Residency Manager

Astera Institute; Emeryville (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Astera Institute in Emeryville, CA is seeking a Residency Manager to own the Residency program end-to-end, from selection through onboarding and ongoing support. You will consolidate needs across residents, track budgets, spaces, milestones, and troubleshoot to keep the program scalable.

Reporting to the COO, you will partner with track leads and leadership, manage rolling resident intake, and build lightweight processes that turn ad-hoc work into reliable operations while maintaining a strong

Qualifications

• 5-10 years in operations, chief-of-staff, program management or similar roles requiring exceptional organization and judgment.
• Excitement about science and technology Astera supports and curiosity about new fields.
• Ability to run complex, multi-stakeholder operations independently in a fast-moving environment.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication.
• Experience scaling young organizations and guiding residents as they build their own programs.

Responsibilities

• Own the operational backbone of the Residency, including selection, onboarding, check-ins, and transitions, coordinating with track leads and budgets.
• Serve as primary operational contact for residents across their tenure from application to transition.
• Anticipate and consolidate resident needs across a growing, diverse group of individuals.
• Identify recurring needs and design repeatable processes to meet them as the program scales.
• Provide perspective and informal coaching to residents tackling challenges in growing organizations.

Skills

Operations

Program management

Stakeholder management

Communication

Job description

About the Role

As the Residency grows, we are seeking a mission- and culturally-aligned Residency Manager to own the program end-to-end: the operational backbone that lets residents do their best work and the connective tissue that keeps a growing set of residents and their teams well-supported.

This is not a coordination role bolted onto an existing program: it is ownership of the program itself. Residents join on a rolling basis, work on wildly different problems, and report into different tracks. The core of this job is consolidating and anticipating their needs across that variety (e.g. budgets, milestones, hiring, space, troubleshooting) and turning what is currently handled case-by‑case into something that scales without becoming bureaucratic. This job also manages the process by which new residents are selected and onboarded.

Reporting to the COO of the Foundation, you will work closely with track leads and Astera leadership, and you'll be the person residents go to first. You will keep senior stakeholders aligned and informed without manufacturing process. This role is ideal for someone who is intellectually curious, exceptionally organized, thrives in ambiguity, and is energized by enabling ambitious people to do their most ambitious work.

Responsibilities

Resident Success and Program Operations

• Own the operational backbone of the Residency, e.g. selection, onboarding, check‑ins, and transitions, while partnering with track leads, who own scientific judgment and budgets

• Serve as the primary operational point of contact for every resident across their full tenure, from initial application to offer acceptance through completion or transition.

• Anticipate and consolidate resident needs across a growing and heterogeneous set of individuals.

• Identify recurring needs and friction across residents and build lightweight, repeatable ways to meet them as the program scales.

• Offer perspective and informal coaching to residents as they tackle the challenges of growing young organizations

Selection & Onboarding Support

• Manage the rolling selection process, e.g. scheduling, reviewer workflows, candidate communications, finalist logistics, ensuring quality holds as the process iterates

• Keep senior stakeholders aligned and informed with clear, concise, high‑signal updates without generating unnecessary process

• Smooth the handoff from offer to Day 1, including helping residents stand up teams ahead of their start date.

Operational Flexibility

• Flex to the "unknown unknowns" of a young, growing program - event logistics, hub operations, cross‑functional support during peak periods, and special projects across the Operations stack.

Essential Qualifications

• 5-10 years in operations, chief‑of‑staff, program management or another role demanding exceptional organization, relationship management, and judgment.

• Excitement about the science and technology Astera supports, and the curiosity that makes getting smart on a new field feel like a perk

• Demonstrated ability to run complex, multi‑stakeholder operations independently in a fast‑moving environment.

• Exceptional written and verbal communication

• Strong candidates will likely have experience scaling young organizations and can offer perspective to residents as they build their own organizations

Just as important as technical qualifications is cultural alignment:

• Motivated by enabling science and technology that could reshape the future

• Excited to define what a modern research institute looks and feels like, rather than inheriting an established playbook

• Thrives in early‑stage environments where the role will evolve significantly and the path forward is often ambiguous: comfortable proposing direction while staying calibrated to leadership's priorities

• Values giving and receiving direct feedback as a cultural multiplier, and sees AI tools as an opportunity to uplevel how the work gets done

• Generous collaborator who doesn't maintain strong boundaries around what "isn't your job"

Location

This role is onsite at our office in Emeryville, CA

Compensation

The posted salary range is based on location in the Bay Area. The successful candidate will receive a competitive compensation package, commensurate with their experience and location.

• Benefits summary