Head of Marketing Operations

Job description

ABOUT EXA We raised a $250M Series C to build the search engine for AIs. Led by a16z, with existing investors Benchmark, Lightspeed, and YC doubling down, the round brings Exa's valuation to $2.2 billion. Exa is building a search engine for the AI era. Our Search API currently powers Agents, Fortune 500s and AI labs as we transform an industry that hasn't been disrupted since the 90s. We're a largely SF-based team of ~100 from Harvard, MIT, Meta, Google Research, ex-founders & dropouts alike. We are rapidly building the most intelligent search engine in history. We're high agency, low-ego, and united by the feeling that this is one of the last problems worth getting right. We are looking for a Head of Marketing Operations to build and scale the operational engine behind our marketing team. ABOUT THE ROLE The Head of Marketing Operations builds the infrastructure that lets Exa marketing scale, and runs the operating system that keeps the team performing day to day. You will own the marketing tech stack, the data model, the lifecycle, and the analytics that turn marketing into a predictable pipeline engine the executive team can trust. This is an AI-first role at an AI-first company. You won't just administer tools. You'll be a builder of systems, deploying AI-powered workflows that let a lean marketing team operate at massive scale. The right person is rigorous, opinionated about tooling, and energized by the operational problems most marketers avoid. You think about marketing the way a great operator thinks about a business: cadence, accountability, resource allocation, and clear measurement. You'll be the connective tissue between Marketing, Sales, and RevOps, making everyone around you faster. This role is based in-person at our San Francisco HQ. WHAT YOU'LL OWN MARKETING TECHNOLOGY STACK AND ARCHITECTURE Own the marketing tech stack end to end: selection, implementation, integration, and the standards that govern how data flows between systems, including marketing automation, enrichment, and the integration layer with Salesforce. Success is measured by stack reliability, total cost of ownership, and the speed at which marketing can launch new programs. AI-FIRST AUTOMATION Design and deploy AI-powered workflows (Claude, Clay, Zapier, and whatever you build yourself) to automate high-frequency tasks, and evangelize AI adoption across the GTM team. If a process runs manually more than twice, you should be itching to automate it. LIFECYCLE, LEAD MANAGEMENT, AND SCORING Own the full lifecycle from anonymous visitor through closed-won: lead scoring, MQL and PQL definitions, SLA enforcement, routing, enrichment, nurture, and the handoff to sales. Success is measured by conversion lift and clean handoff metrics. ATTRIBUTION, REPORTING, AND ANALYTICS Own marketing analytics, attribution methodology, and the dashboards leadership sees: pipeline attribution, channel ROI, and the quarterly marketing performance review. Success is measured by leadership confidence in the numbers and the speed of decisions informed by them. MARKETING OPERATING RHYTHM Drive the drumbeat of the marketing team: quarterly planning, goal tracking, weekly business reviews, budget and vendor management, and the prioritization framework that turns a long list of ideas into a focused roadmap. DATA GOVERNANCE AND DELIVERABILITY Own data hygiene, privacy compliance (GDPR, CCPA, and emerging US state laws), email deliverability, and the governance model that keeps our database trustworthy as we scale. WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE - Marketing-sourced pipeline is reported with confidence and audit-ready definitions. - The full funnel from visitor to closed-won is instrumented and visible in shared dashboards. - Lead scoring and routing drive measurable lift in downstream conversion. - Campaign launch time drops because of better playbooks and automation. - Marketing, sales, and RevOps agree on the data, the definitions, and the single source of truth. - Leadership has real-time visibility into program status, spend, and performance without chasing updates. YOU SHOULD HAVE - 6+ years in marketing operations, with meaningful time at a high-growth B2B startup. You thrive in ambiguity and don't need a playbook to get started. - Experience building marketing operations from scratch or replatforming, ideally at a developer-first or PLG company. - Deep fluency in HubSpot or Marketo, Salesforce, and at least one BI tool (Looker, Tableau, Sigma, Hex). - A proven AI builder mindset: you've shipped automations and internal tools using LLMs and workflow platforms (Clay, Zapier, Make, n8n), not just used ChatGPT. - Track record owning attribution methodology, lead scoring, routing, and data quality at scale. - Experience running planning cadences, budget, and vendor management alongside a marketing leader. - Impeccable analytical and problem-solving skills; calm under pressure, strong opinions held loosely. NICE TO HAVE - SQL fluency and experience with ETL/data pipelines or warehouse-native architecture. - Experience with hybrid PQL + MQL scoring models. - Familiarity with the developer tools landscape and how developers like to be marketed to (hint: they don't). - Bachelor's degree in a quantitative or technical field (or equivalent hands-on experience). - Experience managing outbound infrastructure and deliverability at scale. BENEFITS - Health and wellness: Premium medical, dental, and vision coverage, plus a monthly wellness benefit and a monthly commuter benefit for our SF team. - Fertility and family planning: Reimbursement for eligible egg freezing and related medical expenses up to a $15,000 lifetime maximum, plus 16 weeks of fully paid parental leave for all new parents, whether through birth, adoption, surrogacy, or foster placement. - Life at Exa: Lunch and dinner served daily, an office stocked with snacks, coffee, and health supplements, fresh bread from a local bakery every morning, weekly milk tea deliveries, monthly picnics, and parties to celebrate the wins (and each other). - Visa sponsorship: We sponsor visas for exceptional candidates and welcome applicants from all backgrounds and locations. Exa is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, creed, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability, age, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy or related conditions, criminal histories consistent with applicable law, or any other basis protected by applicable law.