Senior Program Lead, Fellow Experience

Handshake • San Francisco, CA

1d

About The Position

The Senior Program Lead, Fellow Experience is a senior individual contributor role responsible for designing, operating, and continuously improving a dedicated Fellow program for one of Handshake AI’s top frontier lab customers. This role owns the structure, systems, and execution of a single, high-impact, cohort-based program that supports advanced AI research and data initiatives for a flagship customer in partnership with the Operations/Delivery team.
Handshake AI is a rapidly growing startup, and this role is well-suited for someone who thrives in early-stage environments while holding a high bar for rigor, consistency, and professionalism. You will be responsible for bringing clarity, structure, and repeatability to a complex, customer-specific program, while partnering closely with teams across Operations/Delivery, Support, Product, and Learning & Training.
As the first dedicated Program Lead for Fellow Experience, you will play a foundational role in shaping how customer-specific programs are designed, run, and scaled over time. This role requires strong judgment, executive presence, and the ability to balance near-term delivery for a single, demanding customer with longer-term system building.

Requirements

• Approximately 5-7+ years of experience in program management, operations, or related roles, ideally within high-growth or early-stage environments.
• Demonstrated success stabilizing, scaling, or improving complex programs or operational systems.
• Comfortable operating as a senior individual contributor with broad ownership, autonomy, and accountability.
• Strong judgment and emotional intelligence; able to set high standards while building trust and collaboration.
• Proven ability to influence cross-functional partners who own adjacent or overlapping responsibilities.
• Experience building or implementing scalable systems, automations, or tooling in program or operations contexts.
• Highly organized and operationally rigorous, with a data-informed approach to decision-making.
• Excellent written and verbal communicator, capable of engaging technical, academic, and operational audiences.
• Empathetic toward Fellows while maintaining a clear point of view on performance, accountability, and program outcomes.
• Motivated by working closely with emerging AI technologies and contributing to a mission-driven startup environment.

Responsibilities

• Program Design & Execution
• Own program structure, timelines, onboarding models, and communication standards for this customer’s cohorts.
• Translate ambiguous customer and internal objectives into clear program plans and operating cadences in partnership with Strategic Project Leads.
• Fellow Experience & Retention
• Own the end-to-end Fellow experience for this specific customer program, from onboarding through program completion and ongoing engagement.
• Drive measurable improvements in Fellow retention, engagement, satisfaction, and program completion for the customer program.
• Identify recurring friction points that impact Fellow performance, morale, or delivery quality and implement durable, scalable solutions.
• Operational Excellence, Scalable Systems & Automation
• Build and refine playbooks, workflows, and lightweight systems that enable consistency today and scalability over time.
• Identify and implement opportunities to use automation, internal tooling, and AI-powered workflows to reduce manual effort, improve quality, and increase reliability.
• Reduce program-level escalations through stronger structure, clearer communication, and system-level improvements.
• Cross-Functional Leadership & Influence
• Partner closely with Delivery Leads, Product Managers, Learning, and other teams supporting the frontier AI lab.
• Serve as a trusted point of contact for program-level issues related to this customer that span multiple teams or functions.
• Represent the Fellow Experience perspective in customer-specific planning, risk discussions, and escalation management.

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

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed