Description:
We’re hiring a Strategy & Operations Intern who brings the precision and operational rigor of a top chief-of-staff. You should be exceptionally organized, precise, and self-directed, with an unwavering commitment to producing flawless work.
You’ll act as a critical coordination hub between FIKRA’s senior team and both internal and external stakeholders, manage core team communications, and coordinate high-frequency team meetings as well as monthly board meetings.
Responsibilities
- Executive Cadence: Fully own and manage our internal staff meetings (three times weekly), including agenda-setting, preparation of briefing materials, facilitating discussions, capturing accurate meeting notes, assigning follow-ups, and ensuring crisp execution.
- Board Support: Coordinate monthly board meetings - calendar management, meeting materials (decks, pre-reads), precise minutes, action tracking, and proactive follow-ups.
- Stakeholder Coordination: Serve as the main point of contact and communication bridge between the senior leadership, internal teams, and external stakeholders (investors, partners, advisors, vendors). Ensure consistent information flow and accountability across all stakeholders.
- Executive Communications: Draft and refine emails, memos, briefing documents, and presentation scripts clearly and professionally.
- Prioritization & Time Management: Maintain an executive-level priority tracker, adjusting timelines and tasks dynamically to align with shifting business needs. Actively safeguard executive bandwidth and highlight critical trade-offs.
- Decision Support: Prepare concise one-page analyses to frame decisions, outlining options, supporting data points, and recommended next steps.
- Presentation Development: Create polished presentations (PowerPoint and Canva), ensuring clear narrative flow, professional design, and precise formatting.
- AI-Driven Productivity: Regularly utilize and actively train AI tools to enhance your productivity and that of the wider team, testing new AI-driven productivity solutions, documenting evaluations, and recommending optimal adoption paths.
Professional Development
- At FIKRA, interns are treated as core team members. You’ll gain:
- Direct mentorship from senior leaders with deep experience in venture building, AI, and investments
- Exposure to live deals—sit in on investment discussions, diligence sessions, and pitch reviews
- Skill-building in strategic analysis, venture evaluation, and AI-driven productivity
- Pitching experience through internal practice sessions and optional involvement in investor-facing presentations
What Exceptional Performance Looks Like
- Perfectionist Quality: Consistently deliver materials of impeccable quality - grammatically flawless, error-free, and thoughtfully structured, demonstrating rigorous self-review before submission.
- Elite Communication: Demonstrate clarity, concision, and professionalism in written and verbal communications, requiring minimal edits or corrections.
- Calm and Agile: Effortlessly manage shifting priorities, demonstrating resilience and adaptability under time pressure.
- Self-driven and Proactive: Exhibit proactive problem-solving, anticipating team needs, resolving issues independently, and consistently closing loops.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s or Master's degree from a top-tier institution with outstanding academic credentials.
- 0–2 years of experience in demanding environments (e.g., startups, consulting, finance, technology, or policy).
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills in English (mandatory).
- Arabic communication skills are a plus.
- Highly proficient with technology: Expert in Google Workspace/Microsoft 365, Slack, Notion/Docs, advanced spreadsheets; very comfortable evaluating and integrating new productivity tools.
- Presentation expertise: Advanced skills in PowerPoint and Canva, with an eye for clear visual storytelling and flawless formatting.
- Analytical & Discreet: Strong analytical thinking and impeccable judgment in handling confidential information.
- AI Comfort: Experience or strong willingness to learn, leverage, and train AI tools for personal and team productivity enhancement.