Operating Partner

Metafora•Chicago, IL

6d•Remote

About The Position

The Operating Partner will be a primary driver of Metafora’s growth trajectory. You will serve as a trusted Executive Advisor and strategic partner who creates opportunity rather than waiting for it. You are responsible for identifying and framing the most critical, complex challenges facing C-Suite leaders then driving interest and excitement for advisory solutions. The ideal candidate pairs the drive of a growth-oriented leader with the strategic depth of a consultant. You will be expected to uncover the ‘why’ behind a client’s challenges through rigorous discovery, bridging the gap between complex problems and lasting, transformational change..

Requirements

Industry Depth : 15+ years of experience in the Transportation and Logistics industry, with a career spanning multiple organizations
Economic Ownership : 2+ years of direct P&L ownership or accountability demonstrating the ability to manage budgets, forecasts and bottom-line impact
Complex Sales Mastery: Proven track record of navigating and closing high-stakes, multi-stakeholder engagements with sales cycles typically ranging from 6-12 months
Technical / Product Liaison: Direct experience interfacing with Product, Engineering and Data Science teams to translate market needs into requirements
Executive Presence: Exceptional communication, negotiation, and presentation skills, specifically with C-suite stakeholders
Enterprise Architect: Ability to deconstruct complex organizational challenges into their component parts, designing holistic, enterprise-wide solutions
Executive Influencer: A proven ability to cultivate and leverage a C-suite network for strategic insights and business development.
Curious: You’re motivated by learning about how businesses in our industry work, what challenges our industry friends are facing, and where the industry is headed
Entrepreneurial Initiative: Operate with a “Founders Mindset" requiring minimal oversight to initiate action. Self-directed in their outreach, travel planning and professional development consistently pushing for net new opportunities
Boardroom Communicator: Exceptional ability to synthesize complexity into clear, actionable narratives that drive executive-level decision-making and consensus.
Team Leader: A fundamental commitment to firm-wide success, sharing best practices and actively contributing to the firm’s thought leadership.

Responsibilities

Strategic Engagement: Cultivate relationships within the C-suite and Board to anticipate long-term strategic needs and jointly build high-impact engagements.
Keep a pulse on the recent industry events & trends and identify new high-value tech and management consulting engagements through regular engagement with contacts on calls, proactive travel, conference outreach, and targeted email campaigns
Portfolio Leadership: Serve as the executive sponsor for high-value accounts, working in lockstep with the Delivery organization to ensure strategic vision is delivered, value is realized, and the firm operates as a single, solution-focused partner to the client
Strategic Foresight: Conduct deep-dive market intelligence to formulate the organization’s perspective on emerging industry trends, allowing you to proactively challenge and shape client strategy.
High-Value Accounts: Directly manage and nurture relationships with the company's largest or most strategic accounts
Risk & Governance: Own the governance layer of key partnerships, proactively mitigating critical business risks and ensuring partnership success at an executive level.
Economic Ownership: Take P&L accountability for your book of business, demonstrating the financial acumen to forecast, manage budgets, and drive margin expansion.
Process Productization: Observe what works in your own sales cycle and contribute to the documentation, templates, and frameworks to turn that success into a company-wide process
CRM Discipline: Take full ownership of CRM data integrity for your portfolio, utilizing the system not just for tracking but as a strategic tool to budget, forecast and identify market gaps
Pricing Strategy: Collaborate with Finance and Delivery to define pricing strategies, discount policies, and commission plans
Coach and Develop: As your commercial success grows, assist in developing newer sellers to the organization
Public Profile: Represent Metafora as a domain expert at industry conferences, through published articles, and in media engagements to enhance the firm’s brand and generate high-level commercial leads
Perspective Development: Drive the creation of foundational ‘Metafora point-of-view’ content on emerging industry trends