Sites Manager

About the role

You are the operational anchor for CBAI's three Harvard Square office locations, ensuring each site runs reliably and feels welcoming to everyone who walks in the door. In this position, you take ownership of the full lifecycle of the office environment, from the moment a new workstation is set up to the final move during an offboarding process. You combine technical intuition with operational rigor, handling day-to-day troubleshooting while also designing systems that prevent issues from arising in the first place. You act as the central point of contact for internal teams, external vendors, and building management, coordinating complex logistics so that others can focus on their research and fellowship work. You are responsible for curating a physical space that supports safety, productivity, and community, using data and feedback to continuously refine the office experience. This role requires comfort with ambiguity and a proactive mindset, as you will often need to diagnose problems with incomplete information and execute solutions under tight timelines. Ultimately, you will ensure that CBAI's facilities are a strength for the organization, removing friction so that researchers and students can focus entirely on advancing AI safety.

Key facts

What you'll do

Coordinate the daily operations of three CBAI office locations in Harvard Square, maintaining consistent standards for functionality, cleanliness, and user experience across all sites.

Diagnose and resolve facilities and technical issues as they emerge, including WiFi, printers, AV equipment, and building fixtures, while escalating appropriately to vendors and contractors.

Manage the end-to-end lifecycle of office assets, from procurement and inventory tracking to deployment, maintenance, and eventual decommissioning or disposal.

Curate and maintain food and beverage provisioning across sites, analyzing consumption patterns, gathering feedback, and scaling procurement systems as the organization grows.

Build and maintain relationships with co-tenants and building management, coordinating shared space usage and resolving points of tension in a professional and timely manner.

Implement and oversee onboarding and offboarding processes for staff and program participants, ensuring workspaces, access credentials, and supplies are ready from day one and cleaned up at exit.

Monitor and optimize operational budgets for facilities and services, tracking expenditures, identifying variances, and reporting financial health to CBAI leadership.

Establish and maintain health and safety protocols, including first aid supplies, emergency procedures, and compliance with building requirements for fire, security, and accessibility.

Evaluate and test new tools, equipment, and furniture, then manage the rollout of improvements that enhance efficiency, accessibility, and comfort for office users.

Synthesize qualitative feedback and quantitative usage data to inform decisions about space layout, supply stocking, and long-term facility investments.

Champion a culture of ownership and continuous improvement, documenting processes and playbooks so that operational knowledge is shared and scalable.

Serve as the primary liaison between CBAI programs and the physical office environment, aligning facility decisions with the needs of researchers, fellows, and visitors.

Proactively identify emerging risks and opportunities in the office ecosystem, developing contingency plans to maintain continuity during disruptions or growth periods.

Champion resourcefulness and frugality, ensuring that CBAI's facilities are both high quality and cost effective without compromising safety or user experience.

Requirements

Demonstrate a track record of hands-on problem solving, with the ability to quickly diagnose technical or facilities issues and implement practical solutions.

Bring a bias toward action, showing reliability in following through on commitments and ensuring that tasks are completed even when juggling multiple priorities across three locations.

Possess strong attention to detail, with the ability to notice patterns in issues, consumption, or user feedback and translate them into systemic improvements.

Have experience managing budgets and tracking expenditures, with comfort using financial data to guide decisions about facilities and operations spending.

Show strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to communicate clearly and build trusting relationships with internal teams, external vendors, and building management.

Be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment where priorities can shift quickly, and where operational issues require immediate or near-immediate attention.

Have a documented history of ownership and accountability, taking responsibility for projects from start to finish and ensuring that outcomes meet agreed standards.

Be proficient in standard office software and tools for inventory, communication, and basic data tracking, with the ability to learn new systems as needed.

Nice to have

Experience supporting research or academic environments, particularly within university or nonprofit settings where stakeholder expectations are diverse.

Background in AI, tech, or science-focused communities, with familiarity with the concerns and culture of technical safety and alignment work.

Experience managing coworking or shared office environments, including familiarity with co-tenancy agreements and community standards.

A portfolio or examples of operational improvements you have led, including before and after metrics on efficiency, satisfaction, or cost savings.

Practical notes

This is a full-time position based in person at CBAI's Cambridge, Massachusetts offices.

Start date is September 2026.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis until the role is filled.

Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship for this role.