Managing Director at Proper Hospitality in Santa Monica, CA

In 2027, the legendary Cal Neva Lodge & Casino begins its next chapter as Lake Tahoe Proper Resort & Casino—reimagined through Proper’s contemporary lens on luxury hospitality while honoring a century of iconic history. Since 1926, this storied property has drawn cultural luminaries including Frank Sinatra, Marilyn Monroe, and John F. Kennedy to its extraordinary lakeside setting.

The Resort Set at the meeting point of California and Nevada, Lake Tahoe Proper Resort & Casino will feature 198 guest rooms, suites and private villas – nearly all with panoramic lake views. In addition, the property will include two lakefront pools, multiple destination restaurants and bars, indoor and outdoor private event spaces, a lively casino floor, and a historic theater.

Wellness will anchor the guest experience with 50,000 square feet dedicated to a destination spa, indoor pool and hydrotherapy experiences, state-of-the-art fitness facilities, nature-connected programming, three padel courts and a freestanding pickleball building.

In addition, the members-only Proper Club will offer a private indoor-outdoor clubhouse overlooking the lake, a Hi-Fi listening room, private wine cellars within the hotel’s iconic tunnels, exclusive programming/year-round cultural events, and full wellness access with property-wide benefits.

Position Overview The Managing Director will lead the strategic, operational, and cultural vision for this landmark resort and casino, positioning it as the premier luxury destination in Lake Tahoe and a flagship within the Proper portfolio. This role requires an accomplished hospitality executive with deep expertise in luxury resort operations, gaming environments, wellness programming, membership models, and high-touch guest experiences.

The Managing Director will be responsible for delivering exceptional financial performance, cultivating a high-performing leadership team, and ensuring that every guest, member, and employee experience reflects the refined, design-forward, and culturally vibrant ethos of Proper.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Define and execute the pre-opening and long-term business strategy
• Position the resort as the leading luxury and lifestyle destination in Lake Tahoe
• Honor the historic legacy of the property while evolving it for a modern luxury audience
• Serve as the primary representative of the property to ownership, community leaders, partners, and regulator

Operational Excellence

• Oversee all resort operations including Rooms, Food & Beverage, Casino, Spa & Wellness, Membership, and Events
• Ensure seamless integration between hotel, casino, wellness, and club programming
• Drive Forbes-level service standards and guest satisfaction
• Maintain compliance with California and Nevada regulatory frameworks, including gaming operations

Financial Performance

• Deliver on revenue, GOP, and EBITDA targets
• Lead budgeting, forecasting, and capital planning
• Optimize yield management across rooms, villas, F&B, gaming, wellness, and membership revenue streams
• Identify and execute strategic partnerships and revenue opportunities

Brand & Guest Experience

• Uphold Proper’s modern luxury aesthetic and experiential standards
• Champion design-forward programming, culinary innovation, and cultural relevance
• Curate distinctive experiences that reflect Tahoe’s seasonal lifestyle
• Elevate the historic Frank Sinatra Theater as a cultural centerpiece

Wellness & Lifestyle Integration

• Position the 50,000-square-foot Wellness Center as a regional destination
• Integrate outdoor adventure programming into the guest journey
• Develop membership and wellness-driven revenue strategies

Proper Club Leadership

• Build and cultivate an exclusive, vibrant membership community
• Oversee member acquisition, retention, programming, and experience
• Ensure Proper Club becomes a year-round social and cultural hub

Talent & Culture

• Recruit, develop, and retain a best-in-class executive leadership team
• Foster a culture of service excellence, creativity, accountability, and inclusion
• Lead large-scale pre-opening hiring, training, and culture-building initiatives
• Serve as a visible, inspirational leader throughout the property

Qualifications & Experience

• 10+ years of senior leadership experience in luxury hotels or integrated resorts
• Prior Managing Director, General Manager, or Resort Manager experience preferred
• Proven success leading complex, multi-revenue-stream properties
• Deep understanding of luxury service culture and lifestyle-driven hospitality brands
• Experience with private membership clubs or wellness-forward resorts is highly desirable
• Strong financial acumen with demonstrated ability to drive profitability
• Pre-opening experience highly preferred
• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred

Leadership Profile

The ideal candidate is:

• A visionary storyteller who can steward an iconic property into its next era
• A commercially astute operator who understands integrated resort dynamics
• A culturally sophisticated leader with strong design and lifestyle sensibility
• A community builder who can reestablish the property as Tahoe’s social epicenter
• A disciplined, hands-on executive who thrives in high-profile environments

Why This Role Lake Tahoe Proper Resort & Casino represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity: to relaunch one of the West’s most legendary properties and redefine luxury hospitality at the intersection of history, design, wellness, gaming, and culture.

The Managing Director will not simply operate a hotel—they will shape the next chapter of an icon.

Salary

• $265,000-295,000

Why Join Proper Hospitality At Proper, we build experiences that move people — and that begins with the team behind them. As a best-in-class employer, we’re committed to creating one of the Best Places to Work in hospitality by nurturing a culture where creativity, excellence, and humanity thrive together.

Everything we do is grounded in the belief that hospitality is more than a profession - it’s an opportunity to care for others and make lives better. Guided by the Pillars of Proper, we show up with warmth and authenticity (Care Proper), strive for excellence in everything we do (Achieve Proper), think creatively and resourcefully (Imagine Proper), and take pride in the style and culture that make us who we are (Present Proper).

We believe our people are our greatest strength, and we invest deeply in their wellbeing, growth, and sense of belonging. From comprehensive benefits to meaningful development programs, Proper is designed to help you build a career, and a life, that feels as inspiring as the experiences we create for our guests.

Our Commitment: Building the Best Place to Work Our Best Place to Work initiative is a living commitment — a continuous investment in our people, our culture, and our purpose. We listen, learn, and evolve together to create an environment where everyone feels empowered to imagine boldly, achieve confidently, care deeply, and present themselves authentically.

At Proper, joining the team means more than finding a job — it means joining a community that believes in building beautiful experiences together, for our guests and for one another.