AI Operations Associate

Summary

Kaizen Equity Partners is an M&A investment bank rebuilding its operations through applied AI and agentic systems. The AI Operations Associate will work directly with deal teams to identify automation opportunities, design and improve AI agent systems, shape the technology product, and train and support users across the firm.

Responsibilities

• Learn the business & the tech. Shadow deal teams, operations, and finance work to find the problems worth solving and where work bottlenecks. Collect real examples, document the rules and exceptions, and draw a clear line between intelligence agents can handle and judgment that stays with bankers
• Design agentic systems. Model each process as a cross-functional system of agents: which agents it needs, what each one owns, the playbooks they follow, what starts a run, and where a person must approve. Build in auditability, cost control, repeatability, and data security from the start
• Diagnose and improve. Review run logs, outputs, and agent transcripts; refine playbooks, model choices, and approval points. Run evals, track accuracy, cost, and turnaround for every squad
• Shape the product. Write up platform improvements backed by evidence from real runs, and work with product and engineering to scope and test them. Identify the tools and features that would unblock the highest-value work
• Train and support the team. Onboard bankers and staff onto each squad, be their first call when an output looks off, and build and maintain the documentation that keeps every squad running without you in the room
• Collaborate. Work closely with partners, deal teams, and engineering in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment

Skills

• AI fluency
• You use AI tools every day, push them hard, and know where they fall short
• 0–3 years of experience with an analytical, technical, or business background
• Structured problem solving
• You map out the ways to solve a problem, weigh the trade-offs, and land on a clear recommendation
• You pick up new processes quickly and in depth, capture the steps experts take for granted, and have the grit to see hard problems through
• Clear, structured writing
• Attention to detail and pride in producing high-quality work
• Team orientation
• You are sociable and hardworking, and you want to grow into AI product management
• Built an agent, an automation, or a scrappy side project?
• Experience in software, technology, consulting, investment banking, or financial services
• A degree in software engineering, business, accounting, or finance
• Basic coding ability
• Data analytics skills: strong Excel, familiarity with Power BI or similar tools, and the ability to turn data into clear visualizations

Qualifications

Must Haves

• AI fluency
• You use AI tools every day, push them hard, and know where they fall short
• 0–3 years of experience with an analytical, technical, or business background
• Structured problem solving
• You map out the ways to solve a problem, weigh the trade-offs, and land on a clear recommendation
• You pick up new processes quickly and in depth, capture the steps experts take for granted, and have the grit to see hard problems through
• Clear, structured writing
• Attention to detail and pride in producing high-quality work
• Team orientation
• You are sociable and hardworking, and you want to grow into AI product management

Nice to Haves

• Built an agent, an automation, or a scrappy side project?
• Experience in software, technology, consulting, investment banking, or financial services
• A degree in software engineering, business, accounting, or finance
• Basic coding ability
• Data analytics skills: strong Excel, familiarity with Power BI or similar tools, and the ability to turn data into clear visualizations

Benefits

• On-site collaboration in Old Town Scottsdale for most of the year, with remote summers.
• Hands-on mentorship and a defined track to AI Product Manager for consistent high performers.
• Daily work with the latest AI models on real firm processes, alongside the team building the platform.
• A vibrant, entrepreneurial team, plus firm-sponsored retreats and social events.