or management consulting strongly preferred
Experience operating as an owner of a business line or pod, accountable for both delivery and economics, is a strong plus
Prior experience in AI is a plus, but a track record of building and scaling high-performing operations matters more
Benefits
Ownership: Equity in a fast-growing company
Financial Wellness : 401(k) match, competitive compensation, financial coaching
Family Support: Paid parental leave, fertility benefits, parental coaching
Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision, mental health support, $500 wellness stipend
Growth: $2,000 learning stipend, ongoing development
Remote & Office: Internet, commuting, and free lunch/gym in our SF office
Time Off: Flexible PTO, 15 holidays + 2 flex days
Connection: Team outings & referral bonuses
Company
Handshake
Handshake is a college career network that helps students and recent graduates find their next opportunity.
501-1000 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Handshake has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (24)
2024 (14)
2023 (7)
2022 (15)
2021 (6)
2020 (4)
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageTotal Funding
$434MKey Investors
Notable CapitalEQT VenturesSpark Capital
2022-01-19Series F· $200M
2021-05-12Series E· $80M
2020-10-20Series D· $80M
Leadership Team
Garrett Lord
CEO - Co-Founder
Ben Christensen
Co-Founder
Recent News
Company data provided by crunchbase