Senior Manager, Front Desk Operations

Cal Alumni Association | UC Berkeley; Berkeley (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

The Cal Alumni Association (CAA) seeks a Senior Manager, Front Desk Operations to lead elite front-of-house hospitality and drive training excellence at the Alumni House, UC Berkeley campus.

Reporting to the Senior Director of Facilities Operations, this role designs SOPs, manages budgets, and partners with UC Berkeley administrators to deliver exceptional visitor experiences for alums, donors, and campus guests.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in operations or related field.
• 5+ years leading front-of-house operations in university or corporate setting.
• Experience authoring and delivering hospitality training programs for a multi-tier staff.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement a standardized hospitality program for front-of-house.
• Create onboarding and training curriculum for staff, contractors, and student workers.
• Lead SOP engineering and emergency communication planning.
• Manage front desk scheduling, budgets, and supply workflows.
• Coordinate cross-functional engagement with UC Berkeley and campus teams.

Skills

Procedural writing

Communication

Crisis management

Budgeting

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

The Cal Alumni Association (CAA) provides all Cal graduates with rewarding connections to the university, to fellow alums, and to current students. Founded by the original graduates of the University of California in 1872, the Cal Alumni Association today represents more than half a million alums living throughout the world.

Our mission is to cultivate a lifelong relationship with our alma mater by connecting and inspiring alums, students, and the campus community through meaningful and inclusive opportunities. We foster a culture that celebrates diversity, creates a sense of belonging, and advances equity.

Senior Manager, Front Desk Operations

Department

Facilities Operations

Reports To

Senior Director of Facilities Operations

Classification

Full-Time, Exempt

Location

Alumni House, UC Berkeley Campus

Position Summary

The Senior Manager, Front Desk Operations is a vital professional leadership role responsible for establishing, cultivating, and maintaining an elite customer service ecosystem at the California Alumni Association (CAA). Reporting directly to the Senior Director of Facilities Operations, this role serves as the premier authority on front-of-house hospitality, workspace operational efficiency, and cross-functional operational alignment. A primary focus of this role is the creation, delivery, and continuous evaluation of a comprehensive hospitality training framework that spans across multiple professional levels including permanent operational staff, contractors, temporary employees, and undergraduate student workers. The Senior Manager acts as a strategic process driver: designing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), spearheading campus and inter-organizational communication pipelines, optimizing and administrating front desk supply budgets, and partnering directly with CAA Engagement Teams and UC Berkeley administrators to deliver high-level visitor experiences.

Core Responsibilities

• Hospitality Strategy & Front-of-House Training Excellence (45%)
• Hospitality Framework Design: Build, launch, and refine a standardized advanced hospitality program rooted in modern concierge standards, to ensure elite service delivery for visiting alumni, donors, dignitaries, and university administrators.
• Comprehensive Workforce Onboarding: Author and deliver a mandatory hospitality and service-excellence training curriculum tailored to various user levels, ensuring consistent execution across permanent staff, temporary workforce additions, and student support teams. Guide the employee onboarding and institutional onboarding process for new hires at various levels.
• Performance Auditing & Coaching: Establish service milestones, execute regular service evaluations, and provide targeted coaching to front desk staff to maintain maximum customer satisfaction and professional presence.
• Desk Management & Resource Workflows: Direct the strategic master schedule for front-of-house student and employee coverage, structuring smooth shift transitions, policy adherence, and proper handover routines across all employee groups.
• SOP Engineering, Emergency Communication & Risk Readiness (25%)
• Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs): Research, draft, and issue modernized front-of-house operational manuals included but not limited to; facility operational sequences, access control, guest reception mechanics, and technical incident reporting.
• Emergency Communication & Crisis Command: Serve as the front-of-house emergency coordinator. Maintain direct, active linkage with the UC Berkeley Police Department (UCPD), Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S), and university safety officials to develop and deploy real-time building evacuation and emergency communication pipelines.
• Facilities Operations Monitoring: Continually assess the spatial environment of the lobby, reception corridors, and adjacent shared public spaces to preserve aesthetic upkeep, security compliance, and CAA quality brand alignment.
• Collaborative Team Coordination (15%)
• Cross-Functional Engagement Synergy: Collaborate closely with CAA Engagement teams to coordinate space readiness and utilization, specialized event support, and front-office branding transitions for high-impact events.
• Administrative Interface: Act as a central administrative liaison between the Alumni House operations department and various UC Berkeley campus divisions, building managers, and external vendors during large-scale collaborative traditions.
• Fiscal Administration & Supply Budgeting (15%)
• Budget Management: Develop, track, and balance the annual operational budget for front desk supplies, technology, signage materials, engagement and hospitality assets.
• Procurement Pipelines: Execute and audit purchasing and procurement with organizational finance department. Ensure alignment with organizational budgets, conduct vendor analysis, and control overhead expenditures.

Qualifications & Core Competencies

Required Education & Experience

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution, or equivalent combination of advanced education and professional operational experience.
• A minimum of 5 years of progressive experience overseeing front-of-house operations, corporate hospitality, luxury guest services, or student affairs operations within a complex university or corporate setting.
• Proven experience authoring, implementing, and instructing a hospitality training program or customer service curriculum across a diverse, multi-tiered employee workforce.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Advanced procedural writing competence with a track record of translating organizational policies into scalable Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills; absolute poise and comfort interacting directly with senior university executives, governing board, executive level employees, institutional donors, and community leaders.
• Robust crisis management aptitude with previous experience executing facility-wide emergency communication drills or safety protocols.
• A working familiarity with basic fiscal administration, budgetary spreadsheets, and financial reporting and forecasting.

Preferred Experience

Prior professional exposure to the UC campus ecosystem, institutional governance structures, or alumni relations is highly desired.