Human Hire Alternative

Ironback.ai vs. Hiring an Operations Manager

A full-time operations manager makes strategic, human-judgment decisions and leads your team. AI Staff automates the systematic, repeatable parts of operations that an ops manager would otherwise handle manually. These are complements — not substitutes — for businesses that need both.

✓ Where Ironback.ai Wins

  • Costs $42,000–66,000/year vs. $70,000–110,000/year for a skilled ops manager (salary + benefits + hiring)
  • Running from day 1 — no 90-day hiring and onboarding cycle
  • Zero turnover risk on operational systems
  • Brings benchmark data from 20+ similar businesses in your industry
  • Handles 24/7 execution — an ops manager works 9–6

Where Hiring an Operations Manager May Win

  • An ops manager provides human leadership, can manage people, and handles novel situations that AI can't anticipate
  • Better for businesses where the main problem is culture, team management, or strategic execution
  • An ops manager can represent you with vendors, clients, and partners in ways AI cannot

Best fit: Ironback.ai

Businesses whose main operational problem is high-volume repetitive processes (scheduling, follow-up, invoicing, communication) that don't need a person to manage — they need a system to execute.

Best fit: Hiring an Operations Manager

Companies that have already automated their repetitive processes and now need someone to lead their operations team and make strategic decisions.

Real Cost Comparison

Year-one total cost of ownership — including setup, ongoing fees, and hidden management costs.

Ironback.ai

$7,500 assessment + $4,500/month build + $3,000/month ongoing = $48,000–66,000 year one

Hiring an Operations Manager

$70,000–95,000 salary + $15,000–25,000 in benefits/taxes/recruiting = $85,000–120,000 year one

Year-One TCO Summary

AI Staff saves $19,000–54,000 in year one vs. an ops manager hire, with faster deployment and immediate ROI metrics.

Common Questions

Can't we just hire a part-time operations person instead?

Part-time operations hires typically cost $25–45/hour. For processes that need to run 24/7 (call answering, automated follow-up), part-time humans still leave gaps. AI Staff handles these gaps while costing less than part-time for high-volume tasks.

We already have an ops manager — can AI Staff work alongside them?

Ideal combination. Your ops manager focuses on team leadership, strategy, and judgment decisions. AI handles the execution layer — all the high-volume repetitive tasks that currently consume 30–50% of your ops manager's time.

What if we want to hire an ops manager in 12 months?

The AI infrastructure you build now makes your future ops manager dramatically more effective. They inherit working automated systems instead of building processes from scratch.

See if Ironback.ai is the right fit for your business

Book a free 30-minute call. We'll ask about your situation and give you an honest answer — including if a different approach would serve you better.