Operations Manager

About The Role

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the operational planning and execution of the event from pre-event planning through live delivery and event close-out.
• Develop and manage detailed operational plans, timelines, and delivery schedules.
• Coordinate daily operations across all functional areas, including venue operations, logistics, production, registration, hospitality, transportation, security, protocol, and delegate services.
• Ensure all operational requirements are delivered on time, within budget, and to the highest quality standards.
• Liaise with venues, suppliers, contractors, and service providers to ensure seamless event delivery.
• Coordinate operational readiness meetings and monitor progress across all workstreams.
• Identify operational risks and develop mitigation and contingency plans.
• Support venue setup, rehearsals, live operations, and breakdown activities.
• Work closely with production, AV, conference, protocol, and stakeholder teams to ensure smooth event execution.
• Manage operational issues and last-minute changes in a fast-paced live event environment.
• Maintain strong relationships with government entities, partners, sponsors, and key stakeholders.
• Ensure compliance with health, safety, security, and event regulations.
• Produce operational reports, event documentation, and post-event evaluations.

Requirements

• 8 12+ years of experience delivering large-scale international conferences, summits, exhibitions, government events, or major live events.
• Proven experience managing event operations from planning through onsite execution.
• Strong understanding of venue operations, logistics, supplier management, and operational planning.
• Experience coordinating multiple operational workstreams simultaneously.
• Excellent project management, organisational, and problem-solving skills.
• Strong leadership and stakeholder management abilities.
• Ability to remain calm and make decisions under pressure.
• Experience working on government or major international events within the GCC is highly preferred.
• Bachelor's degree in Event Management, Operations, Business Administration, Hospitality, or a related field is preferred.

Preferred Experience

• Candidates with experience delivering events such as:
• International government conferences
• Economic forums
• Global leadership summits
• Trade and investment conferences
• Major sporting event conferences
• World Expos
• COP, G20, FIFA, Olympic, AFC, or similar international events will be highly regarded.

Ideal Candidate

• We are looking for candidates who:
• Have proven experience delivering international conferences, summits, forums, or government events.
• Have worked with ministers, VIPs, senior executives, or international delegations.
• Demonstrate excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Perform effectively in fast-paced, high-pressure environments.
• Are fluent in English (spoken and written); Arabic is preferred.
• Are available to join the project as soon as possible.