Head of Quality & Training

Job description

We are building our Operational Excellence function, and Quality & Training is its first pillar. This is a build and scale role: you will strengthen the strong foundation already in place while designing the QA program, systems, and standards that a practice of our size and ambition needs for its next stage of growth. Today, a small dedicated team supports quality across 400 frontline agents, working largely through manual processes and in close partnership with our BPO. There is significant opportunity to build: to introduce our first QA platform and automation, to establish independent quality oversight of outsourced work, and to stand up quality assurance for our growing set of AI agents. You will own that build end-to-end. As Head of Quality & Training, you will design and implement Talkiatry's QA operating model, select and roll-out our first QA platform, define how we measure and coach quality, and build the capability to quality-assure both human and AI interactions as we scale. You will lead a small team, including a manager who owns training, knowledge, and change management, while you own the quality program end-to-end. ABOUT TALKIATRY: Talkiatry is transforming mental health care by making high-quality psychiatry more accessible, human, and sustainable for both patients and clinicians. Co-founded by a patient and a triple-board-certified psychiatrist, we were built to solve one of healthcare’s most urgent challenges: millions of people struggle to access mental health care, while clinicians face growing administrative burden and burnout. Through our technology-powered, in-network platform, we’re changing that, creating a better experience for patients and empowering clinicians to focus on delivering exceptional care. Today, Talkiatry is the largest dedicated psychiatry practice in the U.S., with 750+ psychiatrists, 250+ therapists, and more than two million patient visits delivered nationwide. At our scale, every innovation has real impact. Every workflow we improve, every technology solution we build, and every patient experience we redesign helps thousands of clinicians provide better care to hundreds of thousands of patients. We’re not just growing quickly — we’re redefining how behavioral healthcare is delivered in America. Joining Talkiatry means joining a mission-driven team that is solving complex problems at scale, driving meaningful change in healthcare, and building the future of mental health care with compassion, innovation, and purpose. YOU WILL: What You’ll Own First (Year One) - Design and stand up a QA operating model built for our scale. Define a risk-based sampling and coverage strategy, and use automation to move us from manual, ad-hoc review to statistically meaningful coverage. - Stand up our first real QA platform capability. Evaluate whether to build on ServiceNow's QA features, adopt a dedicated QA/AI-QA tool, or combine them. You will own the business case, configuration, and rollout. - Establish an independent, automated QA signal over BPO-handled volume. Rather than adding headcount, build automated/AI scoring that runs independent of the BPO's own scores, and focus human time on calibration and adjudication where scores diverge or risk is high. - Stand up QA for our AI agents. Define how we evaluate agentic AI interactions for accuracy, tone, empathy, and compliance, and build the human-in-the-loop feedback mechanisms that improve them. - Bring the compliance and liability-sensitive audits, such as crisis protocol and HIPAA/compliance review, into the standing program so coverage is consistent rather than bandwidth-dependent. Key Responsibilities Vision & Leadership - Define and lead the long-term strategy for the Quality & Training function, aligned to Talkiatry's growth and operational goals. - Build and lead the team. A manager reporting to you will own training, knowledge base, and change management. You own the quality program directly. - Own the roadmap for QA systems and platforms, including the automation and AI needed to run quality at scale. - Balance onshore and offshore QA staffing to optimize scale and quality, and set the governance model for how we work with and oversee our BPO. - Foster a culture of excellence, learning, and accountability. Quality Philosophy & Scorecard Design - Own how we define and measure quality. Design a scorecard and QA philosophy that separates non-negotiable protocol adherence from judgment-based quality. - Keep a small set of critical, auto-fail items where following protocol exactly is required – HIPAA verification, crisis protocol, safety escalations, clinical boundaries. - Score the rest (tone, empathy, whether the response fit the patient's actual situation, whether it was the best answer and not just a compliant one) on graduated quality, not literal script adherence. - Weight quality dimensions so that a cold, by-the-book script read cannot earn a top score. We want agents who adapt appropriately to the patient in front of them. - Carry this philosophy into calibration and coaching, so that alignment sessions reward patient outcomes and appropriate judgment, not rigid compliance. Quality Assurance & Insights - Establish and maintain QA standards that reflect both healthcare professionalism and a high-quality patient experience. - Run QA for both human agents and AI interactions, ensuring consistent tone, accuracy, and compliance. - Conduct root cause analysis on QA and CSAT data to surface process gaps, training needs, and system improvements. - Deliver real-time visibility into quality, throughput, and efficiency through dashboards and reporting. - Partner with Operations and Clinical leadership to embed QA insights into process and system design. AI-Integrated QA & Knowledge - Partner with the AI Ops & Strategy team to align AI performance metrics with Talkiatry’s QA standards for accuracy, empathy, safety, compliance, and workflow adherence. - Quality-assure agentic AI systems in partnership with AI Ops & Strategy, owning the QA scorecards, sampling, calibration, human in the loop review, and evaluation methods. - Conduct QA reviews of AI generated interactions and translate findings into actionable recommendations for AI Ops & Strategy, PCC Operations, Training, and Knowledge Management. - Validate whether AI Ops & Strategy changes to prompts, workflows, vendor configuration, model behavior, integrations, and system design improve interaction quality. - Translate QA findings and AI performance trends, including containment, accuracy, and escalation volume, into training, retraining, coaching, and knowledge update needs. - Own knowledge quality standards for human and AI use, including semantic structure, context tagging, and source of truth discipline. Content ownership sits with the Learning Enablement Manager; AI Ops & Strategy owns AI knowledge infrastructure, ingestion, retrieval performance, and technical configuration. Team & Function (via your Learning Enablement Manager) - Your Learning Enablement Manager owns knowledge base content and governance, training program design and delivery, and change management for new tools, workflows, and content. - You set the direction and standards while they run enablement so you can stay focused on the quality build. YOU HAVE: QUALIFICATIONS - 8+ years in QA, quality operations, or training leadership, with progressive scope, ideally in healthcare, regulated, or high-touch service environments. - Demonstrated experience building a QA function from the ground up and at scale, including standing up or configuring a QA platform capability. - Experience running QA or quality operations at scale, across hundreds of frontline and/or outsourced agents, with the sampling, coverage, and automation strategies. - Hands-on experience evaluating conversational or agentic AI systems, including accuracy, tone, empathy, safety, workflow adherence, escalation behavior, and human in the loop review. (If you haven't done this yet, you've done adjacent interaction QA and are ready to build it) - Experience overseeing BPO quality, including governance, calibration, and independent quality signals beyond vendor self scoring to keep independent quality signals. - A strong point of view on quality philosophy: you know the difference between compliance-based and outcome-based QA, why it matters, and how to design scorecards that reward judgment and patient experience, not just script adherence. - Proven ability to run root cause analysis and turn it into operational and behavioral change. - Experience leading and developing people and scaling programs across large, distributed onshore/offshore teams. - A builder's bias toward automation and technology over added headcount, paired with strong analytical and data skills. - Ability to drive standards and alignment across functions (Operations, Clinical, AI/Product) without direct authority, and to lead teams through change. - Exceptional written and verbal communication. - Bachelor's degree or higher preferred. WHY TALKIATRY: - Top-notch team: we're a diverse, experienced group motivated to make a difference in mental health care - Collaborative environment: be part of building something from the ground up at a fast-paced startup - Excellent benefits: medical, dental, vision, effective day 1 of employment, 401K with match, generous PTO plus paid holidays, paid parental leave, and more! - Grow your career with us: hone your skills and build new ones with our Learning team as Talkiatry expands - It all comes back to care: we’re a mental health company, and we put our team’s well-being first Talkiatry participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S. only after a job offer is accepted and Form I-9 is completed. 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At Talkiatry, we are an equal opportunity employer committed to a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace and candidate experience. We strive to create an environment where everyone has a sense of belonging and purpose, and where we learn from the unique experiences of those around us. We encourage all qualified candidates to apply regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital or family status, disability, gender, gender identity or expression, pregnancy or caregiver status, veteran status, or any other legally protected status.