Director, Operational Excellence

Early Warning® • San Francisco, CA

19d • $186,000 - $232,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

At Early Warning, we’ve powered and protected the U.S. financial system for over thirty years with cutting-edge solutions like Zelle®, Paze℠, and so much more. As a trusted name in payments, we partner with thousands of institutions to increase access to financial services and protect transactions for hundreds of millions of consumers and small businesses. Positions located in Scottsdale, San Francisco, Chicago, or New York follow a hybrid work model to allow for a more collaborative working environment. Candidates responding to this posting must independently possess the eligibility to work in the United States, for any employer, at the date of hire. This position is ineligible for employment Visa sponsorship. Overall Purpose The Director, Operational Excellence role plays a critical role in shaping and delivering enterprise-wide initiatives that improve scalability, performance, and risk outcomes across Early Warning. This role partners closely with leadership team to identify the highest impact opportunities, translate strategic priorities into actionable change across highly interdependent teams. The role will also help lead the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of business processes across the enterprise. This role is focused on ensuring cross-functional processes are optimized for scalability, agility, and performance, aligning with strategic goals to deliver measurable business outcomes. This role is ideal for a leader who combines structured problem-solving with hands-on execution and is comfortable operating in ambiguity while driving outcomes across a highly interdependent organization.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, operations management, industrial engineering, or related field
• 12 years of experience in management consulting, transformation, strategy, or operational excellence roles
• Consulting or equivalent experience demonstrating structured problem-solving, executive communication, and leading enterprise-wide transformation initiatives with measurable impact
• Experience working within financial services, fintech, payments, or other regulated industries
• Demonstrated success in leading enterprise-wide transformation initiatives with measurable impact
• Strong stakeholder management skills and comfort operating in ambiguity
• Strong background in change management and executive stakeholder management
• Exceptional communication, influencing, and negotiation skills
• Background and drug screen

Nice To Haves

• Experience in target operating model design, process improvement, or leading organizational transformation efforts
• Exposure to payments, banking, or financial infrastructure environments
• Experience working closely with senior leaders on enterprise initiatives
• Master’s degree or MBA
• Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or Master Black Belt certification

Responsibilities

• Leads and drives cross-functional operational excellence initiatives that improve end-to-end processes, scalability, and effectiveness.
• Partners closely with the Head of Corporate Strategy and the Senior Director of Operational Excellence to diagnose operational challenges, design solutions, and execute agreed-upon transformation priorities, ensuring strategic intent is translated into measurable operational outcomes.
• Defines, tracks, and analyzes key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure process effectiveness, efficiency gains, and initiative outcomes
• Conducts and oversees process assessments across assigned functions to identify inefficiencies, redundancies, risks, and opportunities for improvement
• Drives execution across multiple teams, balancing speed, risk, and control requirements
• Supports enterprise-wide transformation efforts by aligning stakeholders and drives adoption of automation, AI, and digital solutions by identifying use cases, partnering with technology teams, and driving implementation within scope
• Prepares clear, data-driven analyses, reports, and recommendations for senior leadership, translating process findings into practical, decision-support insights
• Serves as a change champion for assigned initiatives, driving engagement and adoption through effective communication, stakeholder management, and follow-through
• Ensures compliance, risk, and scalability considerations are incorporated into process redesigns in collaboration with risk, legal, and control partners

Benefits

• Healthcare Coverage – Competitive medical (PPO/HDHP), dental, and vision plans as well as company contributions to your Health Savings Account (HSA) or pre-tax savings through flexible spending accounts (FSA) for commuting, health & dependent care expenses.
• 401(k) Retirement Plan – Featuring a 100% Company Safe Harbor Match on your first 6% deferral immediately upon eligibility.
• Paid Time Off – Unlimited Time Off for Exempt (salaried) employees, as well as generous PTO for Non-Exempt (hourly) employees, plus 11 paid company holidays and a paid volunteer day.
• 12 weeks of Paid Parental Leave
• Maven Family Planning – provides support through your Parenting journey including egg freezing, fertility, adoption, surrogacy, pregnancy, postpartum, early pediatrics, and returning to work.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director