Vice President, Strategy and Business Operations

Hybrid work

Udemy is headquartered in San Francisco with global offices in Australia, India, Ireland, Türkiye, and other US locations. Our robust hybrid work model spans San Francisco, Denver, Austin, Ankara, Dublin, and Melbourne. This hybrid position requires two days per week in the office at the nearest hub. Learn more about us on our company page.

About you

You have the ability to think both strategically and operationally.  You are able to create structure amidst ambiguity.  You are an excellent listener.  You are able to facilitate critical discussions across parties with differing viewpoints, driving parties to clarity and alignment.  You are as comfortable rolling up your sleeves to dig in to fix a process as you are helping set the strategy for the company and creating a presentation for the board.  You are resilient and adaptable, and able to embrace change and lead others to do so.  You thrive in a high performance environment, and believe business performance and a great culture are not at odds with each other.

About this role 

The Vice President of Strategy and Business Operations will play a pivotal role in shaping the strategic direction of Udemy. This role involves leading the corporate strategy development process, driving business operations excellence, and ensuring that product and go-to-market (GTM) strategies are aligned with the company's overarching objectives. This leader will oversee both short and long term corporate strategies, critical cross-functional initiatives, the management and monitoring of key performance indicators (KPIs) and oversee corporate development activities.The ideal candidate will be a strategic thinker with strong leadership and operational skills and a proven track record in managing large cross-functional initiatives.

What you’ll be doing:

• Strategic Leadership -  Develop and refine the corporate strategy in partnership with the executive team to drive long-term growth and profitability in alignment with our vision and mission.  Facilitate Product and GTM strategic planning processes and ensure alignment overall corporate strategy. 

• Metrics and Monitoring - Design and implement a robust framework for metrics and monitoring across the organization to track progress and make data-driven decisions.  This insight will be crucial to identify growth opportunities, assessing the impact of strategic initiatives, and addressing challenges swiftly.

• Corporate Development - Lead mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activities, including sourcing, evaluating, and executing transactions.  Oversee due diligence, financial modeling, and integration planning to ensure seamless execution of corporate development initiatives. Manage relationships with consultants, and other external partners to advance corporate development objectives.

• Operational Excellence  - Oversee all aspects of business operations including oversight of metrics, large cross-functional initiatives and processes to ensure efficient execution and allow for continued profitable growth and scale.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration - By fostering collaboration across departments, this role will ensure that all teams work cohesively towards shared goals, reducing silos and improving execution speed and outcomes.

• Leadership and Development - Mentor and develop team members, promoting a high performance culture focused on growth and accountability.  Serve as a key member of the senior leadership team, contributing to company-wide decision making and prioritization.  

Critical Skills

• Strategic Thinking- Ability to develop and communicate a clear strategy aligned with Udemy’s vision and mission.  Proficiency in analyzing market trends and competitive landscapes to inform strategic decisions.

• Leadership and Team Building - Ability to inspire, mentor, develop and manage high-performing teams.

• Execution and Operational Excellence - Proven track record in driving operational efficiency and effectiveness.  Strong project management skills to oversee the execution of large-scale initiatives.

• Collaboration and Cross-Functional Coordination - Capacity to foster collaboration across different departments, breaking down silos.  Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to influence and build consensus.

• Problem-Solving - Creative problem-solving skills to navigate challenges and identify opportunities.  

• Financial Acumen - Solid understanding of financial principles to align strategic initiatives with financial goals.  Capability to evaluate the financial implications of strategic decisions.

• Thought Partnership - Ability to engage in reflective and strategic thinking with others.  Requires active listening, critical thinking, empathy, strong communication and the ability to ask insightful questions.

What you’ll have:

• While this work is based more on the skills a person has than what they have done, we think a typical profile could include the following: 

• A minimum of 15+ years of experience in strategy, operations, or a related function, ideally within the technology sector.

• Proven experience in scaling businesses and leading significant growth initiatives.

• Experience in mergers and acquisitions, including strategy, valuation, integration, and execution a plus.

We understand that not everyone will match each of the above qualifications. However, we also realize that everyone has unique experiences that can add value to our company. Even if you think your background might not perfectly align, we'd love to hear from you!

Life at Udemy

 We aspire to be as vibrant and dynamic as the communities we serve, as inquisitive as those who use our platform, and as revolutionary as the future we strive to open for everyone. Here are some of the things we love about life at Udemy:

•  We’re invested in creating an inclusive environment that welcomes a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences. From creating employee resource groups, ensuring we’re a Fair Pay Workplace, and building a flexible work culture, our belonging, equity, diversity, and inclusion (BEDI) initiatives always put our people first. We want you to be able to bring your authentic self to work because when we all do, we’re better for it.

• Learning is what we do—inside and out. You’ll also have unlimited access to Udemy courses, monthly UDays (meeting-free professional development days), and a generous annual professional development stipend.

•  Our reason to exist is to revolutionize learning – that calls for taking risks and learning from failures. Whether it’s our hackathons (a company-wide effort to envision new possibilities for our product) or sharing our prototypes, we see experimentation as a crucial step on the path to success.

• We’re committed to creating world-class employee experiences and are proud of the recognition of this by Great Place to Work.  

Of course, the best thing about being part of Udemy is knowing your work makes a difference for people and organizations around the world. You’ve got the skills; why not use them to help others develop theirs?

At Udemy, we value diversity and inclusion and consider qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or family status, veteran status, medical condition, or disability. We will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records. 

Our Benefits Start With U

Our benefits package at Udemy “starts with U” and is grounded in mission-driven benefits that intentionally align with our core values. Here’s a sneak peek at just a few highlighted benefits if you’re a full-time Udemate based in the United States:

• Core Benefits: Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, life/AD&D, and disability coverage

• HSA/FSA/Commuter: Pre-tax savings/spending plans, including HSA employer contributions

• Transgender Benefits: Expanded medical coverage for gender-affirming care

• Parental Benefits: Financial assistance for fertility (including egg-freezing), adoption, and surrogacy expenses; twelve weeks of paid family bonding for birth, surrogacy, adoption, and foster placement (plus up to six to ten weeks of paid disability leave for birthing parents) as well as a two-week “ease-back” program that enables parents to return part-time at full pay

• Whole U: Fully paid memberships for meditation/mindfulness, therapy/coaching visits, financial planning, fertility and family building, maternity and newborn care, parenting and pediatrics, menopause care, breastmilk shipping, and caregiving support

• Learning: Free access to Udemy and Udemy Business plus a yearly stipend to spend on professional development

• Retirement: Pre-tax and Roth 401(k) plan with an employer contribution

• Charitable Giving: Corporate charitable match for eligible nonprofits and charities

• Vacation: Flexible vacation for salaried Udemates and fifteen days per year for hourly

• Holidays: Twelve paid holidays throughout the year