San Francisco, California, United States
Workplace operations leader with 10+ years building corporate environments that people genuinely want to work in. What I've done: • $5.5M global operating budget at DataStax (acquired by IBM), with 15%+ cost savings through vendor renegotiation • Designed a hospitality-first workplace program that lifted weekly office attendance 30% with no mandate • Led the IBM acquisition of DataStax through procurement, vendor contract, and compliance shifts without a single service disruption. The best compliment I got: nobody noticed anything had changed. • Built the Fisker workplace function from zero during 0-to-1 hypergrowth (12% overhead reduction, 25% faster service request response) • 6 years inside top-tier law firms (Morrison & Foerster, Dechert) where the standard isn't "good enough", it's flawless every time The thesis: where people work shapes how people work. Mandates change behavior temporarily and erode trust permanently. People show up consistently when the space is worth showing up for. I'm an AI-native operator. Daily use of Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini for vendor RFP scoring, budget modeling, lease scenario comparison, and operational playbook development. The kind of leverage that lets a single workplace leader quietly outperform a small team. Right now I'm consulting independently and exploring full-time roles in workplace experience leadership at Series A-C startups, scaling tech, and mission-driven organizations across the Bay Area. If you're building a workplace function or rethinking yours, I'd love to talk.
Advising startups and mid-stage companies on how to make their offices actually work, not just functional, but worth coming to. Engagements cover vendor sourcing and contract negotiation, space planning and buildout support, food and beverage program design, workplace technology selection (Envoy, access control, ticketing platforms), budget development, and event production for offsites, cultural moments, and company milestones. I also consult on RTO strategy, helping leadership teams design return-to-office programs that earn attendance through hospitality rather than enforce it through mandates. Most of my clients are Series A startups standing up their first real office or established companies rethinking their existing spaces for hybrid work. I use AI tools (Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini) throughout my work, for process documentation, vendor analysis, budget modeling, and building the operational playbooks that let small teams run like much bigger ones.
IBM acquired DataStax
Led workplace experience and operations for DataStax through rapid growth and an IBM acquisition. Owned spending decisions across a $5.5M annual global workplace operating budget, delivering 15%+ cost savings through vendor renegotiations and contract consolidation. Designed and ran a hospitality-first workplace program (daily catered lunches, curated snacks and coffee, monthly cultural celebrations, happy hours, and team milestones) that increased average weekly office attendance by 30% without any mandate. Brought major events in-house, including DevRel conferences, Sales Kick-Offs, and cross-functional offsites, saving $200K+ annually while producing tighter, more intentional experiences. Owned end-to-end vendor lifecycle management across facilities, catering, AV, and sustainability partners. Drove adoption of Envoy, access control platforms, and ticketing systems integrated with Okta. Partnered with People Ops and IT to design seamless onsite interview and new hire onboarding experiences. Led workplace operations through IBM's acquisition without a single disruption.
Built the entire workplace operation from zero during rapid headcount growth. No vendors, no playbooks, no existing culture. Stood up every vendor relationship, configured access and security workflows, and created the documentation that turned a blank space into a functioning office. Owned facilities budgets and vendor relationships across janitorial, security, HVAC, and office supplies, negotiating contracts that reduced overhead by 12%. Partnered with senior leadership on site selection, build-out planning, and move logistics. Launched employee engagement events and community meetups that built team cohesion in a distributed environment. Streamlined workplace service requests through Jira, cutting response times by 25%.
Ran all on-site operations for a top-tier international law firm: front-of-house guest services, conference center management, mailroom, and reprographics. Managed vendor performance, procurement, and office security protocols with strict compliance to firm-wide standards. Delivered white-glove hospitality for attorneys, clients, and visiting executives.