Household Manager

Nova Founders Capital; Viseu; On-site; EUR 42,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

Nova Founders Capital is seeking an exceptional Household Manager to support a busy entrepreneur and family in Portugal. This in‑person role focuses on personal logistics, travel, calendar, inbox, and daily life operations, removing friction and decisions from the principal’s day.

The ideal candidate is proactive, discreet, highly organized and comfortable working with household staff, coordinating with local providers and managing Portugal‑bureaucracy and admin tasks.

Qualifications

• Fluent in Portuguese and strong English.
• Experience as a personal assistant or household manager preferred.
• Ability to manage calendar, inbox, travel and local admin tasks.

Responsibilities

• Manage daily personal logistics and priorities for the principal.
• Protect the principal's time by coordinating calendar, meetings and communications.
• Plan and coordinate travel, flights, hotels, transport and itineraries.
• Coordinate with household staff and local providers to ensure smooth operations.
• Learn preferences and proactively handle food, health, and local admin tasks.

Skills

Portuguese fluency

English proficiency

Calendar management

Travel planning

Discretion & confidentiality

In‑person support

Household coordination

Job description

Role type: Full-time

Working style: Highly in-person, flexible, with regular travel

Job Summary We are looking for an exceptional Household Manager to support a busy entrepreneur and family across personal logistics, travel, calendar, inbox, household coordination and daily life operations. This is not a traditional office-based assistant role. It is a high-trust, highly practical, in-person role for someone who enjoys creating order around a fast-moving principal and family life. The core mission is simple: Remove decisions, admin, logistics, friction and unnecessary communication so the principal can focus on business, family, health and high-value work. The ideal person is proactive, discreet, service-minded, highly organised and comfortable doing everything from calendar and inbox management to travel logistics, errands, restaurant bookings, food coordination, Portuguese admin, packing support during travel, and working with household staff and external providers.

Key Responsibilities

Daily life and personal operations You will help run the principal's personal operating system.

Responsibilities include:

Managing daily logistics and priorities

Removing unnecessary decisions from the principal's day

Handling errands, bookings, reservations, purchases and returns

Coordinating appointments, suppliers, deliveries and services

Making sure practical issues are solved before they become problems

Creating systems, checklists and routines that make life smoother

Sitting down with the principal once per day to go through priorities, decisions and open loops

The role requires someone who can think ahead, act independently and learn preferences quickly.

Calendar and communication management

You will help protect and manage the principal's time and attention.

Responsibilities include:

Managing and protecting the calendar

Scheduling meetings, calls and personal appointments

Filtering emails and escalating only what truly needs attention

Drafting replies and, over time, replying on behalf of the principal where appropriate

Managing selected communication channels once trust is established

Reducing noise, unnecessary communication and low-value decisions

Following up with people so nothing falls through the cracks

The goal is not just to organise communication, but to reduce the amount of communication the principal personally needs to deal with.

Travel management

Travel is a major part of the role. The assistant should be comfortable travelling with or ahead of the principal when needed.

Responsibilities include:

Booking flights, hotels, transport and restaurants

Creating itineraries and travel plans

Coordinating luggage, packing lists and practical travel preparation

Travelling ahead or alongside the principal to ensure everything is ready

Checking hotel arrangements, rooms, transport, food, gym access and local logistics

Solving issues before arrival

Making sure travel feels seamless and low-friction

The person should be comfortable with a flexible travel schedule and practical arrangements. Travel will normally be handled in a sensible, cost-conscious way.

Household and lifestyle coordination

The family has household support, including a maid, so this is not a cleaning or housekeeping role. However, the assistant will help coordinate the system around the household.

Responsibilities include:

Coordinating with the maid and other household providers

Making sure the home is prepared and functioning smoothly

Managing repairs, suppliers, maintenance and deliveries

Coordinating laundry, dry cleaning, car-related tasks and other practical matters

Making sure groceries and key household items are stocked

Coordinating food, meals, restaurant bookings and delivery

Helping practically with food on occasion if needed

Supporting family logistics where relevant

The right person should be comfortable both with high-level coordination and practical hands-on help.

Food, health and personal preferences

The assistant should learn the principal's preferences and routines, including food, health, training and travel preferences.

Responsibilities include:

Coordinating groceries and meals

Booking restaurants that fit preferences

Coordinating with the maid on food preparation

Managing health-related appointments such as doctors, dentists, physio, etc.

Helping maintain routines during travel

This is not a chef role, but the person must be practical and willing to help solve food-related needs when necessary.

Portuguese admin and local support

Because the role is based in Portugal, strong local knowledge is important.

Responsibilities include:

Handling Portuguese bureaucracy and appointments

Speaking with local suppliers, service providers and authorities

Booking and managing local services

Helping with forms, appointments, car-related admin, doctors, schools and other local logistics

Translating or clarifying Portuguese communication where needed

The person must be fluent in Portuguese and have strong English.

About You

Highly organised and detail-oriented

Discreet and trustworthy

Calm under pressure

Proactive and able to anticipate needs

Practical and not status-sensitive

Warm, but professional

Comfortable around a family environment

Comfortable with children, while not being hired as a nanny

Able to push back respectfully to protect time and priorities

Comfortable with both luxury environments and everyday errands

Strong at solving problems independently

Flexible with travel and changing schedules

Excellent in Portuguese and strong in English

Based near Lisbon, Cascais or Oeiras

Legally able to work in Portugal

The ideal background could include experience as a:

Private PA

Executive Assistant

Lifestyle Manager

Family office assistant

Luxury hospitality / concierge

High‑end household manager

A pure corporate EA may be too removed from the practical side of the role. A pure housekeeper may not have the inbox, calendar and communication skills required. The ideal candidate sits between the two: polished, trusted and administratively strong, but also practical, hands‑on and service‑minded.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

After three months, success would mean:

The principal spends much less time on admin, logistics and small decisions

Travel is smooth and requires very little input from the principal

The calendar is protected and well managed

Emails and messages are filtered effectively

Household and personal logistics are running smoothly

Food, appointments, errands and local admin are handled proactively

The assistant understands preferences and can make good decisions independently

The principal feels that life has become calmer, simpler and more focused

ACCESS AND TRUST

This is a high-trust role. The successful candidate will gradually receive access to sensitive information and systems as trust builds.

This may include:

Calendar

Email

Selected communication channels

Household and supplier information

Expense tools or an assistant card with limits

Access will be introduced gradually. Confidentiality and discretion are essential. A confidentiality agreement will be required.

WORKING STYLE

This role requires high flexibility. It is not a standard 9–5 office role.

The assistant should be comfortable with:

Being physically close to the principal when needed

Occasional evening or weekend flexibility

Travel

Fast‑changing priorities

Handling both important and small practical tasks

A daily check‑in with the principal to review priorities and decisions

The role should be intense but sustainable. Clear communication, trust, good judgment and reliability are more important than being constantly busy.

COMPENSATION

Compensation will be competitive and based on experience, capability and fit.

The right person will have the opportunity to build a long‑term, trusted role with significant responsibility and variety.

Fluent Portuguese

Able to work in person

Able and willing to travel

Strong organisational skills

Excellent discretion and confidentiality

Comfortable with both executive‑level tasks and practical lifestyle tasks

Strong problem‑solving ability

Valid driving licence preferred

Preferred:

Experience as a private PA, EA, lifestyle manager, family office assistant or luxury concierge

Experience supporting entrepreneurs, founders, executives or high‑net‑worth families

Experience with travel planning and household coordination

Experience managing inboxes, calendars and suppliers

Strong local knowledge of Portugal

SUMMARY

This is a rare role for someone who enjoys being deeply useful, highly trusted and close to the action. The right candidate will become the person who makes daily life run smoothly: managing the calendar, inbox, travel, household coordination, errands, food, local admin and personal logistics — while removing decisions and friction wherever possible. The ideal candidate is polished enough to manage sensitive communication and high‑level logistics, but practical enough to pick up food, pack luggage during travel, coordinate repairs, solve small problems and make life easier every day.

Household Manager • Piedade, Portuguese Republic, PT