Operations Manager

Job Title:  Operations Manager
Department: Operations
Reports To:  Operations Director
Responsible For: Seasonal Event Managers, Site Managers
Rate of Pay: £45,000/annnum
Start Date: Early 2026
Cloing Date:  Monday 24th November 2025. 10am

We are seeking an experienced operations manager to oversee operational activities across Underbelly’s festivals and events division.

Main Duties

• Maintaining and developing Underbelly’s sustainability policy including managing our ISO20121 accreditation.
• Maintaining and developing Underbelly’s accessibility policy, ensuring this is implemented across all departments.
• Ensuring comprehensive reporting is conducted across event sites, feeding into reporting to stakeholders.
• Managing IT and communications contracts at event locations, including connectivity, networking and equipment.
• Managing security contracts at event locations.
• Managing waste and cleansing contracts at event locations.
• Sourcing and managing accommodation for staff and performers from our in-house and co-produced productions.
• Working with all departments to ensure health and safety management is embedded across event sites, including sourcing and managing medical contracts and equipment.
• Overseeing accreditation and uniform provision for festivals and events.
• Hiring temporary Heads of Department for each festival/event, ensuring a robust staffing structure that offers team members opportunities for career growth.
• Line managing temporary Heads of Department, enabling them to deliver world-class customer experiences for audiences and an outstanding working environment for our staff.
• Work cross-departmentally to co-create and implement strategies that drive sales across revenue streams, maximising spend per head based on detailed analysis
• Advise on and implement best practice to continually improve the performance of Underbelly’s operational activities.

Person Specification

• Demonstratable experience of delivering operational and business excellence for a customer-facing cultural, festival or events organisation.
• Confident in liaising with multiple contractors and service providers simultaneously.
• A commercially driven leader with demonstrable previous experience of line managing a high performing team.
• Working knowledge of health and safety legislation and procedures, in particular, those related to the events industry.
• A practical problem solver with a can-do attitude.
• Excellent organisational and time management skills.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to work with a wide range of stakeholders.
• Absolute attention to detail and administrative accuracy.
• High level of financial understanding, able to understand and interpret financial information in order to make key operational decisions.
• Working knowledge of data analysis and performance/operation metrics.
• Ability to work flexible hours in line with our festival and events schedule.
• Infectious enthusiasm and a passion for live events

Terms

• No annual leave during August will be approved.
• Main place of work is Underbelly’s London offices in Farringdon and Soho, but will require work onsite as required.
• Relocation to Edinburgh mid-July to early September is required. Travel and accommodation will be provided.

Equal Opportunities

Underbelly is committed to reducing its environmental impacts in its everyday operations. We are also committed to maintaining the open-access policy of Underbelly. We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applications from all sectors of the community.

It is the policy of Underbelly to ensure that no job applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, or is disadvantaged by conditions or requirements that cannot be shown to be justifiable.

We expect employees to support these commitments and to assist in their realisation.