Operations Manager

Founder Labs | Belfast, Northern Ireland

Contract: 9-month fixed term

Salary: £35-45k per annum (pro-rata)

Hours: Full-time

Location: Ormeau Labs

Reports to: CEO

We could write the Job Description using one of the many AI tools but instead it’s this. Honest and written by a human. 

Who are we?

We are effectively a startup. That supports other startups. We believe that small teams can make a big difference. We give first with no expectation of return. We move fast, are comfortable in ambiguity and occasionally get things wrong. When we do we don't blame anyone - we fix them, learn and move on.  

We ask ourselves "how can we better help founders" every single day. They are our customer. We obsess over them, their problems and their needs. We don't care about borders, we are the bridge for founders into the UK, Europe and North America. 

We believe what we are doing is a very important thing. Founders will build the future of the Northern Irish economy and society. Come join us. 

The Job

You'll keep the machine running. Demo Days, accelerator programmes, hackathons, founder weekends, international trips — you make sure they actually happen, and happen well.

You'll work with our partners (Dogpatch Labs, QUB, Ormeau Labs, Invest NI and others), keep our reporting tight, and help the CEO stay focused on the work that matters. 

You'll support founders. They're building something from nothing - handling constant emotional whiplash. You'll be a steady presence. You'll listen. You'll notice when someone's struggling before they tell you. YYou'll celebrate the wins and sit with them through the hard bits. This isn't a job where you can hide behind process — founders remember how you made them feel.

You should apply if....

You're organised. Properly organised — not just tidy, but the kind of person who sees the whole board and knows what's about to fall over. You're curious. You ask why things work the way they do and whether they could work better. You don't need to be managed. You write a good email.

We don't care where you've worked. We care how you think.