JOB DETAILS
Job Title: Director, Operations | US & UK
Reports To: Executive Vice President | Land Production
Direct Reports: Live Experience Managers (7)
Place of Work: UK HQ, Mill Court, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire MK12 5EU
Other: Full Time
About Rws Global
As the world’s largest producer of groundbreaking live entertainment, and a leading force in the themed entertainment industry, RWS Global creates meaningful connections and customized experiences spanning from theatrical productions to events, multimedia and more. In 2024, the entertainment leaders expanded capabilities into live sporting events with the introduction of RWS Global Sports.
Headquartered in New York, London, Cincinnati, Orlando, Sydney, and Riyadh, with dedicated RWS Studios in NYC and the UK to serve its vast talent pipeline and client base, RWS Global serves major brands and corporations, theatres, cruise lines, sports properties, live venues, parks, resorts and more. Offering end-to-end services from ideation to operations, RWS Global’s team of world-class designers, creators, producers and visionary talent provide unrivaled scale, producing over one million live moments every day and employing over 8,000 individuals worldwide.
The RWS Global roster of clients includes Apple, Azamara, The Coca-Cola Company, Commonwealth Games, Crayola, Europa-Park Resort, Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, The FRIENDS™ Experience by Original X Productions, Hard Rock Resorts, Hershey Entertainment & Resorts, Holland America Line, Iberostar Hotels & Resorts, International Cricket Council, Invictus Games, Lionsgate, Marella Cruises, MSC Cruises, Roompot, Rugby World Cup, Six Flags, Space Center Houston, TUI Group, Vera Wang, Warner Bros., Disney’s The Lion King on Broadway, Chicago the Musical, Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes and more. For more information, visit www.rwsglobal.com.
Job Overview
The Director of Operations is responsible for overseeing the live entertainment daily operations product across all US and UK parks (7) including live shows, character meet and greets, production operations, special events and atmosphere entertainment. This role requires a detail-oriented leader with comprehensive experience and expertise delivering world-class guest experiences, operational excellence, safety compliance and alignment with brand standards and guidelines. The Director of Operations will lead a team of Live Experience Managers along with collaboration with producers, project/production managers, directors, technical teams, vendors and clients to deliver high-quality productions and experiences that align with the creative vision and operational requirements of each property.
Key Responsibilities
- Strategy and Leadership: Define and execute the operational strategy for entertainment, live shows, parades, costumed character programs, seasonal events and activities across all parks in conjunction with local park leadership and Live Experience Managers. Function as key member of RWS Global operations Leadership Team which creates, implements and drives business strategy, leads each of the park’s values, and ensures high retention and motivation of staff.
- Relationship Management: Collaborate cross-functionally with corporate departments to ensure alignment across park operations, maintenance, safety & risk management, shared services (HR, Finance, Legal) to deliver seamless and integrated guest experiences.
- Production Planning & Scheduling: Develop detailed production schedules, timelines, and workflows for various projects, ensuring all elements are planned, organized, and executed on time and within scope.
- Continuous Improvement: Contribute to the continuous improvement of RWS Global operations by participating in global forums, workshops and training sessions. Maintain and continuously improve key performance indicators (KPIs) such as guest satisfaction scores (NPS), show uptime, production cost targets, guest service metrics, safety incident metrics across all parks.
- Budget Management: Drive the annual operating budget for the UK and US park entertainment operations to include: labor expense and staffing levels, operating expense management, vendor contracts, and monitoring respective financial KPI’s to ensure budgets and profit margins meet established goals. Responsible for P&L creation, monitoring, management, and reporting.
- Quality Control: Ensure all park entertainment operations and productions meet the highest standards of show quality, creative intent and sustainment, and are in full compliance with all local and regional/country regulations, guidelines and laws.
- Risk Management: Identify and mitigate potential risks associated with production activities including employee activities and performances, developing contingency plans to address technical, operational, or compliance challenges. Ensure that entertainment operations meet safety, compliance and welfare standards across all activation areas.
- Flexible Schedule: Project locations span the globe and may require extended hours which include work over weekends and holidays and include international travel to project site locations as needed.
Qualifications & Skills:
- Degree in Theme Park Management, Arts Administration, Production, Sports Event Management or a related field; equivalent professional experience considered.
- 7+ years of experience in entertainment operations management within entertainment, sports production or live event industries.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Strong knowledge and experience leading live entertainment production operations processes, to include budgeting, labor management, ops scheduling, logistics, entertainment programming, strategic planning and safety protocols.
- Proficiency in operations management software and tools, such as Wrike, Microsoft Project, Asana, Trello, or equivalent.
- Familiarity with health and safety regulations and best practices in entertainment production environments.
- Flexibility to work evenings, weekends, and holidays as required.
Character Attributes:
- Leadership: Enables project team members to achieve collective results through planning, collaboration, and confident decision making.
- Strong Communicator: Able to provide clear direction to team members, crew, talent, vendors, and stakeholders, ensuring clear understanding and alignment across all project activities.
- Highly Organized: Exceptional at planning and managing complex schedules and resources.
- Detail-Oriented: Attentive to all parts of the project process.
- Team-Oriented: Works collaboratively with diverse teams, fostering a positive working environment that encourages cooperation and communication.
- Proactive Problem Solver: Anticipate potential challenges and develop thoughtful contingency plans to quickly address project challenges to client satisfaction.
- Decisive: Confident in making quick, informed decisions.
- Adaptable: Flexible to last-minute changes, unforeseen challenges, or evolving project needs.
- Professional Attitude: Effectively navigate high-stress situations. Representing yourself, the project and RWS in the most positive way.
- Resourceful: Finds creative solutions to optimize resources, manage costs, and maintain quality, within budget parameters.
- Budget-Conscious: Ability to create and track budgets, expenses, P&L, negotiate with vendors and find cost effective solutions to project challenges.
- Safety-Focused: Prioritizes health and safety of all project team members, enforcing protocols and ensuring compliance with industry regulations, codes and standards.
- Time Management: Capable of handling multiple projects simultaneously, ensuring all project deliverables are completed on schedule.
- Flexible Schedule: Project locations span the globe and may require extended hours which include work over weekends and holidays and include international travel to project site locations as needed.
- Ethical & Professional: Upholds high standards of professionalism, integrity, and accountability
Company Benefits:
- Competitive Salary
- Company Pension
- 25 days paid holiday excluding Bank Holidays
- Paid parental leave & childcare support policy
- Computer (Mac/Windows)
- Company Phone Program
- Flexible working (office/remote)
- Employee Assistance and Wellbeing Program
- Childcare Support Policy
- Employer Sponsored Vision Program
While this is intended to be an accurate description of the job, this is not necessarily an comprehensive list of all responsibilities, duties, skills, efforts, requirements or working conditions associated with the position, and may require that other or different tasks be performed as necessary and assigned.
Diversity And Inclusion Statement
DIVERSE IS WHO WE ARE
Way more than a box to check, diversity is core to RWS Global culture. We value it, promote it, protect it and hire it. All differences are welcome here. We know for a fact that each employee’s individual background, life experiences, knowledge, self-expression, and capabilities are a contribution to our culture, as well as our reputation and achievements. So, bring all of who you are, no questions asked.
