Office & Operations Coordinator

About inquirED

inquirED was founded by teachers to bring rigorous and joyful learning to every student. We’re a fast-growing start-up, serving more educators and students every day. Inkwell, our integrated ELA and social studies curriculum, brings two core subjects studies together into one coherent instructional experience that builds knowledge and literacy skills, saves time and resources, and supports meaningful learning for both students and teachers. Inquiry Journeys, our elementary social studies curriculum, is used in schools and districts across the country to help students develop deep social studies knowledge and the inquiry skills essential for a thriving democracy. Join our team of designers, advocates, guides, thought leaders, and makers to help us make an even greater impact. Together, we can shape the future of education.

Description

The Administrative & Operations Coordinator is an organized, detail-driven professional responsible for keeping inquirED’s administrative work and day-to-day operations running smoothly. The role owns shared inboxes, scheduling, travel, events, and company records, runs our Des Moines office, and takes on operational projects from start to finish with minimal direction.

You’ll use modern tools, including Google Workspace, Airtable, Asana, and AI assistants like Claude, to stay on top of a high volume of work and to build systems that need less manual effort over time.

This role reports to the Operations Manager and partners with teams across the company, including Operations, Finance, People, Sales, and Marketing.

What You'll Do

Administration

• Manage shared inboxes by answering or routing every request and following it through to close
• Coordinate calendars and schedule meetings such as interviews, vendor calls, and team meetings, and prepare agendas, notes, and follow-ups
• Support finance operations by matching receipts, preparing invoices, chasing missing documentation, and keeping vendor records current
• Support people operations, including new hire setup and equipment, offboarding steps, job postings, and employee records
• Keep company files, trackers, and databases accurate and organized so anyone on the team can find what they need
• Draft clear, professional emails, documents, and reports, using AI tools where they help and checking every output for accuracy

Events and Travel

• Book travel, hotel room blocks, and registrations for conferences, retreats, and team events
• Coordinate with venues, vendors, and internal teams such as Marketing, build event checklists, and pack and ship event materials, confirming every item before it leaves

Office and Shipping

• Keep the office organized, clean, and stocked, logging every delivery the same day it arrives
• Own inventory for marketing materials, sales samples, event materials, and supplies, keeping the online store accurate about what’s available and what’s coming soon
• Label and track anything held for a specific event or project
• Fulfill internal and online orders accurately and on time, coordinating inbound and outbound shipments through delivery

Projects and Process Improvement

• Plan and track your work and projects in Asana, creating tasks, setting due dates, and keeping status current so the team always knows where things stand
• Take on operational projects, such as kitting, process improvements, or office reorganizations, and project manage them from plan to finish
• Work with stakeholders to understand the root problem before changing a process, so new processes solve the right thing
• Find repetitive work and propose solutions to simplify or automate it with tools like Airtable automations, Zapier, and AI assistants

What We're Looking For

• An experienced administrative professional who knows how to keep a busy team organized
• Exceptionally organized, with a sharp eye for detail
• Comfortable moving between many tasks in a day without losing track of any of them
• A clear, proactive communicator, both verbally and in writing, who shares progress without being asked and flags problems early
• Confident with technology: you learn new software quickly and already use AI tools in your daily work
• Discreet with confidential information, including employee and financial records
• Self-directed: you can take a goal, plan the work, and finish it without step-by-step instructions
• Good judgment about when to decide on your own and when to check in first
• Takes pride in leaving systems and spaces better than you found them

What Success Looks Like

• Your manager has clear, current visibility into your work, often before they think to ask
• Every request in a shared inbox has a response or an owner within one business day
• Travel, meetings, and events are booked correctly, with confirmations filed where the team can find them
• Records, trackers, inventory, and the online store reflect exactly what’s true
• Projects finish on time, and when something is at risk, you’ve already raised it with a plan
• Checklists are followed closely, and any changes are talked through first
• Shipments go out complete and correct the first time
• Recurring work takes less time each quarter because you’ve improved how it gets done

Why This Role Matters

In this role, you’ll own your assigned work and also proactively identify the tasks needed to move Operations and inquirED forward. The Administrative & Operations Coordinator is the reason invoices go out on time, new teammates have what they need on day one, our team shows up to events with everything they need, and districts receive the right materials. Small details in this role shape how educators and colleagues experience inquirED.

Requirements

• 2+ years of experience in administrative, executive assistant, office management, or operations roles
• A track record of owning projects or processes end to end with minimal supervision
• Advanced skills in Google Workspace (Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Docs, and Sheets)
• Regular use of AI tools such as Claude or ChatGPT in your work
• Experience using Asana or a similar project management tool
• Experience with databases, CRMs, or finance tools (Airtable, HubSpot, Ramp, or similar) preferred
• Experience with inventory, order fulfillment, or shipping preferred
• Ability to work on-site at our Des Moines, Iowa office five days a week
• Ability to lift up to 50 lbs and handle shipments regularly

Why Work For Us

• Health & 401K: Employee-covered health care and retirement match
• Flexible PTO & Company Closures: Flexible PTO and 12+ observed days off
• Chances to Connect: Biannual company retreats and optional local meetups
• Perks: Technology package provided
• Learning and Development: Educational and development opportunities, monthly Brunch and Learns, and more!

The base compensation range for this role is $70,070–83,930. Total compensation for this role also includes a full benefits package. This compensation range and title may be adjusted based on actual experience. This is an in-office role based in Des Moines, Iowa.