Lead Forward Deployed Operator

Bolt Farm Treehouse is a luxury treehouse resort redefining hospitality through AI-first operations, radical ownership, and an obsession with guest experience. We don't just use technology — we build it into everything we do. Our strike team model means you won't sit in a fixed seat. You'll be deployed wherever your skills create the most leverage, then redeployed when the mission changes.

THE ROLE

Lead Forward Deployed Operator is the senior-most execution role on our strike team. You're the person we point at our highest-stakes operational problems. You architect end-to-end solutions, deploy into unfamiliar territory without a playbook, and leave behind systems that prevent the next fire. You mentor junior FDOs, triage the strike queue, and own outcomes — not tasks.

This role reports directly to the Founder and operates with high autonomy.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

- Get deployed to the highest-priority operational problem in the business, regardless of department

- Architect multi-system workflows that eliminate manual work and reduce error rates

- Build, ship, and iterate on AI-augmented operational systems (automations, agent pipelines, internal tools)

- Triage incoming strike requests and sequence them by business impact

- Mentor Forward Deployed Associates and Operators on execution speed, build quality, and ownership mindset

- Context-switch between ops, tech, guest experience, and finance without ramp-up time

- Document every system you build so the next person can run it without you

WHAT YOU'LL OWN (OUTCOMES & KPIS)

Founder-approved outcomes:

1. Deployment velocity — time from strike assignment to shipped v1 solution

2. System durability — % of built systems still running without intervention after 90 days

3. Leverage multiplier — hours of manual work eliminated per system deployed

4. Mentorship output — junior FDOs promoted or independently deploying within 6 months

WHO YOU ARE (BUILDER TRAITS)

- AI fluency — you use AI tools daily to build, not just to chat. You've shipped automations using Zapier, n8n, Make, Cursor, or equivalent.

- Ownership reflex — you see a problem and fix it before anyone assigns it to you.

- Speed of execution — you ship v1 in days, not weeks. You know when good enough beats perfect.

- Build portfolio — you can show us real systems you've built that real people use.

- Cross-functional fluency — you're as comfortable in a P&L review as you are in a workflow builder.

- Leadership under ambiguity — you don't need a playbook. You write the playbook.

MUST-HAVES

- 3+ years building operational systems, automations, or internal tools in a fast-moving environment

- Demonstrated build portfolio (show us what you've shipped, not what you've managed)

- Proficiency with at least 2 of: Zapier, n8n, Make, Cursor, Python, low-code/no-code platforms

- Track record of autonomous execution — you've been the person who gets pointed at problems, not the person who delegates them

- Comfortable with radical transparency, direct feedback, and a founder-led operating model

NICE-TO-HAVES

- Hospitality, resort, or guest-experience operations background

- Experience with AI agent frameworks (LangChain, CrewAI, AutoGen, etc.)

- Prior startup or founder's-office experience

COMP & BENEFITS

- Base: $95,000–$120,000

- OTE: $136,000–$171,000

- Performance variable: 30% of OTE, tied to Founder-approved KPIs

- Health stipend: $400/mo

- Profit-pool participation: Yes — tiered by build output, not tenure

- Location: Hybrid (on-site deployment periods as needed in Whitwell, TN)