Director, People Operations
•Sanity· 8h
⚙️ Operations⏰ Full-time👔 Executive🇺🇸 San Francisco, USA
8h ago
Deepgram·about 14 hours ago
Deepgram is the leading platform underpinning the emerging trillion-dollar Voice AI economy, providing real-time APIs for speech-to-text (STT), text-to-speech (TTS), and building production-grade voice agents at scale. More than 200,000 developers and 1,300+ organizations build voice offerings that are ‘Powered by Deepgram’, including Twilio, Cloudflare, Sierra, Decagon, Vapi, Daily, Cresta, Granola, and Jack in the Box. Deepgram’s voice-native foundation models are accessed through cloud APIs or as self-hosted and on-premises software, with unmatched accuracy, low latency, and cost efficiency. Backed by a recent Series C led by leading global investors and strategic partners, Deepgram has processed over 50,000 years of audio and transcribed more than 1 trillion words. There is no organization in the world that understands voice better than Deepgram.
At Deepgram, we expect an AI-first mindset—AI use and comfort aren’t optional, they’re core to how we operate, innovate, and measure performance.
Every team member who works at Deepgram is expected to actively use and experiment with advanced AI tools, and even build your own into your everyday work. We measure how effectively AI is applied to deliver results, and consistent, creative use of the latest AI capabilities is key to success here. Candidates should be comfortable adopting new models and modes quickly, integrating AI into their workflows, and continuously pushing the boundaries of what these technologies can do.
Additionally, we move at the pace of AI. Change is rapid, and you can expect your day-to-day work to evolve just as quickly. This may not be the right role if you’re not excited to experiment, adapt, think on your feet, and learn constantly, or if you’re seeking something highly prescriptive with a traditional 9-to-5.
About the Role
We are growing our geographic footprint and opening multiple workspaces and event spaces across the U.S. and internationally. Most of these locations serve a dual purpose. They are working spaces for Deepgram employees and public event venues that host meetups, hackathons, and customer and developer gatherings. Designing and operating space that does both well is a key aspect of this role.
Right now, real estate decisions, office openings, construction projects, and facilities operations are spread across many people. We need one responsible and experienced owner who knows how to do this all end to end. Someone who can read a lease, walk a construction site, manage a vendor, and think clearly about how a space shapes culture, brand, and community.
As Global Head of Real Estate and Workplace, you will take full ownership of Deepgram's physical spaces from site selection through to operational, welcoming offices. You will find potential real estate, negotiate and manage leases, run buildout projects, stand up facilities operations, and build the repeatable playbook we use to open and run every Deepgram location. Then you will hire and lead a small team to run it with you.
This is a player-coach role. You will be in the work, not above it, and you will build the function as you go.
What You'll Own
Requirements Scoping & Internal Stakeholder Management
Converting the CEO and executive team’s vision into a documented program for each site
Gathering requirements across Engineering, Sales, Marketing, Developer Relations, People, IT, Security, and Finance to determine how each space will be used and what it needs to solve for
Reconciling competing requests into a single prioritized brief, secure executive approval, and own that brief as the source of truth for architects, general contractors, and all subsequent change decisions
Capacity & Space Planning
Occupancy forecasting and space programming against the company headcount plan, in partnership with Finance and People
Recommendations on the size, timing, and location of new and expanded space, grounded in utilization data rather than anecdote
The tradeoff at each site between event capacity, collaboration space, and focus work, documented and revisited as headcount changes
Real Estate & Leasing
Site selection, tours, and location recommendations as we evaluate new and expanded spaces
Lease negotiation and renewals, partnering with Finance and Legal on LOIs, term sheets, insurance needs, and commercial terms, including tenant improvement allowances, free rent, escalations, letters of credit and security deposits, restoration and holdover obligations, assignment and sublease rights, and expansion and termination flexibility
Analysis of lease versus license, coworking, and short-term venue alternatives in markets where a long-term commitment is not yet warranted
International site selection and leasing, including engagement of local counsel and brokers, country-specific code and accessibility standards, and coordination with Finance, People, and Legal on the entity, tax, and employment implications of each location
Partnership with Accounting on lease classification and ASC 842 treatment, and delivery of the underlying data Finance needs for budgeting, forecasting, and audit
Landlord and broker relationships, and ownership of all real estate documentation and key dates
Construction & Buildout
End-to-end project management of office buildouts, from design intent through permitting, construction, and move-in
Coordination of architects, general contractors, designers, and trades — holding scope, budget, and timeline
Design and delivery of assembly and event space, including occupancy classification and egress, load-in and rigging, AV and streaming infrastructure, acoustics, power and network capacity for large gatherings, and commercial or catered food service
Permitting, code, accessibility, and safety compliance across every project
Facilities & Workplace Operations
Day-to-day operations across all offices: supplies, maintenance, security and access, signage, and the overall office experience
The staffing model (when necessary) for onsite support, including office managers and hourly staff, and the systems that keep each space running without escalation
A consistent operating standard so every location runs the same way, as well as playbooks.
Space and desk management, access control, and visitor management systems
Team & Budget
Eventually, building and leading a small workplace team as the function scales
Full ownership of the workplace and real estate budget, capital projects and operating costs
Vendor sourcing, contracts, and performance management
Your First 12 Months
Get all active office projects under a single plan, budget, and timeline
Establish the facilities operating standard and onsite staffing model for our existing locations
Build the real estate and workplace playbook so the next office opening is repeatable, not improvised
Hire the first members of your workplace team
What You Bring
10+ years in workplace, real estate, facilities, or capital projects, including end-to-end ownership of at least one office buildout
Ability to travel. Given the nature of this role, you will have to be available to travel to multiple offices and locations frequently.
Direct experience negotiating or managing commercial leases, working with brokers, landlords, and Legal
Strong construction and vendor project management — you can hold architects, CMs, and GCs to scope, budget, and schedule
Working knowledge of permitting, building codes, accessibility, and workplace safety
Experience delivering or operating space used for public events, customer-facing programming, or brand moments
Budget ownership for capital and operating spend, with sound commercial judgment
Comfort operating with ambiguity in a fast-moving, scaling company — you don't wait for a playbook, you write it
An eye for how physical space shapes culture, and genuine care for a consistent experience across every location
Experience operating across multiple cities or a distributed, remote-first company
Experience supporting spaces used for customer-facing events or brand moments
Experience leasing or building in international markets, particularly EMEA or APAC
Familiarity with lease administration, space management, or IWMS platforms
Experience hiring and managing a small ops or facilities team
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