Chief Operating Officer (COO)

International technology group (multiple legal entities, distributed teams across different regions) is looking for a COO. We are a technology company. Our primary market is the USA. We build and evolve tech solutions for complex, regulated, and operationally intensive business domains where speed, quality, security, process maturity, and the ability to adapt quickly truly matter. We are currently at a scaling stage. Our goal is to turn strategy into systematic execution, improve operational efficiency, strengthen the People function, develop the employer brand, and drive a natural process transformation — from a predominantly human‑driven model to a hybrid operations model where people and AI tools work together, and AI operations are continuously improved, measured, and embedded into the company's daily work. The COO role is neither an administrator nor an executor of the CEO's tasks. It is the CEO's right hand, a strategic partner, and the main driver of strategy implementation across the entire company. The main mission of the role The COO must help turn strategic intent into practical execution. Your job is to regularly capture strategic input from the CEO, validate it, participate in refining the strategy, translate it into clear operational priorities, and ensure their company‑wide implementation. Areas of responsibility:

• Strategy execution - developing operational plans, tracking key initiatives, removing bottlenecks, building accountability. Ability to say "no" to initiatives that don't work or create distraction.
• People, HR & employer brand - developing HR as a strategic business partner, improving hiring, onboarding, and retention. Aligning HR and PR with the company's real positioning, fostering a culture of ownership and growth.
• AI transformation of operations - identifying processes where AI can deliver real impact, shifting to a hybrid model, embedding AI tools into HR, knowledge management, reporting, and employee training. AI must become part of operational maturity, not a standalone experiment.
• Operational efficiency, speed & security - streamlining processes without unnecessary bureaucracy, improving cost-efficiency, transparency, and operational discipline. Identifying problems early, making decisions quickly.
• Learning culture - building a system for continuous learning, developing key employees, enabling knowledge sharing, leadership programs - so that the company systematically grows its expertise.

Experience & hard skills:

• 7+ years in senior operational roles in large companies (500+ employees).
• Experience scaling an international company (headcount growth, new markets).
• 2–3 successful change management cases.
• HR management (goal setting, tracking KPIs).
• Leading legal and back-office functions (document flow, contracts).
• Collaboration with finance (opex budgeting, cost control).
• Experience in business process automation (ERP, BPM).
• Understanding of AI capabilities, experience in implementation and cost optimization.
• Experience working with technical teams (development, DevOps, IT infrastructure).
• Building learning systems, performance management, and career tracks.
• Involvement in employer brand and internal culture development.
• Fluent business English.

Personal & behavioral profile:

• A driver, not an executor - initiates actions independently, does not wait for tasks from the CEO.
• Understands the strategic context, knows how to translate strategy into operational plans and control.
• Systematic thinking without bureaucracy - processes for the sake of results, quality, and speed, not for control.
• Experience working with distributed teams.
• Capable of strengthening HR, employer brand, and culture.
• Sees AI as a real tool for operational transformation, not just a trend.
• Knows how to constructively challenge the CEO and block wrong initiatives.
• Focused on results, speed, efficiency, and security.

Expected Business Results

• Strategy stops being just talk - it turns into day‑to‑day execution company‑wide.
• The company becomes faster, more transparent, more cost‑efficient, more manageable, and more secure.
• The People function works as a strategic partner: hiring, onboarding, retention, and a culture of accountability.
• The employer brand is developed and aligned with the company's real positioning.
• AI is embedded into the operating model (hybrid human+AI), measured, and continuously improved.
• Operational processes are free of unnecessary bureaucracy, with early problem detection.
• A culture of continuous learning and employee growth is established.
• The CEO gains a strong operational backbone - the #1 person for strategy implementation.