Full-Time

AI Operations Specialist

Updated on 5/26/2026

Rewards Network

Rewards Network

501-1,000 employees

Pay-for-performance loyalty marketing for restaurants

Compensation Overview

$85k - $100k/yr

+ Bonus

Chicago, IL, USA

Hybrid

Hybrid role requiring in-office presence 3 days/week (Tue-Thu) at downtown Chicago office.

Category
AI & Machine Learning (1)
Required Skills
Claude
Salesforce
Requirements
  • Bachelor’s degree in Business, Information Systems, or other related field
  • 2–4 years of experience in operations role with responsibility in AI workflow augmentation and automation
  • Experience with using AI automation platforms in a business setting (Agentforce, Copilot Studio, Claude, or equivalent)
  • Demonstrated ability to translate business requirements into solutions, manage operational change, and communicate clearly in both directions
  • Genuine passion for AI — actively experiments with tools, follows the space closely, and forms informed opinions from direct experience
  • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills; able to diagnose operational friction and design effective AI-enabled solutions
  • Logical, semi-technical mindset — comfortable structuring agent instructions, defining guardrails, and testing behavior
  • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills — able to translate between technical and non-technical audiences with clarity, coach and support peers, and build strong collaborative relationships
  • Collaborative working style with a demonstrated ability to influence without authority across Sales, Operations, and Product teams
  • Commitment to continuous improvement — finds satisfaction in iterating on solutions based on real user feedback
  • Strong project coordination skills; keeps stakeholders informed and work moving forward
  • Comfortable operating in ambiguity; able to define a path forward when the playbook doesn’t exist yet
Responsibilities
  • Configure and train AI agents. Define how agents think, respond, and act — setting instructions, topics, guardrails, and behaviors that make them effective in real operational contexts. Initially focused on refining existing agents, with future responsibility for creating new solutions as adoption matures.
  • Configure AI workflows and agent behavior across a variety of platforms including Salesforce Agentforce, Microsoft Copilot Studio, Claude, and Power Automate — translating business requirements into instructions, guardrails, and responses that drive operational performance.
  • Maintain deployed solutions and monitor ongoing performance — tracking output quality, identifying gaps, and keeping solutions functioning reliably across user groups.
  • Suggest and implement enhancements based on user feedback and operational performance data, maintaining a continuous improvement cycle between end users and deployed tools.
  • Drive AI literacy across Sales and Operations. Develop best-practice guidance and deliver hands-on enablement that helps teams get more out of the tools they use, improving both adoption depth and output quality.
  • Gather and close the feedback loop. Actively collect input from end users, translate their experience into prioritized improvements, and serve as the primary conduit between the people using the tools and the people building them.
  • Coordinate with Product and Operations teams on efficiency initiatives — ensuring agent training and configuration aligns with platform implementation and RTB process requirements.
  • Evaluate emerging AI tools and platforms. Stay current on the AI landscape and bring forward-looking recommendations on new capabilities, tools, and enhancement opportunities to leadership.
  • Support change management and adoption by developing communications, training materials, and rollout plans that drive sustainable adoption of new AI workflows and tools across the organization.
Desired Qualifications
  • Background in fintech, B2B SaaS, or revenue operations environments
  • Prior experience in a change management, L&D, or internal enablement capacity

Rewards Network partners with major loyalty programs to drive full-price dining by offering points or rewards to guests who dine at participating restaurants. Restaurants join and pay on a pay-for-performance basis, with Rewards Network earning fees tied to actual sales generated by loyalty-driven diners, plus optional flexible funding. The platform provides live sales reports, guest survey analytics, and verified reviews to help operators optimize marketing and operations. Its goal is to increase monthly restaurant sales, fill more seats, and use data and financing options to support growth.

Company Size

501-1,000

Company Stage

Acquired

Total Funding

N/A

Headquarters

Los Angeles, California

Founded

1984

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Machine learning credit models excelled during COVID-19 stress test.
  • Neural networks detect guest data patterns, boosting operational agility.
  • Partner restaurants achieve 3-4% year-over-year same-store sales growth.

What critics are saying

  • DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub capture 65%+ delivery volume, eroding loyalty model.
  • American Express, Marriott Bonvoy, United Airlines build proprietary partnerships by 2027.
  • Merchant cash advance defaults spike above 8-10%, triggering capital crisis.

What makes Rewards Network unique

  • Partners with United, Marriott Bonvoy, T-Mobile, American Airlines for loyalty programs.
  • Pay-for-performance model charges only for full-price guest sales generated.
  • Provides AI-driven data analytics, machine learning credit models, neural networks.

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People at Rewards Network who can refer or advise you

Benefits

Paid Vacation

401(k) Company Match

401(k) Retirement Plan

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

Health Savings Account/Flexible Spending Account

Disability Insurance

Life Insurance

Hybrid Work Options

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

-1%

1 year growth

-1%

2 year growth

-1%
PYMNTS
Dec 19th, 2024
Darden Restaurant Sales Grow Despite Fine Dining Pullback

Darden Restaurants’ sales climbed this quarter despite diners shying away from its fine-dining establishments. The company, owner of chains such as Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, released earnings Thursday (Dec. 19) that showed total sales increasing 6% to $2.9 billion. While sales were up 7.5% at LongHorn and 2% for Olive Garden, sales for the company’s fine dining restaurants — Ruth’s Chris Steak House, Eddie V’s Prime Seafood and The Capital Grille — fell by nearly 6% for the quarter

PYMNTS
Dec 5th, 2024
Restaurant Bankruptcies Reportedly At Highest Level Since Pandemic

Chain restaurant bankruptcies are reportedly at their highest level since the pandemic.Among the most recent examples is the casual dining franchise TGI Friday’s, one of more than a dozen high-profile eateries to seek bankruptcy protection between January and October of this year, Bloomberg News reported Thursday (Dec. 5), citing BankruptcyData.According to the report, that’s the most through that date since 2020, and next year could bring more turmoil, with restaurant prices jumping due to increased labor costs, supply chain issues and steeper interest expenses, lessening consumer demand for meals away from home.Bloomberg cited data from Black Box Intelligence showing that restaurant prices rose 44% between 2015 and March of this year, compared to a 26% uptick in grocery prices during the same timeframe.“It’s really hard for somebody to go to a restaurant at the same pace as we did before,” Victor Fernandez, vice president of insights at Black Box Intelligence, said. “That’s putting a lot of pressure on brands.”In addition to TGI Friday’s, the Italian chain Buca di Beppo, fish taco restaurant Rubio’s Coastal Grill, owner of burger and pizza chains BurgerFi and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza, and Red Lobster are all among companies seeking reorganization via bankruptcy in a year that has not been easy on the dining industry.“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m ready for ‘24 to be behind us, and I think ‘25 is going to be a great year,” Kate Jaspon, chief financial officer of Dunkin’ parent company Inspire Brands, said at an industry conference in Las Vegas last month.Her comments were reported by CNBC, which included its own statistic from Black Box Intelligence: Restaurant traffic for eateries open at least a year had fallen year over year in each month through September.Meanwhile, high-profile chains such as McDonald’s and Starbucks have reported declines in quarterly sales, disappointing their investors.And while global names like these are seeing sales fall, smaller restaurants are dealing with challenges of their own, like scaring up capital, Mitchell Hipp, divisional vice president at Rewards Network, said in an interview with PYMNTS posted earlier this week.“Most restaurants are undercapitalized to begin with, and it’s the No. 1 business that fails in the U.S.,” he said.Most small-to-mid-sized restaurants only have enough funding to remain open for six months, though they should — ideally — have the capital to keep running for a few years.“Six months goes by quickly when you open up a smaller restaurant. Unless people are flocking through the doors, it almost immediately becomes a situation where [owners] are chasing their tails from day one,” Hipp said

PYMNTS
Dec 5th, 2024
Uber And Toast Team To Offer Commission-Free Delivery

Uber is expanding its partnership with restaurant technology platform Toast. The new integration between Toast Delivery Services and Uber Direct lets U.S. restaurants save on delivery fees and expand their delivery radius, while using Uber’s delivery network to provide local delivery on phone orders and ones made via Toast digital ordering channels, the companies said in a Thursday (Dec. 5) news release,. This effort builds on the partnership formed by two companies in 2021, and comes at a time when restaurants are struggling to attract diners and find funding

PYMNTS
Dec 3rd, 2024
Data-Driven Funding Fuels Restaurant Growth And Fills Tables

For restaurants, there’s a funding gap, a chasm between gaining access to the capital they need to thrive and grow and the traditional channels offering that capital. Mitchell Hipp, divisional vice president at Rewards Network, told PYMNTS the gap can present itself as the pain points of setting up operations and progressing to become mainstays of the local economy. His insight comes from personal experience. He recounted how he put himself through college by working in the industry. He started as a dishwasher and eventually became an owner-operator

PYMNTS
Sep 22nd, 2024
Ai Phone Hosts Become Increasing Part Of Dining Experience

The next time you call your favorite restaurant, it may be AI that answers. That’s according to a report Sunday (Sept. 22) by Ars Technica on the popularity of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered hosts used by eateries. As the report noted, there are many companies specializing in the service, offering 24-hour responses to questions about things like menus, dress codes and seating arrangements, or making, changing, or canceling reservations