Workplace Experience Manager

Job Summary

The Workplace Experience Manager owns the day-to-day experience and operation of Apptronik's Sunnyvale site, an executive- and VIP-heavy location supporting our perception AI and product teams. This person is the face of the workplace and the owner of a site that must be polished, functional, and demo-ready at all times, and personally owns the reception desk as the front-of-house presence for the office. Because Facilities leadership is on-site only periodically, the role operates with a high degree of independence: it anticipates needs, makes sound day-to-day decisions within clear guardrails, and resolves issues before they surface rather than waiting for direction. When executives and VIPs visit, this role ensures the site and executive briefing center are clean, stocked, secure, and physically demo-ready, and delivers a polished front-of-house and guest experience, in support of the executive assistant team, who own meeting logistics, AV, agendas, and the executive's schedule. The role requires the professional poise to work credibly with everyone from vendors and janitorial staff to C-level leadership, and the judgment to respectfully push back when a request to the workplace is unreasonable or unworkable.

Scope & Boundaries

This is a workplace and site-operations role, not an executive assistant role. Executive calendars, travel, meeting logistics, AV, expense reporting, and executive/staff offsites are owned by the EA team. This role owns the physical site, the reception desk and front-of-house experience, the guest and workplace experience, vendors, and site readiness. The two are deliberately complementary: the EA runs the executive's day; the Workplace Experience Manager runs the site the executive walks into. This role sits on its own growth path within Workplace & Facilities and is not a stepping-stone into or out of executive support. The role is expected to operate independently within defined guardrails and to follow clear escalation pathways to Facilities leadership for anything structural, financial beyond approved thresholds, safety-related, or outside its lane.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Own and manage the reception desk as the site's front-of-house post, personally staffing it and/or coordinating coverage, greeting and directing employees, guests, vendors, and VIPs, and setting the standard for every arrival.
• Own the daily experience and operation of the Sunnyvale site, ensuring it is consistently polished, functional, and ready for employees, executives, and VIP guests.
• Act as the face of the workplace and the site’s decision-maker for day-to-day operations, exercising independent judgment between Facilities leadership visits and escalating what genuinely warrants it through defined pathways.
• Keep the site and executive briefing center presentation- and demo-ready at all times, clean, stocked, functional, secure, so the space is never a variable when VIPs arrive.
• During VIP visits and executive meetings, provide front-of-house, guest, facility, and vendor support to the EA and executive teams (who own logistics, AV, and agenda).
• Own visitor management (e.g., Envoy/VMS), check-in, and badging, and keep the reception area welcoming and well-organized so every guest, from vendors to VIPs, has a smooth, secure, professional arrival.
• Identify, build, and manage local vendor relationships including catering as needed (janitorial supplies, beverage, etc.), managing performance to a high standard day-to-day.
• Maintain supply, pantry, and workspace readiness so the site never scrambles ahead of a visit or event.
• Partner with HR and Recruiting on onboarding logistics, workspace setup, access coordination, and first-day readiness.
• Plan and lead site-wide, all-employee workplace and culture events (the EA team owns executive and staff offsites).
• Own seating and workspace planning as the site scales toward ~80 employees by the end of 2026.
• Proactively surface facility, safety, and vendor risks; hold the space and its vendors to a demo-ready standard.
• Maintain discretion and sound judgment around executives, guests, and confidential or VIP activity.

Skills and Requirements

• Proactive, ownership mindset, a genuine go-getter who runs a site independently and anticipates needs rather than reacting to them.
• Clear understanding of boundaries and escalation: knows what to own, what to route to Facilities, and what belongs to other teams (EA, HR).
• Hospitality-forward and comfortable personally staffing a reception desk as the front-of-house presence of the office.
• Professional poise and a genuine backbone: credible with all levels, from vendors to C-suite, with the judgment to push back diplomatically.
• High-energy community builder who sets a site’s tone and culture.
• Strong vendor coordination and day-to-day management skills.
• Familiarity with visitor management (e.g., Envoy) and ticketing (e.g., Jira), or comparable systems.
• Excellent communication, discretion, and interpersonal judgment.
• Collaborative partner to the EA and HR teams, with clear respect for role boundaries and no interest in owning executive-support work.
• Comfort operating in a fast-paced, ambiguous, early-stage site environment.

Education and/or Experience

• High school diploma or equivalent required.
• Associate/Bachelor’s or coursework in business administration, hospitality, or workplace management preferred.
• 3–5 years in reception, hospitality, guest services, workplace experience, office administration, or facilities coordination, ideally including a guest- or executive-facing environment. This is not an entry-level role, the emphasis is on a proven ability to operate independently and take ownership, not on tenure.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to move throughout the office during the workday.
• Ability to sit at and staff the reception desk for extended periods.
• Ability to lift and move office supplies up to 25 lbs as needed (physicality is minimal, e.g., refilling a printer).
• Ability to work at a desk and use computer systems for coordination tasks.
• Vision and hearing sufficient to communicate effectively with employees and visitors.

Work Location

• On-Site Only, M–F, 100% on-site, no remote flexibility.
• Occasional overtime for events or emergencies.

Compensation: The annual salary range for this position is $70,000-$90,000.