Practice Architect II - Strategic Operations

One North is a digital experience agency that combines curiosity, scale, and agility to shape the future. As part of TEKsystems, a leading provider of business and technology services, we offer boutique solutions to solve complex problems. Our multidisciplinary teams of strategists, designers, and technologists excel in research and discovery, experience strategy, design, experience management, and technology implementation. Whether clients are establishing a vision for an experience or optimizing an existing one, we help businesses understand their audiences, design experiences, maximize technology, and bring their digital ideas to life. The world's most successful companies rely on us to forge the future through electrifying work that sparks innovation and drives results. Here's what the opportunity supported through our TEKsystems Global Services (TGS) Talent Acquisition Team requires: Position Overview The Practice Architect II - Strategic Operations is a leadership role responsible for architecting, integrating, and optimizing the operational frameworks, technical workflows, process automation, governance models, and advanced work management solutions that drive scalable, high-quality service delivery for our clients. In this position, you will lead cross-functional teams and client stakeholders across large, complex, and distributed portfolios that span multiple clients and significant books of business. You will combine deep business expertise with strong technical acumen to design robust, repeatable operational solutions that leverage best-in-class tools, integrated workflows, and data-driven insights to deliver measurable business value and scalable efficiency. This role requires a proven track record of leading large-scale, cross-functional teams through operational transformation initiatives, expertise in defining and operationalizing key performance indicators and metrics frameworks, and hands-on experience implementing and customizing work management platforms. This role will ideally be based in the Chicago area, but we are open to remote locations across the U.S. Responsibilities Develop a comprehensive understanding of clients' ecosystems, business objectives, challenges, and technical requirements. Define and lead an integrated operational strategy aligned with our organization's vision, priorities, and growth objectives. Design and maintain scalable operational architectures, governance models, and process frameworks to ensure efficiency, consistency, and compliance. Oversee the technical tool stack and customize Work Management systems to enable automation, visibility, and collaboration, including developing bespoke configurations, templates, automation scripts, and API integrations. Define key performance indicators and build automated reporting dashboards to measure portfolio performance and deliver actionable insights for stakeholders and executive leadership. Establish standard operating procedures, governance guidelines, and best practices for service excellence and continuous improvement. Act as a subject matter expert on operational transformation and process improvement. Serve as a senior escalation point and proactively identify and mitigate operational and technical risks; develop contingency plans and escalation protocols for critical issues. Conduct regular process audits, tool stack reviews, and operational health checks by using data to recommend improvements and drive optimization. Contribute to financial forecasting, scenario planning, and pipeline management to align operational capacity and resources with strategic growth objectives. Develop and maintain reusable intellectual property (IP), templates, playbooks, and standards to accelerate future engagements and create standardization across accounts. Lead change management and user adoption initiatives. Support resource and capacity planning efforts to balance workload across large, multi-faceted programs. Support sales and business development by providing operational insights, solution recommendations, and estimations for proposals/SOWs. Foster a collaborative and transparent team culture, mentor and develop team, and celebrate successes to promote a culture of excellence, innovation, and continuous improvement. Identify opportunities to expand operational services and deliver value to clients. Skills & Qualifications 10 or more years of progressive experience in operational architecture, strategic operations, or business process optimization within large, complex environments 5 or more years of experience working within a creative agency, digital production, or comparable digital delivery environment Proven expertise in designing, implementing, and scaling operational frameworks, technical workflows, governance models, and process standards Excellent conceptual and analytical thinking; able to translate complex business requirements into robust technical and operational solutions Advanced skills in workflow and portfolio management platforms (Asana, Workfront, Jira, etc.), including configuration, integration, automation design, and custom implementation Strong experience developing and operationalizing KPIs, metrics frameworks, reporting pipelines, and automated dashboards; proficient in data analysis and performance insights Proficiency in risk governance and capacity management for multi-program portfolios Demonstrated ability to architect solutions, pitch strategies, and manage workflows for onshore, nearshore, and offshore teams Proven success establishing, leading, and scaling high-performing, collaborative, cross-functional teams across geographically distributed environments Strong knowledge of the full creative lifecycle and production principles: strategy, design, front-end development, integration, quality assurance, and analytics fundamentals Outstanding communication, stakeholder engagement, and presentation skills; able to influence and collaborate effectively at all levels, including executive leadership Proven ability to drive change, foster a culture of continuous improvement, and lead user adoption for new tools and processes Highly organized, proactive, and adept at managing multiple priorities in a dynamic, fast-paced environment Agency or vendor experience required; global experience is a plus Relevant certifications such as PMP, Lean Six Sigma, CBAP, and workflow tool certifications (e.g., Asana, Workfront) strongly desired Bachelor's degree in Business Management, Information Systems, Operations Management, or a related field preferred, but not required studio, creative services, digital production, Delivery management