Head of Operations - Hostels

Organization: Masters' Union

Location: Gurugram, Haryana

Employment Type: Full-Time

Reporting To: Lead Operations

About Masters' Union:

Masters' Union is building the future of higher education by bringing industry leaders, real-world curricula, and immersive residential learning together on one campus. Our residential (hostel) infrastructure is central to the student experience - safe, well-run, and responsive living spaces are as important to us as the classroom. We're looking for a hands-on, high-ownership operator to lead this function.

Role Overview:

We are looking for a Head of Operations - Hostels to take complete end-to-end ownership of hostel/residential operations on campus. This is an on-ground, high-accountability leadership role for someone who thrives in a fast-paced, always-on environment and treats the hostel as their own house - anticipating problems before they arise and resolving issues decisively when they do.

Important note on nature of role:

Given the residential, round-the-clock nature of student living, this role requires the incumbent to be based on/near campus and available 24x7, including nights, weekends, and holidays, to manage emergencies, escalations, and operational continuity. This is non-negotiable given the nature of the responsibility.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Hostel & Facility Operations:

- Own daily operations across all hostel blocks - housekeeping, maintenance, security, laundry, mess/catering coordination, and general upkeep.

- Ensure rooms, common areas, and facilities are always guest/student-ready; conduct regular inspections and audits.

- Set up and enforce SOPs for check-in/check-out, room allocation, maintenance requests, and facility upkeep.

- Coordinate with vendors, contractors, and service providers (housekeeping agencies, pest control, plumbing, electrical, etc.) and manage vendor performance and contracts.

2. Student Experience & Grievance Management:

- Serve as the primary point of contact for all student residential concerns and escalations.

- Resolve day-to-day issues (maintenance, roommate conflicts, service gaps) quickly and empathetically.

- Build feedback mechanisms to continuously improve the student living experience.

3. Safety, Security & Compliance:

- Ensure robust security protocols across hostel premises - access control, CCTV monitoring, visitor management, night patrols.

- Be the first responder and single point of accountability for any emergency (medical, safety, disciplinary, fire, etc.), available at all hours.

- Ensure compliance with fire safety, health, hygiene, and local regulatory requirements.

- Maintain incident logs and ensure timely escalation to leadership when required.

4. Team & Vendor Management:

- Recruit, train, and manage on-ground staff - wardens, housekeeping supervisors, security personnel, mess staff.

- Build duty rosters ensuring 24x7 coverage across shifts.

- Drive accountability and service quality through regular reviews and spot checks.

- Act as the expert owner of all vendor relationships - sourcing, negotiating, onboarding, and managing vendors across housekeeping, security, mess/catering, maintenance, and facility services.

- Draft, review, and negotiate vendor contracts and SLAs; ensure terms protect service quality, cost, and compliance.

- Continuously evaluate vendor performance against SLAs and drive renegotiation or replacement where needed.

5. Finance, Budgeting & Cost Control:

- Own the hostel operations budget end-to-end - planning, tracking, and reporting costs across housekeeping, maintenance, utilities, and vendor contracts.

- Bring strong financial acumen to cost optimization, vendor negotiations, and contract structuring, without compromising on quality or safety.

- Manage procurement of supplies, furniture, and equipment for hostel upkeep, ensuring best value and proper contracting.

- Track invoices, payments, and vendor billing accuracy; reconcile spend against budget on a regular basis.

6. Process & Systems:

- Set up systems/tools for room allocation, maintenance ticketing, inventory, and inspections (technology-enabled where possible).

- Build reporting dashboards for leadership on occupancy, incidents, costs, and service levels.

- Continuously benchmark against best-in-class residential/hospitality operations.

What We're Looking For:

Experience:

- 8 - 10 years of experience in operations leadership roles within hospitality, hostels/PGs, student housing, facility management, or large-scale residential campus operations (hotels, hospitals, corporate campuses also considered).

- Prior experience managing on-ground teams and vendors at scale is essential.

- Experience setting up operations from scratch or scaling an existing operation is a strong plus.

Skills & Attributes:

- High ownership mindset - treats the campus as their own; doesn't wait to be told.

- Strong crisis management and decision-making ability under pressure.

- Excellent people management skills - able to lead, train, and hold ground staff and vendors accountable.

- Strong communication skills; comfortable interfacing with students, parents, senior leadership, and external vendors.

- Expert-level experience in vendor management, contract negotiation, and financial/budget management - this is a core, non-negotiable requirement for the role.

- Process-oriented with an eye for detail, cleanliness, and service standards.

- Comfortable with technology/tools for facility and operations management.

- Willingness and ability to be available 24x7, including living on/near campus, given the residential and emergency-response nature of the role.

Education:

- Bachelor's degree required; background in Hospitality Management, Facilities Management, or Business Administration preferred. Additional certifications in hospitality/facility operations are a plus.

Why Join Masters' Union:

- Be part of building a category-defining institution from the ground up.

- High-visibility role with direct access to founders and senior leadership.

- Significant ownership and autonomy in shaping how residential operations are run.

- Compensation negotiable and bench marked to industry standards, based on experience.