Business Operations Manager

Location: Liverpool Science Park (office-based)

Contract: Full-time (35 hours per week)

Travel: Occasional travel to Optic Technology Centre, St Asaph (once per month)

Reports to: Founder's Associate

Start Date: 1st September

About PlantSea

PlantSea is an award winning materials innovation company creating seaweed based alternatives to plastics for use in everyday products. Our proprietary biopolymer technology provides biodegradable, water soluble solutions for single dosing applications such as laundry and dishwasher capsules, with future expansion planned into agri, cosmetics, and food packaging. We are entering our commercialisation phase, with a strong customer pipeline, signed letters of intent, and the backing of a committed investor base. This is a pivotal moment, moving from first commercial rolls to scale up, and strong operations have a central part to play in getting us there.

PlantSea's culture is open, fast moving, inventive, and supportive. We value communication, shared accountability, and creative problem solving across all levels, and we are driven by a shared passion for sustainability and tangible environmental impact.

Role Overview

PlantSea is looking for a highly organised and proactive Business Operations Manager to be the operational heartbeat of the commercial team. You will be managing the operational and administrative workload of the commercial team to allow the Sales and Marketing functions to operate smoothly. This is a varied, hands on role that keeps the company running from the inside, covering customer service, packing and sending of sales orders, diary and office management and stock, people admin, internal communications, finance administration and project admin. The role is primarily internal facing and is distinct from the Founder's Associate role, which is strategic and commercial in nature. This role is about reducing friction, maintaining and enhancing existing systems and ensuring the team has everything they need to do their best work. The right person will be self sufficient, detail oriented and proactive about closing the loop and bridging gaps in both communications and operations. This role is ideal for someone who can work independently, thrives in a busy environment, enjoys responsibility, and wants to be part of a company that is scaling quickly.

Key Responsibilities

• Customers and Order Processing
  • Overseeing the triaging, setting up meetings, and responding to inbound enquiries (customers, investors, events)
  • Process and execute customer orders accurately
  • Create invoices and track payment confirmations
  • Handle customer queries, returns, and replacements
  • Diligently report tracking numbers, customer details and next steps into our CRM
  • Support warehouse operations
• Finance and Admin
  • Collecting receipts and bills for the commercial office
  • Processing and tracking team expenses
  • Keeping on top of company subscriptions, tracking costs and renewals
  • Booking travel and accommodation for the team in line with the agreed approval process
  • Keeping files organised, structured and up to date
• Office Management
  • General upkeep of the office space and supplies
  • Ensuring the office is ready and meeting rooms are booked for visitors and internal meetings
  • Handling incoming packages and deliveries
  • Keeping office equipment stocked and in good working order
  • Liaising with suppliers and looking after office contracts
  • Basic health and safety: first aid kit, fire safety register, risk assessment
• People and HR Administration
  • Onboarding new starters, setting up on Breathe HR, signposting to payroll or other departments, walking through HR processes, booking and recording any training
  • Recruitment administration as and when required: scheduling interviews, placing advertisements etc
  • Keeping internal HR policies up to date
  • Employee recognition, birthdays and team milestones
  • Monthly internal newsletter, collating commercial, technical and team updates, photos and events
  • Business wide announcements and communications on behalf of the leadership team
  • Internal engagement plan, supporting culture and team cohesion
  • Organising monthly team socials and lunch & learn sessions: venue, food, calendars
• IT and Systems
  • Point of contact for the external IT services company, liaising and supporting onboarding
  • Assessing equipment needs, identifying gaps and keeping the asset list up to date
  • Microsoft optimisation, auditing usage and arranging basic training for the team
  • AI workplace policy, supporting tools and platforms the business adopts
  • Management of master documents such as introduction decks
  • Supporting quarterly reporting meetings: pulling together work from different people, putting together presentations and compiling PDFs and reports
  • Liaising with internal teams and external project partners to gather required inputs and keep projects on track as and when required
  • Keeping project timesheets up to date for the commercial team (IUK and other grant requirements)

Skills and Experience

• Experienced in an operations, admin, office management or people coordinator role
• Highly organised with strong attention to detail
• Comfortable working independently in a fast paced environment
• Clear and proactive communicator, comfortable keeping people updated without being asked
• Able to juggle multiple tasks simultaneously and prioritise effectively
• Experience running projects, tracking deadlines, chasing inputs and keeping documentation in order
• Highly experienced with tools such as Microsoft 365, Breathe HR, and project management platforms
• Discreet and trustworthy, able to handle sensitive HR and financial information
• A natural problem solver who takes ownership and follows through
• A team player who enjoys making the workplace better for everyone
• A desire to grow professionally with the company as we expand

Details

Job Type: Full-time

Additional leave

Company events

Company pension

Employee stock purchase plan

On site gym

Work from home

Work Location: In person, Liverpool

Application

Please submit your CV and a short covering letter to, telling us about the systems you have run, the teams you have supported and the difference you made.