Workplace manager

Watershed; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Watershed, a leading enterprise sustainability platform, seeks a proactive Workplace Manager for its San Francisco HQ. You’ll own the employee experience, drive daily office operations, events, budgets, and vendor relationships to keep the office vibrant and compliant.

You’ll collaborate with People Ops on onboarding, maintain space planning, and support a culture that aligns with Watershed’s mission. The role is in-office 4 days/week.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of managerial experience in Workplace, Events, or similar employee-facing roles.
• Experience planning and executing events from small gatherings to large-scale company events.
• Must be in-office Monday–Friday, 8:00 am–5:00 pm; occasional early mornings/evenings may be required.
• Strong initiative, attention to detail, and customer service orientation.
• Ability to handle sensitive and confidential information.
• Excellent organizational skills and ability to manage multiple projects in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills with employees, leadership, and vendors.
• Creative, proactive, and cost-conscious mindset.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a high-touch, people-first contact for employees and guests to foster a positive office culture.
• Manage day-to-day office operations: vendors, food/beverage, supplies, maintenance, and inventory.
• Own events lifecycle from local happy hours to global all-company gatherings.
• Track workplace budgets with monthly spend and stakeholder updates.
• Coordinate onboarding/offboarding with People Ops and desk setup, inventory.
• Plan space, moves, and other workplace projects.
• Manage vendor relationships, contracts, invoices, and insurance docs.
• Ensure safety, security, compliance, and audit readiness, and promote sustainable practices.

Skills

People management

Event planning

Vendor management

Budgeting

Operations mindset

Communication

Notion

Envoy

Google Workspace

Tools

Notion

Envoy

Google Workspace

Job description

About Watershed

Watershed is the enterprise sustainability platform. Companies like Airbnb, Carlyle Group, FedEx, Visa, and Dr. Martens use Watershed to manage climate and ESG data, produce audit-ready metrics for voluntary and regulatory reporting including CSRD, and drive real decarbonization. We are looking for team members who love product-building, want to work hard at a mission-oriented startup, and will collaborate with us in shaping the culture of a growing team.

We have offices in San Francisco, New York, Denver, London, Paris, Berlin, Sydney, Mexico City, and remote team members across the US and Europe. We hope that you’ll be interested in joining us!

The role

Watershed is looking for a proactive and people-focused Workplace Manager to lead the day-to-day experience at our San Francisco HQ. In this role, you’ll bring the office to life, managing operations, driving the employee experience, and creating a space where teams can do their best work and feel connected to Watershed’s mission and culture.

As part of our Global Workplace team you’ll own the employee experience at our SF office from the inside out, from snacks to space planning, culture to compliance. You’ll be the heart of our local office operations and a key partner in creating an environment that’s vibrant, well-run, and an overall great place to work.

What You’ll Do

• Serve as a high-touch, people-first point of contact for employees and guests, helping foster a positive and engaging office culture.

• Manage day-to-day office operations, including vendors, food and beverage, supplies, maintenance, shipments, inventory, and employee requests.

• Own the lifecycle of workplace events and experiences, from local happy hours and Community Group events to holiday parties and global all-company gatherings.

• Own and track workplace and events budgets, maintaining accurate monthly spend and providing regular status updates to stakeholders.

• Partner with People Ops on onboarding and offboarding, including desk assignments, workspace setup, inventory management, and conducting bi-weekly new hire onboarding sessions.

• Coordinate space planning, desk moves, and other workplace projects.

• Manage vendor relationships, contracts, invoices, and insurance documentation.

• Ensure the office meets safety, security, compliance, and audit requirements.

• Help develop and implement sustainable workplace and facilities practices.

• Continuously identify ways to improve the employee experience, workplace operations, and efficiency.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of managerial experience in Workplace, Events, or similar employee-facing roles, ideally in a fast-paced environment supporting 150+ people.

• Demonstrated experience planning and executing events, from small employee gatherings to large-scale company events.

• Committed to being in-office Monday–Friday, 8:00 am–5:00 pm; occasional early mornings, evenings, and front desk support may be required.

• Strong initiative, attention to detail, and customer service orientation.

• Ability to appropriately handle sensitive and confidential information.

• Excellent organizational skills with the ability to prioritize, meet deadlines, and manage multiple projects in a fast-paced environment.

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to work effectively with employees, leadership, and external vendors.

• Creative and proactive mindset, with a passion for enhancing the day-to-day employee experience while effectively managing costs.

• Hands-on, resourceful problem solver with a “can-do” attitude.

• Ability to lift up to 25 lbs.

• Knowledge of Notion, Envoy, and Google Workspace is a plus.

Must be willing to work from an office 4 days per week (except for remote roles)

Watershed has hub offices in San Francisco, New York, London, and Mexico City and satellite offices in Denver, Sydney, Paris, and Berlin. Where we have offices, employees are expected to be in office for 4 days per week. Certain jobs are open to being remote and will be specifically noted on the jobs page and in the job description if so.

What’s the interview process like?

It starts the same for every candidate: getting to know the team members through 1 to 2 conversations about Watershed, your experience, and your interests. Next steps can vary by role, but usual next steps are a skill or experience interview (e.g. a coding interview for an engineer, a portfolio review for a designer, deeper experience call for other roles) which leads to a virtual or in person interview panel. We prioritize transparency and lack of surprise throughout the process.

What if I need accommodations for my interview?

At Watershed, we are dedicated to ensuring an inclusive recruitment process. We provide reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities, long-term conditions, mental health needs, religious observances, neurodivergence, or pregnancy-related support requirements. If you need assistance during your process, please contact your recruiter.