Program Manager, Critical Harm Operations

Details

Critical Harm Operations sits within User Safety & Risk Operations and builds enforcement systems for Frontier Risk and Material Harm that are accurate, fast, defensible, and built to scale. The team turns policy intent into operational readiness, review standards, quality systems, escalation paths, automation guardrails, and durable cross-functional operating models.

The role involves building durable operating systems and running complex safety operations. The successful candidate will take ambiguous problems, create structure, align cross-functional partners, and drive execution. Priorities may include national security or violent-activities workflows, wellbeing and Frontier Risk initiatives, and programs such as Trusted Access. Deep domain expertise is helpful but not required.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic operational builds across priority workflows from problem statement through implementation, including scope, owners, milestones, risks, success measures, and execution cadence.
• Translate policy, safety, technical, legal, and operational constraints into workflows, requirements, playbooks, escalation paths, and decision-making structures.
• Coordinate with User Operations leadership, Product Policy, Integrity, Safety Systems, i2, Legal, Product, Engineering, Support, vendors, and other partners.
• Stand up new programs, stabilize operations, improve handoffs, and transition durable ownership to the appropriate teams as priorities shift.
• Use operational data and frontline signals to identify bottlenecks, quality gaps, capacity needs, ownership failures, and high-leverage interventions.
• Drive high-priority escalations and cross-functional decisions to closure with clear context, accountable owners, next steps, and follow-up.
• Create roadmaps, decision logs, status updates, risk registers, operating reviews, and executive communications.
• Identify opportunities to use AI tools, automation, lightweight systems, and simpler workflows to improve speed, consistency, and scale while preserving appropriate human judgment.

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in program management, strategy and operations, product operations, technical program management, trust and safety, support operations, risk operations, implementation, or a related field.
• A track record of taking complex, ambiguous work from problem framing through launch and scaled operation.
• Strong organizational, analytical, and execution skills, with the ability to manage multiple moving pieces while focusing on key decisions.
• Ability to build trust and drive alignment across teams without direct authority while maintaining clear ownership, accountability, and escalation paths.
• Technical and analytical fluency sufficient to reason about data flows, dashboards, tooling gaps, automation, and failure modes, even without writing production code.
• Clear communication skills with technical, operational, policy, and executive audiences.
• Ability to operate calmly and flexibly in a fast-moving environment, learn new domains quickly, and handle high-severity or sensitive work.
• Experience with vendor operations, QA programs, launch readiness, workflow automation, or AI-assisted operations.

Nice to Have

• Experience in customer support or other high-stakes scaled operations.
• Deep expertise with national security, violence, or other severe-harm domains.

Benefits

• Equity, performance-related bonuses for eligible employees, and medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• Health Savings Accounts, flexible spending accounts, commuter benefits, and a 401(k) retirement plan with employer match.
• Paid parental, medical, caregiver, and sick or safe leave.
• Flexible paid time off for exempt employees and up to 15 annual days for non-exempt employees.
• Paid company holidays and coordinated office closures.
• Mental health and wellness support, employer-paid basic life and disability coverage, and an annual learning and development stipend.
• Daily office meals and eligible meal delivery credits.
• Relocation support for eligible employees.
• Additional taxable fringe benefits may include charitable donation matching and wellness stipends.

OpenAI is an equal opportunity employer committed to reasonable accommodations and a diverse, inclusive workplace.