POSITION SUMMARY The Director of Guest Experience & Operations will direct learning operations at the McCarthy Anchor Campus (MAC), McCarthy's new corporate university with 12 acres, 257 guest rooms, and 30,000+ square feet of learning space in Tempe Arizona. Active construction is now happening, and we are targeting operations beginning early 2028. This is the opportunity to design and create systems, teams and processes to start up a Corporate University. McCarthy Anchor Campus (MAC) is designed to bring employee-owners and leaders together for learning, connection, leadership development, and shared experiences that strengthen McCarthy's culture.
The Director, Guest Experience & Operations is McCarthy's owner-side leader for the Anchor Campus experience. This role translates McCarthy's principles for hospitality, connection, learning, consistency, and operational excellence into an organized, reliable, and memorable experience for every guest, leader, facilitator, executive, and partner who visits the campus.
RESPONSIBILITIES1. Own the McCarthy guest experience standard - Define and represent McCarthy's expectations for a welcoming, consistent, connected, and high-quality Anchor Campus experience.
- Translate McCarthy principles into practical service standards, operating expectations, guest touchpoints, and observable behaviors.
- Own the guest experience outside the classroom, from pre-arrival and arrival through meals, lodging, networking, evening events, departure and follow-up. Partner with Learning so the handoff at the classroom door is invisible to guests.
2. Build & Lead the Guest Experience Team - Hire, build and lead the McCarthy guest experience team, including a Guest Experience Manager and Guest Experience Coordinators.
- Set clear roles, coverage and service expectations across program weeks, evenings and peak periods.
- Make sure the team plans upcoming programs and events while running the current week, rather than only covering the floor.
3. Own the Campus Schedule & Space - Own the campus master schedule and space for all activity: learning programs, leadership and Board meetings, regional and business-unit events, and executive and client visits.
- Treat Learning as the largest client. The Director of Learning Operations owns the program calendar and books campus time through this role.
- Establish a clear intake and planning process that captures program requirements, including dates, attendance, space, lodging, meals, transportation, AV/technology, security, accessibility, staffing, special requests, and budget considerations.
- Build repeatable planning templates and procedures that create consistency and scalability as Anchor Campus activity grows.
4. Own Non-Learning Events - Own delivery of non-learning events end to end. The sponsor owns the agenda and content; the Director owns everything else.
- Work with McCarthy meeting planners, executive assistants and sponsors from first request through closeout.
- Host client, owner, trade partner and community visits with the SVP, and show the campus at its best.
- Own guest-facing communications on travel, lodging and the campus experience. Learning owns program communications.
5. Lead the Facility from the Owner's Side - Represent McCarthy as owner of the facility. Pyramid runs the building day to day; the Director makes sure it runs to the McCarthy standard.
- Hold Pyramid and contracted vendors to their service levels, including security, landscaping and AV.
- Apply campus policies on site access, safety and security, and make the call when a situation needs an owner decision.
- Provide operating budget inputs for McCarthy campus operations and track performance with Finance.
6. Lead the McCarthy-Pyramid Operating Partnership - Partner directly with Pyramid's General Manager to build a strong, collaborative, and accountable operating relationship, working together to creatively solve problems, address constraints, and improve the guest and program experience.
- Conduct regular planning, readiness, operating review, and post-event debriefs with Pyramid.
- Ensure Pyramid understands McCarthy's program priorities, guest expectations, service standards, executive requirements, and non-negotiables.
- Review operating plans and readiness across guest-facing services, including room setup, guest rooms, food and beverage, housekeeping, transportation, conference services, security, maintenance, and other relevant services.
7. Lead Executive, VIP & High-Profile Event Experience- Partner with executive assistants, McCarthy leaders, and program owners to plan discreet, polished, and well-coordinated executive, Board, leadership, and VIP experiences.
- Review itineraries, meeting spaces, transportation, meals, lodging, privacy, special requests, and onsite support requirements in advance.
- Exercise sound judgment regarding confidentiality, service recovery, safety, escalation, and competing priorities.
8Establish Operating Standards, Playbooks & Tools - Create and maintain Anchor Campus guest experience standards, operating procedures, playbooks, planning calendars, checklists, event briefs, readiness reviews, escalation protocols, and post-event debrief tools.
- Build a practical system for tracking requests, decisions, open issues, owners, deadlines, and completion status.
- Identify opportunities to simplify, standardize, automate, or improve planning and execution without losing the personal nature of the guest experience.
9. Measure Experience & Operating Performance - Establish and monitor meaningful measures of guest experience and operating performance, including guest satisfaction, participant NPS, service-level performance, readiness, issue resolution, Pyramid performance, schedule adherence, budget performance, and recurring service gaps.
- Own the guest experience survey and KPI tracking on Pyramid service, including food and beverage.
- Convert feedback and operating data into specific improvements, clear accountability, and practical follow-up.
- Provide concise updates to Anchor Campus leadership on readiness, risks, incidents, service performance, guest experience, and required decisions.
QUALIFICATIONS - Bachelor's degree in hospitality management, event management, business, operations, organizational leadership, or a related field; equivalent experience may be considered.
- Minimum 7 years of progressive experience in hospitality, event operations, conference services, guest experience, facilities operations, program operations, or a related service environment, including five or more years leading teams.
- Demonstrated experience planning and executing complex events, programs, meetings, conferences, or guest experiences from initial requirements through onsite delivery and post-event closeout.
- Experience coordinating with hotel, hospitality, venue, facilities, food and beverage, transportation, AV, security, or other third-party operating partners.
- Experience overseeing a facility, venue or campus from the owner or operator side, including vendor contracts and service levels.
- Strong organizational and project management skills, with the ability to manage schedules, details, dependencies, changing requirements, and multiple priorities at the same time.
- Demonstrated ability to build trusted relationships while holding internal and external partners accountable to standards and commitments.
- Strong judgment, service recovery, issue-resolution, and escalation skills.
- Excellent written, verbal, interpersonal, and executive communication skills.
- Ability to remain composed, visible, and solutions-oriented in a fast-moving onsite environment.
- Willingness to work a flexible schedule, including occasional evenings, early mornings, and extended coverage during major programs or events.
- Willingness to travel occasionally to support McCarthy stakeholders, vendors, and operating partners.
Preferred Qualifications - Experience working in a corporate campus, hotel, conference center, learning center, university, resort, venue, or other hospitality-centered environment.
- Experience opening a hotel, conference center, venue or campus.
- Experience serving as an owner or client representative overseeing a third-party hotel, facility, event, or hospitality operator.
- Experience working directly with a General Manager or senior operating leader.
- Experience creating standard operating procedures, service standards, event playbooks, readiness tools, or operating dashboards.
- Experience supporting executive, Board, VIP, or high-touch leadership events.
- Experience in a large, matrixed, project-based, construction, engineering, professional services, or operations-oriented organization.
- Familiarity with event registration, scheduling, room-block, catering, AV, work-order, facilities, or guest-management systems.
- Experience working with corporate meeting planners or leading conference services.
