Head of Operations - Metr

METR is a non-profit doing empirical research to test for whether frontier AI models possess the capability to permanently disempower humanity. We develop scientific methods to assess these risks accurately, and work with frontier AI companies (e.g., OpenAI, Anthropic), and government agencies to deploy these assessments. Our work helps ensure the safe development and deployment of transformative AI systems.

Some highlights of our work so far:

• Establishing autonomous replication evaluations: Thanks to our work, it’s now an industry norm to test models for autonomous capabilities (such as self-improvement and self-replication).
• Pre-release evaluations: We’ve worked with OpenAI and Anthropic to evaluate their models pre-release , and our research has been widely cited by policymakers, AI labs, and within government.
• Inspiring lab evaluation efforts: Multiple leading AI companies are building their own internal evaluation teams, inspired by our work.

We are a motivated, fast-paced, growing team (currently ~20 people). Candidates should be excited about working entrepreneurially in a rapidly changing environment while helping to strengthen the organization's operational rigor.

About the role

The Head of Operations will own the core operational functions of the organization. Given METR’s role as a trusted third party expert between the public, governments, and frontier AI labs, it is critical to have robust operational systems. The ideal candidate is excited to work closely with the COO and executive team to bring METR’s operations to the next level, and drive growth in the organization.

This role would report into the COO, and have potential to grow into a leadership role, starting with 1-2 full-time direct reports plus contractors.

Responsibilities

Leadership support

• Work closely with the leadership team, including COO, CEO, and Head of Research to agree organizational priorities, and develop roadmaps including hiring, financial implications, technical requirements
• Proactively identify and drive opportunities to improve the organization, pulling in other leaders as needed
• Lead preparation for critical meetings including fundraising, labs, governments, and board meetings

Operational excellence

• Work with the COO and CEO to structure the core operations team, complete hiring for open roles, create accountability and transparency in teams’ roles and division of responsibility
• Source and manage contractors and consultants for specific projects. Examples could include cybersecurity, IT management, legal compliance, and financial audits.
• Oversee operations team & service providers to ensure efficient execution - including finance (payments, payroll, accounting, etc), executive assistants, and risk management.
• Develop effective systems for financial workflows, internal and external operations

Strategic projects

• Lead projects as they arise - including fundraising sprints, governance overhaul, culture change
• Lead or support the stand-up of new teams and areas as we spin them up - for example an evaluations execution / auditing team, revised platform team

Qualifications

We are looking for an extremely strong and motivated generalist who is eager to roll up their sleeves and execute, grow with the organization, and learn from the leadership team.

We expect that a strong candidate will have:

• 3+ years as a management consultant or equivalent e.g., in a leadership role in a fast-growing startup, dealing with challenging problems in a fast-paced environment
• Proven execution track-record delivering results quickly, with an 80/20, iterative approach
• Ownership mindset, taking responsibility for proactively identifying issues or risks and feeling empowered to deliver
• Strong written and verbal communication to clearly convey information, expectations, and feedback to a variety of internal and external stakeholders
• High integrity with a desire to communicate directly and valuing that in others, and an ability to adapt to METR’s culture
• A base level of technical understanding to enable seamless interaction with engineers and ML researchers at METR
• Strong mission alignment, with a deep passion for ensuring AI is positive for humanity, and METR’s role in ensuring this

Salary range: $209k - $276k

Logistics

• Deadline to apply: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, but we will likely stop accepting applications on August 30th.
• Location: This role would be in-person out of our beautiful coworking space in Berkeley, CA.
• Visas: We sponsor visas! However, we aren't able to successfully sponsor visas for every role and every candidate, and it’s especially difficult for operations roles. But if we make you an offer, we will make every effort to get you into the United States, and we retain an immigration lawyer to help with this.
• Successful candidates will likely complete a paid work test, 2 rounds of interviews, and an in-person trial. Registering interest is short/quick — there’s just a single required question, which can be answered with a few bullet points. Apply here!

Benefits include

• Platinum health insurance and dental insurance for you and your dependents
• Unlimited PTO (most staff take 4-6 weeks off per year)
• Catered lunch, dinner, and snacks at the beautiful downtown Berkeley coworking space, shared with other organizations in the AI safety ecosystem
• Generous stipends for productivity and ergonomics, professional development, and mental health
• 21 weeks parental leave
• Relocation stipend for moving to the Bay Area

Some studies have found that a higher percentage of women and underrepresented candidates won't apply if they don't meet every listed qualification. METR values candidates of all backgrounds. If you find yourself excited by the position but you don't check every box in the description, we encourage you to apply anyway!

Apply for this job

We encourage you to apply even if your background may not seem like the perfect fit! We would rather review a larger pool of applications than risk missing out on a promising candidate for the position. If you lack US work authorization, we can likely sponsor a cap-exempt H-1B visa for this role.

We are committed to diversity and equal opportunity in all aspects of our hiring process. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We welcome and encourage all qualified candidates to apply for our open positions. Register interest here!