Executive Assistant to the CEO

About the Company

We are a renewable energy and ocean technology company committed to rapidly developing and deploying technologies that will ensure a sustainable future for Earth by unlocking the vast energy potential of its oceans. Our focus is on capturing civilizational levels of ultra-low-cost renewable energy for applications including computing and affordable renewable fuels delivered to shore.

The company is a public benefit corporation headquartered in Portland, Oregon, and backed by leading venture capitalists, philanthropic investors, university endowments, and private investment offices. We operate as an idea meritocracy in which the best ideas change the company’s direction on a regular basis.

Our staff have worked at organizations such as SpaceX, Blue Origin, Boeing, Tesla, Apple, Virgin Orbit, Astra, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, New Relic, Bridgewater, Raytheon, Disney Imagineering, and the US Army and Air Force, as well as research universities, startups, and small companies across a range of industries.

About the Job

This is an opportunity to become a trusted working partner to a fast-moving founder and CEO, building and operating the core systems that keep his professional and personal worlds running smoothly as priorities change. This is a hands-on role that offers an unusually close view into building an ambitious hard-tech company and considerable latitude to improve how the CEO operates.

Working closely with the Chief of Staff to the CEO, you will have broad ownership over the CEO’s day-to-day and meaningful freedom to make it work better. You will execute across inbox management, calendaring, travel, coordination, events, external engagements, and personal logistics. The work requires sound judgment at every level and a no-task-too-small mindset.

You may be a career EA, or you may have built the same muscles in another demanding environment. You hold an exacting standard for your work, notice details others miss, and follow through reliably. You combine low ego and high energy with warmth, good humor, and polish. You communicate exceptionally well, handle sensitive information with absolute discretion, and are energized by the pace and variety of the role.

The CEO’s work does not always fit within fixed processes, and the day will not always unfold as planned. Success requires someone who can build useful systems without becoming overly attached to them, and who can persist, redirect, and adapt without creating friction. In return, the role offers remarkable scope, ownership, and proximity to consequential work, along with the opportunity to become indispensable to a founder building something exceptional.

Responsibilities

• Inbox & Communications: Keep the CEO’s inbox and inbound communications moving with exceptional responsiveness. Identify and raise urgent items, draft crisp, clear, tactful communications, and develop responses as appropriate.
• Calendar & Scheduling: Own the CEO’s calendar and scheduling including prioritization, protecting focus time, and optimizing for efficiency and daily flow. Coordinate with internal and external stakeholders cleanly and without creating friction. Support scheduling for other company leaders at the CEO’s discretion.
• Event & Visit Coordination: Own planning, coordination, and execution for site visits and external engagements including investor visits, group tours, speaking opportunities, and media appearances.
• Travel: Arrange CEO travel including last-minute bookings, transportation, required documentation, and occasional on-the-ground support. Support travel arrangements for other company leaders at the CEO’s discretion.
• Meeting Preparation & Follow-Through: Ensure the CEO is on time and prepared for meetings and commitments. Manage reminders and capture important decisions, follow-ups, next steps, and other key details.
• Confidentiality & Judgment: Handle sensitive personal and professional information with absolute discretion. Read situations well, including when to engage, when to be brief, and when not to interrupt.
• Personal Assistance & Life Infrastructure: Anticipate and address practical needs that make the CEO’s life easier and reduce recurring sources of friction. Build and maintain low-touch, reliable systems for facilitating household management, appointments, errands, and other personal logistics.

Required Qualifications

• This is not a 9-to-5 role. Because the CEO’s work extends beyond standard business hours, you should be comfortable remaining responsive to time-sensitive communications across a wide daily window, including evenings and weekends.
• Proven professional experience in a role that called for exceptional organization, judgment, discretion, and coordination of complex priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• A highly responsive working style and dependable follow-through, with the ability to execute quickly while remaining calm and accurate.
• Experience partnering with executives and senior leaders, coordinating seamlessly across multiple stakeholders, and driving complex priorities to completion while building trust and maintaining strong relationships.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the judgment and polish to represent executives and the company effectively.
• Fast and accurate typing skills to support rapid drafting, note-taking, and communication.
• Exceptional organization and attention to detail, with a proven track record of managing multiple complex workstreams simultaneously.
• Strong relationship memory and social awareness, with an ability to retain names, organizations, prior interactions, relevant context, and connections across a broad network.
• Strong computer proficiency and demonstrated skill in quickly learning and adapting to new software, systems, and digital tools; familiarity with Google Workspace, Slack, spreadsheets and relational databases, and comparable platforms.
• Demonstrated ability to operate effectively amid ambiguity and rapid change; comfort context switching throughout the day.
• A calm, grounded demeanor under pressure and an ability to create and maintain a low-friction working environment.
• A service-oriented mindset and willingness to handle both strategic responsibilities and day-to-day operational functions with equal care.
• High personal energy, tact, warmth, and good humor.
• Strong interpersonal instincts and situational awareness, with a demonstrated ability to build trust across a wide range of relationships.
• Absolute discretion with sensitive personal, professional, and company information.
• Willingness to seek, receive, and incorporate direct feedback as part of Panthalassa’s high-trust, high-performance culture.

Desired Qualifications

• Experience in an executive assistant, personal assistant, or founder support role.
• Strong travel-planning experience, including complex itineraries and frequent changes.
• Familiarity with AI tools and comfort using them to improve speed, organization, research, drafting, scheduling, and day-to-day workflows.
• Curiosity and judgment about where automation can reduce friction without compromising quality, discretion, or accuracy.
• Track record of actively seeking and incorporating feedback.

Strong candidates may come from a range of backgrounds. We encourage you to apply if you are a strong candidate with only some of the desired skills and experience listed.

Additional Requirements

• Must be based in or near Portland, Oregon, or willing to relocate rapidly (relocation assistance provided).
• Must have a valid driver’s license.

Compensation and Benefits

If hired for this full-time role, you will receive:

• Cash compensation of $130,000–$195,000.
• Equity in the company. We’re all owners and if we’re successful, this equity should be far and away the most valuable component of your compensation.
• A benefits package that helps you take care of yourself and your family, including:
  • Flexible paid time off
  • Health insurance (the company pays 100% of gold-level PPO plan for full-time employees, their partners, and dependents)
  • Dental insurance (the company pays 100% for full-time employees, their partners, and dependents)
  • Vision insurance (the company pays 100% for full-time employees, their partners, and dependents)
  • Disability insurance (the company pays 100% for a policy to provide long-term financial support if you become disabled)
  • Ability to contribute to tax-advantaged accounts, including 401(k), health FSA, and dependent care FSA
• Relocation assistance to facilitate your move to Portland (if needed).

Location

This is an on-site position. Our offices are located in Portland, Oregon.