Director, Sales Strategy & Operations - Sales Development

About Rippling Rippling gives businesses one place to run HR, IT, and Finance. It brings together all of the workforce systems that are normally scattered across a company, like payroll, expenses, benefits, and computers. For the first time ever, you can manage and automate every part of the employee lifecycle in a single system. Take onboarding, for example. With Rippling, you can hire a new employee anywhere in the world and set up their payroll, corporate card, computer, benefits, and even third-party apps like Slack and Microsoft 365—all within 90 seconds. Based in San Francisco, CA, Rippling has raised $1.4B+ from the world’s top investors—including Kleiner Perkins, Founders Fund, Sequoia, Greenoaks, and Bedrock—and was named one of America's best startup employers by Forbes. We prioritize candidate safety. Please be aware that all official communication will only be sent from @ Rippling.com addresses. About the role Rippling is seeking a Director of Sales Strategy & Operations to lead the team supporting our Sales Development organization. Reporting to the Sr. Director of Sales Strategy & Operations, you will partner with SDR leadership to translate Rippling’s growth priorities into pipeline plans, capacity decisions, and programs that improve SDR productivity and conversion. You will own the SDR Strategy & Operations roadmap and lead a team of managers and analysts across planning, analytics, and operational improvement. Working with Sales, Marketing, Finance, and Revenue Operations, you will identify the largest opportunities to improve pipeline generation, align leaders on the right investments, and drive execution through measurable results. This role requires both strong business judgment and deep analytical ability. You should be equally comfortable challenging a capacity assumption, investigating funnel performance, developing your team, and recommending a course of action to senior leadership. What you will do Strategic Partnership & Business Leadership • Serve as the strategic and operational business partner to SDR leadership, working closely with the Sr. Director of Sales Strategy & Operations to improve pipeline generation, SDR productivity, and funnel conversion. • Own SDR strategic and operational planning, translating company growth priorities into recommendations for headcount, capacity, coverage, and pipeline targets. • Set the SDR Strategy & Operations roadmap, prioritizing the initiatives and investments with the greatest potential business impact. • Lead business reviews and executive readouts, diagnosing performance against plan and aligning leaders on decisions, trade-offs, and corrective actions. Hands-On Analytics, Modeling & Performance Management • Build and own the models that connect SDR hiring, ramp, productivity, and conversion to pipeline generation and the broader revenue plan. • Lead SDR target and quota setting in partnership with Sales leadership and Finance, aligning expectations with account opportunity, available capacity, and AE coverage. • Define performance metrics and reporting that provide a consistent view of funnel health, pipeline quality, and productivity across segments, teams, and reps. • Stay close to the data through hands-on SQL and modeling, identifying root causes of performance gaps and translating findings into actions with measurable results. Cross-Functional Leadership & Program Ownership • Lead cross-functional programs that improve SDR effectiveness, from account prioritization and lead routing to prospecting workflows and SDR-to-AE handoffs. • Partner with Marketing, Sales, and Revenue Operations to strengthen funnel alignment, establish clear ownership and service levels, and improve conversion. • Translate business priorities into clear process and systems requirements, partnering with technical teams to deliver improvements and drive adoption, including practical applications of AI and automation. • Lead SDR planning for new products and sales motions, defining coverage, capacity, workflows, and success measures in partnership with the relevant GTM teams. People Leadership & Team Development • Build, manage, and develop a high-performing team of Sales Strategy & Operations managers and analysts, with clear ownership and accountability for business outcomes. • Set priorities and allocate team capacity across strategic initiatives and ongoing operational needs, making explicit trade-offs as business priorities evolve. • Set a high standard for analytical rigor, business judgment, and stakeholder partnership, providing hands-on guidance on the team’s most complex work. • Establish scalable ways of working and invest in coaching, feedback, and career development so the team can take on greater scope and operate with increasing independence. What you will need • 7+ years of experience in Sales Strategy, Sales Operations, Revenue Operations, or a related field, including direct experience supporting SDR or BDR organizations in a high-growth B2B environment. • 2+ years of people management experience, with a track record of hiring, coaching, and developing strategy or operations professionals and delivering results through a team. • Demonstrated experience building and scaling SDR planning and operating processes, including capacity planning, coverage design, target setting, and performance management. • Strong hands-on SQL/AI Tools and financial or operational modeling skills, with the ability to independently investigate complex questions, validate assumptions, and translate analysis into business decisions. • Strong working knowledge of Salesforce and the SDR technology ecosystem, including how data, routing, prospecting workflows, and reporting influence rep productivity. Practical experience applying AI or automation to improve GTM workflows. • Deep understanding of the SDR funnel and its connections to Marketing and Sales, with evidence of improving qualified pipeline generation, funnel conversion, or