Lead Design Operations Manager

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At Exact Sciences, we’re helping change how the world prevents, detects and guides treatment for cancer. We give patients and clinicians the clarity needed to make confident decisions when they matter most. Join our team to find a purpose-driven career, an inclusive culture, and robust benefits to support your life while you’re working to help others.

Position Overview

The Lead Design Operations Manager will play a critical role in enabling our Experience Design organization to operate at scale with clarity, consistency, and impact. This role is responsible for building and leading the operational backbone that allows designers to focus on high‑value creative and strategic work while ensuring the right processes, tools, governance, and insights are in place to support effective decision‑making.

As a strategic partner to Design and CX leadership, this role drives alignment across design resourcing, intake and prioritization, tooling, vendors, and cross‑functional workflows. The Lead Design Operations Manager brings a systems mindset, strong program leadership, and the ability to translate complex design work into clear plans, tradeoffs, and outcomes for stakeholders across Product, Marketing, IT, and Operations.

This role will lead the evolution of Design Operations from reactive coordination to a proactive, insight‑driven function—using data, automation, and standardized ways of working to improve efficiency, visibility, and delivery across the design portfolio.

This is a hybrid role and can be based out of our Madison, WI; San Diego, CA; or Redwood City, CA office locations.

Essential Duties

Include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Data Management and Analysis:
  • Leverage data, analytics, and measurement tools to drive business operations and optimize performance.
  • Lead cross-functional initiatives with SMEs and data analysts to understand and surface key insights about the business units supported.
  • Serve as a bridge between Marketing/CX and our strategic partners, including agencies, to drive performance-based decision making.
• Team Process Optimization
  • Document existing processes and workflows to identify inefficiencies, redundancies, or bottlenecks.
  • Set clear goals and KPIs, aligning team efforts with measurable outcomes to track progress and success.
  • Automate repetitive tasks: Use tools and technology to reduce manual work and free up time for strategic initiatives.
  • Improve communication channels and streamline how information flows across the team to reduce delays and misalignment.
• Budget and Services Management
  • Assist in managing the AOP process. 
  • Govern budget throughout year in partnership with Program Stakeholders and Finance including monthly reporting, theme tracking, and reconciliation aligned with Marketing OKRs.
  • Collaborate with Procurement and Category Management on SOW review, finance approval, and shepherding through contract and Coupa processes.
  • Facilitate ongoing review of 3rd party contracts with vendors including driving financial and operational efficiencies and ensuring vendors are meeting the expectations set forth in the contract.
• Campaign Support
  • Provide project management and coordination across the business to ensure timelines, deliverables and dependencies are tracked.
  • Provide dashboards and insights on campaign metrics to enable timely decision making.
• Uphold company mission and values through accountability, innovation, integrity, quality, and teamwork.
• Support and comply with the company’s Quality Management System policies and procedures.
• Maintain regular and reliable attendance.
• Ability to act with an inclusion mindset and model these behaviors for the organization.
• Ability to work on a mobile device, tablet, or in front of a computer screen and/or perform typing for approximately 100% of a typical working day.
• Ability to travel up to 20% of working time away from work location; may include overnight/weekend travel.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in relevant field; or Associates Degree and 2 years of relevant experience; or High School Diploma or General Education Degree (GED) and 4 years of relevant experience.
• 7+ years of experience in Operations or a related field including program or project management support or other role with similar experience leading leadership and teams in cross-functional collaboration as detailed in Essential Duties.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Familiarity with common Project Management methodologies such as Waterfall and Agile.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office programs, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and SharePoint.
• Demonstrated ability to perform the essential duties of the position with or without accommodation.
• Authorization to work in the United States without sponsorship.

Preferred Qualifications

• Proficiency in role-specific tools including Smartsheet and Tableau.

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Salary Range:

$112,000.00 - $190,000.00 (National salary range) 

$140,000.00 - $205,000.00 (California salary range) 

The annual base salary shown is for this position located in US - WI - Madison on a full-time basis and may differ by hiring location. In addition, this position is bonus eligible.

Exact Sciences is proud to offer an employee experience that includes paid time off (including days for vacation, holidays, volunteering, and personal time), paid leave for parents and caregivers, a retirement savings plan, wellness support, and health benefits including medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision coverage. Learn more about our benefits.

Our success relies on the experiences and perspectives of a diverse team, and Exact Sciences fosters a culture where all employees can develop personally and professionally with a sense of respect and belonging. If you require an accommodation, please contact us here.

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We are an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to disability, protected veteran status, and any other status protected by applicable local, state, or federal law.

To view the Right to Work, E-Verify Employer, and Pay Transparency notices and Federal, Federal Contractor, and State employment law posters, visit our compliance hub. The documents summarize important details of the law and provide key points that you have a right to know.