Manager, Strategy & Operations, Global Business Development

THE ROLE

Sotheby's is in the middle of a major transformation in how it builds and grows client relationships — modernizing the technology and data behind client coverage, standing up new functions, and running strategic projects that cut across client-facing teams and departments, including Product & Technology (P&T), Client Strategy, Valuations, Marketing, Operations, and more. This role sits inside Global Business Development, the team leading that transformation.

You'll sit at the center of three pillars: (i) Tech Enablement, (ii) Function Optimization, and (iii) Cross-Departmental Partnership — working across the business to enable the transformation and identify new growth opportunities. That means scoping the tech enablement each initiative needs, partnering on the training that brings new ways of working to life, running project management end to end, gathering input through surveys and structured check-ins, and using data to make the case for change.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Project & Program Management
  • Help shape how a newly built transformation function operates as it scales. Own intake, prioritization, and progress tracking across concurrent workstreams — the Tech Enablement roadmap, Function Optimization pilots, and the Cross-Org Initiatives pipeline.
  • Maintain project plans, timelines, and risk/issue logs, and flag dependencies or blockers before they slow a workstream down.
• Cross-Functional Coordination
  • Work directly with stakeholders across Business Development functions (Client Strategy, Valuations, etc.), client-facing teams (Global Fine Art, Luxury), and other departments (P&T, Operations, Marketing) to keep initiatives moving.
  • Design and run surveys and structured check-ins to gather input across departments, and turn the results into clear, actionable recommendations.
  • Prepare executive-ready briefing materials, decks, and updates for leadership audiences.
  • Support change management as new tools and ways of working roll out, including training materials and adoption communications.
• Data Analysis
  • Pull and structure the data behind pilot evaluations and KPI tracking — the evidence base every resourcing decision runs on.
  • Run cohort and pattern analysis supporting segmentation, coverage, and function-optimization work.
  • Build and maintain dashboards and reporting cadences that give leadership ongoing visibility into program health.
  • Use AI tools — including Claude and custom agents or workflows — to accelerate research, synthesis, drafting, and analysis, and to automate recurring manual work.
• Strategic Support
  • Absorb the coordination and analytical layer of work so senior leadership time is freed for the highest-impact strategic decisions.
  • Help build the business case — KPIs, expected outcomes, and resourcing needs — behind future hiring and investment decisions.
  • Document processes and playbooks that let successful pilots scale into standard practice across the function.
  • Flex into ad hoc strategic work as it emerges, including initiatives beyond the current portfolio.

IDEAL EXPERIENCE & COMPETENCIES

• 6+ years of experience in consulting, project/program management, or business operations, ideally within a fast-paced, matrixed, or transformation-focused environment.
• Strong data analysis skills — comfortable with data pulls and structuring (Snowflake), cohort-style analysis and dashboards (Tableau), and survey design and automation (Qualtrics).
• Fluent with AI tools as part of daily workflow — using Claude and similar LLM-based tools, agents, and prompt-based automation to accelerate research, synthesis, drafting, and analysis. Comfortable building lightweight scripts, workflows, or agents that remove manual steps from recurring processes, and curious about where new AI capabilities can responsibly speed up the team's work.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, including experience preparing materials for senior executives.
• A track record of managing multiple concurrent workstreams across different stakeholders and levels of maturity.
• A problem-solver who's comfortable operating with ambiguity — much of this function is being defined as it's built.
• High discretion and independent judgment; able to build trust and influence outcomes across departments without direct authority.
• Proficiency with project management and collaboration tools (e.g., Monday.com, Smartsheet, Confluence) and strong PowerPoint/Excel skills for executive-level storytelling.
• Bachelor's degree required; MBA or equivalent experience is a plus.
• Experience in luxury, art, retail, or another client-facing industry is a plus, but not required.