At a Glance
- Tasks: Support a busy entrepreneur with personal logistics, travel, and daily life operations.
- Company: Dynamic family environment in beautiful Lisbon, Portugal.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, flexible working style, and opportunity for significant responsibility.
- Other info: High-trust role with excellent career growth potential.
- Why this job: Be the key to a smoother, more organised life for a busy family.
- Qualifications: Fluent in Portuguese and English, with strong organisational skills.
The predicted salary is between 30000 - 40000 £ per year.
Location: Lisbon / Cascais / Oeiras area, Portugal
Role type: Full-time
Working style: Highly in-person, flexible, with regular travel
Job Summary
We are looking for an exceptional Personal Operations Manager to support a busy entrepreneur and family across personal logistics, travel, calendar, inbox, household coordination and daily life operations. This is not a traditional office-based assistant role. It is a high-trust, highly practical, in-person role for someone who enjoys creating order around a fast-moving principal and family life. The core mission is simple: Remove decisions, admin, logistics, friction and unnecessary communication so the principal can focus on business, family, health and high-value work.
The ideal person is proactive, discreet, service-minded, highly organised and comfortable doing everything from calendar and inbox management to travel logistics, errands, restaurant bookings, food coordination, Portuguese admin, packing support during travel, and working with household staff and external providers.
Key Responsibilities
- Daily life and personal operations
- Managing daily logistics and priorities
- Removing unnecessary decisions from the principal’s day
- Handling errands, bookings, reservations, purchases and returns
- Coordinating appointments, suppliers, deliveries and services
- Making sure practical issues are solved before they become problems
- Creating systems, checklists and routines that make life smoother
- Sitting down with the principal once per day to go through priorities, decisions and open loops
- Calendar and communication management
- Managing and protecting the calendar
- Scheduling meetings, calls and personal appointments
- Filtering emails and escalating only what truly needs attention
- Drafting replies and, over time, replying on behalf of the principal where appropriate
- Managing selected communication channels once trust is established
- Reducing noise, unnecessary communication and low-value decisions
- Following up with people so nothing falls through the cracks
- Travel management
- Booking flights, hotels, transport and restaurants
- Creating itineraries and travel plans
- Coordinating luggage, packing lists and practical travel preparation
- Travelling ahead or alongside the principal to ensure everything is ready
- Checking hotel arrangements, rooms, transport, food, gym access and local logistics
- Solving issues before arrival
- Making sure travel feels seamless and low-friction
- Household and lifestyle coordination
- Coordinating with the maid and other household providers
- Making sure the home is prepared and functioning smoothly
- Managing repairs, suppliers, maintenance and deliveries
- Coordinating laundry, dry cleaning, car-related tasks and other practical matters
- Making sure groceries and key household items are stocked
- Coordinating food, meals, restaurant bookings and delivery
- Helping practically with food on occasion if needed
- Supporting family logistics where relevant
- Food, health and personal preferences
- Coordinating groceries and meals
- Understanding dietary preferences
- Booking restaurants that fit preferences
- Coordinating with the maid on food preparation
- Managing health-related appointments such as doctors, dentists, physio, etc.
- Helping maintain routines during travel
- Portuguese admin and local support
- Handling Portuguese bureaucracy and appointments
- Speaking with local suppliers, service providers and authorities
- Booking and managing local services
- Helping with forms, appointments, car-related admin, doctors, schools and other local logistics
- Translating or clarifying Portuguese communication where needed
About You
We are looking for someone who is:
- Highly organised and detail-oriented
- Discreet and trustworthy
- Calm under pressure
- Proactive and able to anticipate needs
- Practical and not status-sensitive
- Warm, but professional
- Comfortable around a family environment
- Comfortable with children, while not being hired as a nanny
- Able to push back respectfully to protect time and priorities
- Comfortable with both luxury environments and everyday errands
- Strong at solving problems independently
- Flexible with travel and changing schedules
- Excellent in Portuguese and strong in English
- Based near Lisbon, Cascais or Oeiras
- Legally able to work in Portugal
The ideal background could include experience as a:
- Private PA
- Executive Assistant
- Lifestyle Manager
- Family office assistant
- Luxury hospitality / concierge
- High-end household manager
- Travel coordinator
A pure corporate EA may be too removed from the practical side of the role. A pure housekeeper may not have the inbox, calendar and communication skills required. The ideal candidate sits between the two: polished, trusted and administratively strong, but also practical, hands-on and service-minded.
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
After three months, success would mean:
- The principal spends much less time on admin, logistics and small decisions
- Travel is smooth and requires very little input from the principal
- The calendar is protected and well managed
- Emails and messages are filtered effectively
- Household and personal logistics are running smoothly
- Food, appointments, errands and local admin are handled proactively
- The assistant understands preferences and can make good decisions independently
- The principal feels that life has become calmer, simpler and more focused
ACCESS AND TRUST
This is a high-trust role. The successful candidate will gradually receive access to sensitive information and systems as trust builds. This may include:
- Calendar
- Travel accounts
- Selected communication channels
- Household and supplier information
- Expense tools or an assistant card with limits
Access will be introduced gradually. Confidentiality and discretion are essential. A confidentiality agreement will be required.
WORKING STYLE
This role requires high flexibility. It is not a standard 9–5 office role. The assistant should be comfortable with:
- Regular in-person work
- Being physically close to the principal when needed
- Occasional evening or weekend flexibility
- Travel
- Fast-changing priorities
- Handling both important and small practical tasks
- A daily check-in with the principal to review priorities and decisions
The role should be intense but sustainable. Clear communication, trust, good judgment and reliability are more important than being constantly busy.
COMPENSATION
Compensation will be competitive and based on experience, capability and fit. The right person will have the opportunity to build a long-term, trusted role with significant responsibility and variety.
REQUIREMENTS
Essential:
- Fluent Portuguese
- Strong English
- Based near Lisbon / Cascais / Oeiras
- Able to work in person
- Able and willing to travel
- Strong organisational skills
- Excellent discretion and confidentiality
- Comfortable with both executive-level tasks and practical lifestyle tasks
- Strong problem-solving ability
- Valid driving licence preferred
Preferred:
- Experience as a private PA, EA, lifestyle manager, family office assistant or luxury concierge
- Experience supporting entrepreneurs, founders, executives or high-net-worth families
- Experience with travel planning and household coordination
- Experience managing inboxes, calendars and suppliers
- Strong local knowledge of Portugal
SUMMARY
This is a rare role for someone who enjoys being deeply useful, highly trusted and close to the action. The right candidate will become the person who makes daily life run smoothly: managing the calendar, inbox, travel, household coordination, errands, food, local admin and personal logistics — while removing decisions and friction wherever possible. The ideal candidate is polished enough to manage sensitive communication and high-level logistics, but practical enough to pick up food, pack luggage during travel, coordinate repairs, solve small problems and make life easier every day.
Personal Operations Manager in London employer: Nova Founders Capital
At Nova Founders Capital, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and entrepreneurial work culture in the heart of London. As a Talent Associate, you will enjoy unparalleled growth opportunities, working closely with founders and driven colleagues while taking ownership of the recruitment process. Our commitment to internal promotion and operational experience ensures that your contributions are not only valued but also pivotal to our success.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Personal Operations Manager in London
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We think you need these skills to ace Personal Operations Manager in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Us Your Leadership Skills:In the corporate leadership and management field, it's essential to highlight your leadership experience. Use your CV to flesh out examples of how you've led teams to success or managed significant projects. We want to see specific instances where your actions made a tangible difference in your previous roles!
Quantify Your Achievements:Numbers talk, especially in management! When detailing your achievements in your CV or cover letter, don’t just say you improved team performance. Instead, say you boosted productivity by 30% over six months through effective strategy implementation. This makes your application pop and shows us what you can bring to Nova Founders Capital.
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter:Your cover letter is your chance to narrate your professional journey. We’re looking for motivation and a clear understanding of what corporate leadership means to you. Dive into your aspirations and how they align with the values and vision of Nova Founders Capital. Make it personal – we want to get to know you!
Tailor Your CV for Management Roles:Ensure your CV reflects the management skills that are essential for this role. Focus on competencies like strategic planning, team building, and problem-solving. Use a clean layout, and don’t forget to align your experiences with those keywords mentioned in the job listing. This will help you stand out from the crowd!
How to prepare for a job interview at Nova Founders Capital
✨Showcase Your Leadership Style
You’ll want to thoroughly convey your unique approach to leadership. During the interview with Nova Founders Capital, be ready to share real-life examples of how you've inspired and motivated teams in the past. Think about specific achievements that illustrate your strategic thinking and your ability to drive results.
✨Brush Up on Management Theories
Expect some technical questions related to management theories and practices. Brush up on concepts like transformational leadership, servant leadership, or situational leadership. Be prepared to discuss how you would apply these theories to the role at Nova Founders Capital, especially in the specific context of the challenges they’re currently facing.
✨Craft Your Vision for the Company
Since this is a full-time leadership role, spending time thinking about your vision for Nova Founders Capital could really set you apart. Consider potential strategies for growth and how you would lead teams towards achieving them. This shows not just enthusiasm, but also strategic foresight that they’ll likely be looking for in a candidate.
✨Emphasise Team Dynamics and Culture
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