Property Operations Manager (Hospitality AI startup)

About Edra:

Edra Retreats is a company dedicated to creating unforgettable experiences for group retreats and company off-sites. Our properties are designed to foster connection, relaxation, inspiration, and focus. We’ve been growing consistently (over 50% YoY growth for the past 5 years) and are preparing to raise a new investment round to finance expansion and internationalization.

About Unlimit:

Edra is incubated by Unlimit (https://unlimit.ventures/), an innovation consultancy firm dedicated to accelerating the innovation roadmap of large companies through startup/lean methodologies.

The team includes ex-McKinsey consultants, experienced startup founders (with products reaching 2M+ active users), and innovation leaders. In Portugal, Unlimit works with some of the most innovative companies (NOS, EDP, and others), and globally collaborates with startups across AI, Fintech, Cleantech, and related industries.

Who We're Looking For

This is an operations role for someone who has built and managed properties — and is ready to do it at a different speed.

You will own the full property lifecycle at Edra — from identifying and evaluating new locations to managing refurbishments, fit-outs, and day-to-day operational performance across our portfolio. Your responsibility is to bridge hands-on property execution with the systems and technology that make scaling possible. Not just to deliver projects, but to build the infrastructure that makes delivering them repeatable.

The right person has managed on-site contractors and kept a project on budget under pressure. They also understand that the next frontier isn't doing more of the same — it's building smarter processes that compound as the portfolio grows.

What You Will Do

• Evaluate and onboard new properties — site assessment, due diligence, contract coordination
• Manage refurbishment and fit-out projects end-to-end: timelines, contractors, budgets, and quality
• Coordinate ongoing maintenance, works, and vendor relationships across the property portfolio
• Own operational performance across properties once live: standards, reliability, and quality control
• Identify recurring operational failures and fix them at the root
• Track project and operational KPIs — timelines, costs, resolution rates — and act on what you find
• Feed property and operational insight into expansion planning and investor reporting

How You Work

• You take ownership of outcomes, not just tasks
• You manage contractors and vendors with clarity — clear briefs, tight follow-through, no ambiguity
• You keep projects on track and flag risks before they become problems
• You document what you learn and build processes others can follow
• You pick up new tools quickly and actively look for ways technology can make your work better
• You communicate clearly across teams, vendors, and stakeholders — in English and Portuguese

This Role Is Likely a Good Fit If

• You have +3 years in property management, construction, real estate development, or a similarly demanding project environment
• You've been accountable for delivering projects on time and on budget — not just involved in them
• You've managed contractors, coordinated works, and dealt with the reality of sites not going to plan
• You may have no background in AI or automation but find yourself genuinely curious about both
• You want to be the person who brings property and construction expertise into how a company builds its operational technology layer

Why This Is a Rare Opportunity

• You will help define how a fast-growing hospitality company scales its property portfolio operationally and technologically
• You will work across project delivery, portfolio operations, and expansion — not sit inside a single function
• You will have a direct impact on property quality, company infrastructure, and growth strategy
• Your remit will grow as the portfolio grows

This role is not for someone looking for a single project to deliver. It is for someone who wants to build a portfolio — and then build the systems that scale it.