Assistant to Owner - Home Staging Operations

Maxine Mannion Staging and Design is hiring an Assistant to Owner for home staging operations in Novato, CA. Based at the warehouse with travel across Marin County, San Francisco, and Sonoma County, this full-time role supports the owner with the logistics, paperwork, inventory, and on-site coordination that keeps staging jobs on time, on budget, and aligned with design standards. The assistant manages operations so the owner can focus on design, client relationships, and Realtor management. Weeks mix desk and coordination work with hands-on activity in homes and the warehouse, sometimes on the same day.

Responsibilities include the following:

• Schedule consultations, installs, de-stages, photo days, movers, drivers, and vendor pickups into the calendar with confirmations tracked.
• Draft client and Realtor communications including confirmations, updates, and follow-ups for owner approval before sending.
• Prepare proposals and contracts from company templates and track signatures and extension dates.
• Track inventory through each stage: pulled from storage, installed at the home, and returned, flagging any damage or missing pieces.
• Coordinate truck usage, movers, drivers, warehouse transfers, and Living Spaces pickups.
• Assist with install and de-stage work on site, including lifting, carrying, unpacking, and styling under the owner's direction.
• Prepare homes for photo days with final styling, touch-ups, and a complete site checklist before the photographer arrives.
• Organize Google Drive and OneDrive files with clear naming conventions, single current versions, and proper folder structure.

Success in the first 90 days means every install, de-stage, and photo day is calendared with truck, crew, and access confirmed at least 48 hours in advance; every job has a pull list and return checklist with discrepancies reported within 24 hours; draft confirmations and updates are ready for approval within one business day; and proposals and agreements are drafted from templates within two business days of request.

The ideal candidate tracks details and deadlines without reminders, closes loops, and maintains accurate records. Honesty about mistakes is essential, as is careful handling of inventory, client homes, and private information. This person sequences people, trucks, pickups, and sites calmly when plans shift with short notice, and brings solutions rather than problems. Clear writing with the ability to adopt the owner's voice and knowing when approval is needed before sending are important. Professional courtesy with clients, Realtors, movers, and vendors, combined with openness to direction and edits, matters. Comfort with physical hands-on work (lifting, carrying, styling) done carefully to protect homes and inventory is required. Digital file organization in Google Workspace and Microsoft OneDrive, with the ability to learn new tools quickly, is needed.

Requirements include prior experience supporting a busy person or team with scheduling, paperwork, or on-site work with clear personal ownership. Working knowledge of calendar, document, and file-sharing tools like Google Workspace or Microsoft OneDrive with a real system for file naming and folder structure is required. Ability to work the Monday through Friday schedule, including some early starts and occasional weekend installs or photo days, with travel to the warehouse and client homes across Marin County is necessary. Physical capability to lift and carry furniture and decor up to 50 pounds, work on stairs, and stand and move for extended periods during installs, with or without reasonable accommodation, is essential. Legal authorization to work in the United States is required.

Maxine Mannion Staging and Design hires through a structured process that includes resume and application review, a 25 to 30 minute phone screen, a 60 to 75 minute structured interview, a 45-minute work sample (fictional scheduling and drafting exercise) with a 15-minute debrief, and two to three professional reference checks. Interviews may be recorded and transcribed for scoring only with candidate consent; declining recording will not affect consideration. Accommodations for any part of the hiring process are available upon request. Applicants should submit a resume and a brief note on a role where they organized many moving parts for someone else. The position offers $26 to $32 per hour depending on experience, with paid holidays and accrued paid time off starting immediately. Contact Maxine Mannion at maxinemannion@gmail.com to apply.