Mad Systems designs, patents, and deploys the AV and AI infrastructure running in museums, attractions, and destinations worldwide. We build systems that last 20 years. We hire people who think the same way.
Operations Manager
Mad Systems, Inc.
Orange, California | Full-Time, On-Site | Travel as required by projects
Mad Systems is an audiovisual technology integrator based in Orange, California. We design and deliver traditional, hybrid, and IT-based audiovisual systems for museums, attractions, brands, cultural institutions, and large-scale venues.
We also specialize in governed, personalized visitor experiences through our technology stack, including AV++, Alice OnBoard, CheshireCat, Lory, and CaterPillar. Our technologies are backed by an issued and pending patent portfolio and demonstrated live at our Wonderland facility in Orange.
We work with cultural institutions, national brands, and major destination projects. The company is certified as WBENC WBE, federal WOSB, California SBE, LA County CBE, and California C10.
The Operations Manager is the operational backbone of Mad Systems. This person oversees the company's day-to-day operations, leads the operational and support functions, and ensures that Mad Systems operates efficiently, profitably, and professionally to meet the quality standards our clients expect.
This is an oversight role. The Operations Manager ensures that each function, including procurement, fabrication, installation, administration, and support, runs well and remains accountable, rather than personally handling the hands-on work of those functions. They pair strategic awareness with practical operating instincts: anticipating issues, owning routine operational decisions, resolving problems before they escalate, and taking the day-to-day load off the founders and senior technical leadership.
The role reports to our Founder and Chief Architect, Maris Ensing, and our President and CEO, Tricia Ensing. It works closely with the Chief Technology Officer, Principal Projects Manager, project managers, department leads, procurement, engineering, fabrication, and installation teams, administrative staff, vendors, subcontractors, and outside advisors.
A positive, organized, relationship-focused leader who wants to help build and strengthen Mad Systems. Self-driven, dependable, and comfortable taking charge while staying tuned to the team's needs. Someone who can take direction and knows when to step forward, make the call, and keep work moving. A strong listener and clear communicator who earns trust by following through.
The right candidate brings structure without creating friction, supports the team through positive reinforcement and accountability, and helps build a workplace where people feel heard, respected, and motivated. They balance professionalism with warmth, solve problems calmly, and contribute to a culture of collaboration, continuous improvement, and shared pride in the company's success.
This role oversees the operational functions of Mad Systems and is accountable for how well each runs. The Operations Manager owns the systems, coordination, and follow-through; the specialists in each function (procurement, fabrication, installation, and administration) do the hands-on work. The job is to make sure all of it stays organized, on schedule, on budget, and to standard.
• Translate company goals into clear operational plans, workflows, schedules, and priorities.
• Own the operational health of the company, project delivery, resource planning, internal services, documentation, and support functions.
• Make sure every department understands its expectations, timelines, responsibilities, and deliverables.
• Build simple, practical systems the team can understand, follow, and maintain.
• Spot operational risks early and resolve problems before they escalate.
• Keep the company in a consistently organized, business-ready state and participate in long-term planning with the executive team.
• Keep the executive team informed at the right level while owning routine operational decisions, so the founders and senior technical leadership aren't carrying the day-to-day.
• Keep real-time awareness of all active project schedules, milestones, budgets, deliverables, resources, and risk areas.
• Maintain master project schedules, resource calendars, delivery milestones, and project tracking systems.
• Oversee the coordination of procurement, shipping, on-site logistics, installation travel, subcontractor scheduling, and internal resources across projects.
• Track project budgets against actuals and flag financial or scheduling risks early.
• Make sure project documentation stays current: change-order logs, RFI logs, submittal registers, closeout documents, warranty records, and as-builts.
• Support project managers and technical leads by keeping operational details organized, visible, and moving.
• Help deliver projects on time, on budget, and to Mad Systems' quality standards.
• Find where the company is losing time, money, clarity, or quality and fix it.
• Improve workflows, handoffs, meeting rhythms, reporting, documentation, and accountability.
• Cut steps that don't add value, and reduce waste in labor, materials, process, and communication.
• Make sure staff hours, materials, and resources are used efficiently.
• Bring in automation, software tools, and AI-supported workflows where they create real operational benefit, staying current with tools and practices that sharpen execution.
• Keep work moving forward efficiently and predictably.
• Oversee the procurement function and the people who run it, ensuring equipment and materials are sourced, priced, purchased, and delivered correctly and on schedule, without taking over the hands-on buying.
• Own the vendor and subcontractor master list and qualification process.
• Oversee purchase-order workflows, lead-time tracking, long-lead items, and inventory coordination.
• Set pricing and terms expectations for recurring suppliers, and step in on strategic or high-stakes vendor negotiations rather than routine purchasing.
• Anticipate material, vendor, staffing, and lead-time risks that could affect delivery, and flag vendor concentration, pricing, and supply chain risks early.
• Prepare and oversee operational budgets in coordination with leadership.
• Track spending, forecast costs, surface savings opportunities, and report variances promptly.
• Protect and improve project margins through real-time operational awareness.
• Work with finance and administrative functions to support timely invoicing, accounts receivable follow-up, and disciplined accounts payable management.
• Set and maintain operational KPIs — productivity, quality, utilization, on-time delivery, vendor performance, project health, and financial performance.
• Collect and analyze operational data to guide decisions.
• Give the executive team concise, useful reports.
• Use reporting to drive continuous improvement, not just recordkeeping.
• Put quality-assurance practices in place that align with museum-grade, institutional, and professional AV integration work.
• Oversee operational quality across production, fabrication, integration, delivery, and installation.
• Handle client concerns promptly and professionally.
• Support clear client communication on schedules, deliverables, expectations, and operational issues, acting as operational liaison where appropriate while keeping strong internal alignment.
• Identify and manage operational risk across the supply chain, equipment, personnel, project delivery, safety, and outside factors.
• Uphold health and safety standards consistent with Cal/OSHA, OSHA, and Mad Systems' C10 contractor obligations.
• Make sure staff and subcontractors comply with safety requirements.
• Keep safety documentation, training records, and incident reporting current.
• Maintain and improve internal company documents, job descriptions, org charts, company introductions, capability statements, bid templates, letterheads, and company profiles.
• Support RFP and proposal responses by preparing operational sections and coordinating internal deadlines.
• Drive the internal RFP schedule, track client questions, gather required data, and get submissions in on time.
• Keep internal stakeholders informed of RFP status, deadlines, requirements, and responsibilities.
• Lead the operational and support functions of the company.
• Set clear expectations, delegate effectively, and hold team members accountable.
• Run regular check-ins and performance evaluations, and coach, mentor, and develop operations staff.
• Balance staff schedules and workloads so people stay productive and engaged without burning out.
• Foster collaboration across design, engineering, fabrication, installation, procurement, administration, and operations.
• Stay visible and accessible so team members can raise concerns, ask questions, and ask for help.
• Watch team morale and step in early when frustration, confusion, or conflict starts building.
• Recognize individual and team wins, including the small ones, and turn setbacks into lessons instead of blame.
• Address performance issues early and professionally, and keep a fair, clear process for resolving conflicts.
• Keep the facility at 733 N. Main Street professional and presentation-ready.
• Support the Wonderland demonstration environment in coordination with the technical team readiness, uptime, scheduling, visitor preparation, and executive briefings.
• Manage visitor NDAs, visitor logs, building services, security, supplies, and facility vendors.
• Coordinate travel and logistics for visiting clients, partners, and senior guests.
• Own the company's operational systems, project management tools, file structure, contract repositories, vendor records, and task and pipeline tracking.
• Keep operational data clean, accurate, and auditable for executive review, including org charts, SOPs, vendor and customer lists, project P&L history, change-order history, employee rosters, and contract registers.
• Train teams on operational tools and processes as they're adopted.
• Coordinate with the technical team on internal IT and access management without taking over engineering work.
The Operations Manager does not own project design, integration engineering, patent prosecution, IP strategy, licensing, sales, business development, company certifications, corporate memberships, contractor-licensing administration, or corporate insurance administration. This role does not serve as a legal authority.
The Operations Manager coordinates with outside counsel, accounting firms, insurance brokers, and other advisors as needed, and escalates matters requiring executive, legal, financial, or technical authority.
The ideal candidate has a senior operations background in a project-based or specialty integration business. Direct experience in one or more of these is strongly preferred:
• AV systems integration
• Museum or exhibit fabrication and installation
• Themed entertainment
• Specialty construction
• Design-build environments
• Experiential technology
• Comparable project-driven businesses involving field installation, subcontractors, long-lead procurement, and client approvals
The successful candidate will also bring:
• A proven track record running operations and leading operational staff in a company of comparable scale and complexity.
• Experience managing multiple active projects of varying size and complexity.
• Experience leading and developing people, conducting performance reviews, and building a constructive team culture.
• Working knowledge of California employment requirements, safety expectations, Certificates of Insurance, and the realities of a project-based integration business.
• Practical operating instincts and the judgment to know when to step in and when to let the team run.
• Strong written and verbal communication, including clear client updates, executive summaries, and operational reports.
• Strong computer skills and comfort with digital tools, AI-supported workflows, and operational systems.
• The ability to communicate directly and honestly without burying bad news or overstating progress.
• Respect for deep technical work and the instinct to make the technical team's job easier.
• A capability of working with AI to optimize tasks and flow.
• The discretion and maturity to handle confidential financial, employee, contract, and strategic information.
This role is subject to standard confidentiality and intellectual-property assignment agreements consistent with California law.
This is a full-time, on-site role at Mad Systems' facility at 733 N. Main Street in Orange, California. Project travel may be required. Compensation, reporting structure, and onboarding will be discussed with qualified candidates.
To apply, email your resume to admin@madsystems.com. If your experience is a fit, we'll set up a conversation with the executive team to discuss fit, structure, and what success in the role looks like.
AV Equipment Procurement & Pricing Specialist
Mad Systems, Inc.
Orange, California | Full-Time | On-Site
Mad Systems is an audiovisual technology integrator specializing in museums, visitor centers, themed attractions, corporate environments, and other experience-driven destinations.
We design, engineer, procure, build, install, and commission traditional and advanced audiovisual and control systems, interactive experiences, and custom technology solutions. Our team partners with architects, exhibit designers, media producers, fabricators, general contractors, consultants, manufacturers, and specialty vendors to deliver successful projects nationwide.
We're seeking an organized, commercially minded AV Equipment Procurement & Pricing Specialist to own end-to-end responsibility for equipment pricing, vendor quotes, purchasing, receiving, inventory, shipping, warranty records, and project logistics.
This is not a traditional construction estimating role and does not involve preparing complete bid packages (though that ability is a plus). The core of the job is reviewing project equipment lists, securing accurate costs, negotiating the best vendor pricing and terms, and ensuring equipment is purchased correctly and delivered on schedule.
You'll work closely with engineering, project management, accounting, field installation teams, and company leadership. This position keeps project costs accurate, protects profitability, and ensures every project has the equipment it needs, when it needs it.
Someone organized, analytical, dependable, resourceful, and detail-oriented to a fault.
The right person enjoys researching products, comparing quotes, negotiating with vendors, and finding the best balance among price, availability, delivery timing, quality, warranty protection, and vendor reliability.
You're a strong communicator who builds strong relationships, takes ownership, listens, follows direction, and works well independently. You like being part of a driven, collaborative team, and you understand that accurate pricing, purchasing, and follow-through determine whether a project succeeds.
This role owns the full life cycle of the project, including equipment pricing, purchasing, receiving, storage, and delivery to the job site. Each area below is yours to run from start to finish and keep organized, not just one piece. The job is to oversee every step and be accountable for it.
• Review project equipment lists and bills of materials prepared by the engineering and project teams.
• Get current pricing from manufacturers, distributors, fabricators, and specialty vendors.
• Build accurate equipment-cost worksheets for budgets, proposals, revisions, and change orders, including repricing when scope, quantities, or equipment selections change.
• Confirm manufacturer names, model numbers, quantities, accessories, warranties, availability, lead times, freight costs, and purchasing terms on every line.
• Flag discontinued items, long-lead items, shortages, and likely price increases early, and work substitutions through engineering and project management before anything is bought.
• Keep manufacturer discounts, distributor pricing, vendor programs, and freight assumptions up to date.
• Document quote expiration dates, assumptions, exclusions, lead times, and vendor conditions, and keep organized records of quotes and past equipment costs for future projects.
• Source and buy AV equipment, computers, networking products, control-system components, materials, custom-fabricated items, and project supplies.
• Request competitive quotes from multiple vendors and pick the best overall option on price, availability, delivery, warranty, and reliability.
• Negotiate pricing, discounts, freight, payment terms, delivery dates, and warranties.
• Create, issue, and track purchase orders, and confirm acknowledgments match on price, quantity, model number, shipping terms, and delivery date.
• Keep every purchase within the approved project budget and company authorization limits.
• Find cost savings through volume discounts, consolidated shipments, and better vendor programs.
• Track open orders for backorders, allocation issues, and shifting lead times, and follow up to keep orders on schedule.
• Handle returns, cancellations, and order corrections with vendors.
• Flag purchasing concerns, price changes, and delays to the right internal teams as soon as they come up.
• Build strong relationships with manufacturers, distributors, fabricators, freight companies, and specialty suppliers.
• Check incoming shipments against purchase orders, packing slips, and project equipment lists.
• Inspect deliveries for damage, shortages, wrong items, or other discrepancies.
• Label, document, store, and assign received equipment to the correct project.
• Keep records of serial numbers, equipment IDs, warranty periods, purchase history, and project allocation.
• File damaged freight claims and manage warranty repairs and replacements.
• Record equipment as it's released from inventory to projects, demo systems, field teams, or install sites.
• Keep inventory accurate, run counts and reconciliations, and store goods safely so they're easy to find and pull.
• Track company-owned, project-specific, demonstration, loaned, and owner-furnished equipment.
• Arrange inbound and outbound shipping of equipment, materials, and supplies to the facility, job sites, vendors, and other destinations.
• Get shipping quotes and choose cost-effective, appropriate transportation.
• Book and track shipments, and line up ship dates with project timelines, site-readiness, and installation schedules.
• Prepare shipping documents, labels, packing details, and delivery instructions, including domestic and international paperwork when needed.
• Make sure equipment is properly packed and documented before it leaves the facility.
• Coordinate internal transfers and project staging.
• Keep project managers and field teams posted on ship dates, arrival estimates, delays, and delivery issues so equipment lands where it needs to, when it needs to.
• Arrange travel for installation teams with Admin — flights, hotels, rental vehicles, and ground transportation.
• Match travel to project schedules, crew availability, site requirements, and approved budgets.
• Prepare clear itineraries and hand them to the Admin for booking.
• Tell crews and project managers about travel changes right away, and work issues through with Admin.
• Track travel costs, confirmations, and receipts.
• Track receipts and assist with expense reporting and project cost documentation.
• Help with project correspondence and general document management.
• Communicate professionally with everyone you deal with — vendors, freight companies, subcontractors, clients, and internal teams.
• Pitch in on other projects and administrative support as needed.
• At least three years in procurement, purchasing, equipment pricing, inventory, logistics, project coordination, or a related project-based role.
• Experience getting, reviewing, and comparing vendor quotes.
• Proven ability to negotiate competitive pricing and favorable terms.
• Experience creating, issuing, and tracking purchase orders.
• Strong number skills and comfort with equipment costs, discounts, markups, freight, taxes, and project budgets.
• Excellent organization and multitasking, with sharp attention to detail.
• Ability to juggle multiple projects, vendors, quotes, orders, shipments, and deadlines at once.
• Strong written and verbal communication.
• Ability to work independently, spot problems, and follow them through to resolution.
• Ability to keep accurate, organized records.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel, Word, Outlook, Google Workspace, and similar business software.
• Ability to learn and follow established pricing, purchasing, inventory, shipping, and project procedures.
• Ability to work full-time on-site at the Mad Systems office in Orange, California.
• Experience purchasing audiovisual, low-voltage, electrical, computer, networking, construction, or other technical equipment.
• Familiarity with AV equipment, manufacturers, distributors, product categories, and industry pricing structures.
• Experience reviewing equipment lists, bills of materials, technical specs, or project schedules.
• Experience with QuickBooks, inventory-management systems, procurement platforms, or project-management software.
• Existing relationships with audiovisual manufacturers, distributors, or specialty vendors.
• Experience coordinating freight, installation logistics, and employee travel.
• Experience in a project-based integration, construction, fabrication, or technical services environment.
• Ability to work at a computer for extended periods.
• Ability to move safely through receiving, inventory, and project-staging areas.
• Ability to safely lift and move packages and equipment as needed, with assistance when appropriate.
• Ability to work effectively in a dynamic, deadline-driven project environment.
• Equipment pricing is accurate, complete, and well-documented.
• Quotes are competitive, and vendor terms are favorable.
• Purchases stay within approved project budgets.
• Price increases, long-lead items, shortages, and availability concerns get caught before they affect delivery.
• Purchase orders are accurate, approved, documented, and closely tracked.
• Receiving, inventory, serial-number, warranty, and project-allocation records are reliable.
• Equipment arrives at the right location on schedule.
• Vendor relationships keep improving pricing, service, communication, and delivery.
• Communication stays clear with engineering, project management, accounting, and installation teams.
• Purchasing efficiency, cost visibility, project readiness, and profitability all improve.
• Compensation range: $, based on relevant experience and qualifications.
• Company-sponsored PPO health insurance, with Mad Systems paying the employee premium (you cover applicable deductibles, copays, coinsurance, and other out-of-pocket costs).
• Dental and vision benefits.
• Paid time off and company holidays.
• A collaborative, creative, technology-driven work environment.
• The chance to contribute to nationally recognized museum, attraction, corporate, and visitor-experience projects.
Full-time, on-site at the Mad Systems office in Orange, California. Relocation expenses are not covered.
Send your résumé and a brief cover letter describing your experience in procurement, vendor negotiation, equipment pricing, inventory, logistics, or project-based purchasing to:
Subject line: AV Equipment Procurement & Pricing Specialist Application
Mad Systems, Inc. is an equal-opportunity employer. We value diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences and consider qualified applicants without regard to legally protected characteristics.
Send your resume and a short note about why Mad Systems is the right fit to careers@madsystems.com. Reference the role title in the subject line.
Mad Systems is based in Orange, California. All roles are on-site.