Fellow Experience Manager - India

Job Description:

About Handshake

Handshake is the career network for the AI economy. 20 million knowledge workers, 1,600 educational institutions, 1 million employers (including 100% of the Fortune 50), and every foundational AI lab trust Handshake to power career discovery, hiring, and upskilling, from freelance AI training gigs to first internships to full-time careers and beyond. This unique value is leading to unparalleled growth; in 2025, we tripled our ARR at scale.
Why join Handshake now:
* Shape how every career evolves in the AI economy, at global scale, with impact your friends, family and peers can see and feel
* Work hand-in-hand with world-class AI labs, Fortune 500 partners and the world's top educational institutions
* Join a team with leadership from Scale AI, Meta, xAI, Notion, Coinbase, and Palantir, among others
* Build a massive, fast-growing business with billions in revenue

About the Role

Handshake AI is scaling rapidly to support hundreds of thousands of Fellows working across high-volume, fast-evolving AI projects and frontier lab customers. The Fellow Experience (FEXP) team is the frontline engine that ensures Fellows receive timely, accurate, and high-quality support.
We are seeking a Fellow Experience Manager to lead an India-based team of Fellow Experience Specialists (support agents) responsible for reactive ticket support, including overnight coverage for the global organization. This role owns team performance, quality, and health within a high-volume, SLA-driven environment.
FEXP operates across three geographies - the United States, India, and Guatemala - and requires tight coordination across time zones to ensure continuous coverage and consistent standards. As one of the leaders in a newly established geo, this manager will play a critical role in building strong operational foundations, setting performance expectations, and ensuring seamless handoffs across regions.
This is a hands-on people leadership role in a fast-paced AI environment. You will ensure your team consistently meets SLAs, quality standards, and CSAT targets while building a high-performance culture capable of absorbing rapid product changes and volume spikes.

Desired Capabilities

Team Performance, SLA & Overnight Coverage Accountability
* Own your team's delivery against SLAs, quality standards, and CSAT targets
* Ensure consistent overnight coverage and smooth follow-the-sun transitions
* Monitor productivity, quality scores, backlog, and staffing coverage daily
* Proactively adjust staffing and shift structures to manage volume fluctuations
* Maintain operational stability during incidents or product changes occurring outside US hours

Building & Scaling the India Pod

* Establish strong team norms, accountability standards, and performance expectations in a newly expanding geo
* Hire, onboard, and ramp new agents quickly without sacrificing quality
* Embed documentation discipline and operational rigor from day one
* Identify team health risks early and correct course quickly
* Partner cross-geo to ensure consistency in performance standards and cultural alignment

Coaching, Development & Team Health

* Coach Fellow Experience Specialists on performance fundamentals, documentation hygiene, and escalation judgment
* Run consistent 1:1s, performance reviews, and structured feedback cycles
* Identify team health issues early and intervene proactively
* Manage underperformance, including structured improvement plans
* Maintain morale and psychological safety within a high-intensity, overnight-support environment

Escalations & Incident Stabilization

* Handle complex or high-risk Fellow escalations independently
* Act as the primary decision-maker during overnight disruptions or urgent incidents
* Provide structured updates and ensure clean documentation for cross-geo handoffs
* Ensure escalation paths are clear, followed, and reinforced through coaching

Documentation & Change Readiness

* Ensure SOPs, macros, and internal documentation are updated rapidly as product changes occur
* Build habits of immediate documentation updates in response to AI product velocity
* Drive adoption of workflow changes within hours or days - not weeks
* Reinforce clarity and consistency across shifts to prevent misalignment

Cross-Geo & Cross-Functional Collaboration

* Coordinate closely with FEXP managers in the US and Guatemala to ensure seamless 24/7 coverage
* Ensure clean transitions between shifts and time zones
* Partner with other teams on training updates and workflow adjustments
* Surface recurring Fellow pain points and product inconsistencies
* Provide structured, actionable insights (not just updates) to stakeholders

What We're Looking For

* 8+ years in high-volume customer support startup environments
* 4+ years managing frontline support agents (FTE and/or contractors)
* Experience managing follow-the-sun support agents for US-based company
* Experience in fast-scaling, rapidly changing product environments (AI or technical experience preferred)
* Calm and decisive in high-volume, high-pressure environments
* Demonstrated ownership of SLAs, CSAT, and QA performance
* Deep working knowledge of support tooling (Zendesk or similar)
* Exceptional EQ with a strong sense of empathy with both team members and Fellows
* Strong judgment under ambiguity
* Bias toward action and operational clarity