Director of Guest Experience

Responsibilities

• Demonstrate initiative and ownership in leading their departments, setting direction, and driving continuous improvement.
• The person in this position should actively seek information, ask informed questions, and stay aware of operational, organizational, and departmental developments rather than waiting to be directed.
• Maintain high standards of excellence in daily operations, staff performance, and guest experience.
• Be accountable for department outcomes, decisions, and use of resources.
• Build trust with team members through consistency, transparency, approachability, and follow-through.
• Lead and develop a team of 3FT, 12 PT, and up to 45 seasonal staff with full hiring and termination authority.
• Provide visible, hands-on leadership that models the Zoo's mission, vision, core values, and service standards.
• Recruit, onboard, train, evaluate, and retain a high-performing team; address performance issues promptly and constructively.
• Foster a respectful, inclusive, and collaborative culture focused on accountability and guest service excellence.
• Proactively oversee daily Guest Experience operations, including admissions, group sales, birthday parties, rides/attractions, Clean Team, parking, switchboard, and campus guest flow.
• Ensure campus readiness daily through routine inspections emphasizing cleanliness, safety, accessibility, ADA compliance, appearance, and guest comfort.
• Direct staffing plans for daily operations, special events, and peak attendance periods.
• Oversee parking operations, crowd management, and guest circulation during normal operations and special events.
• Partner with all departments to ensure compliance with safety protocols, emergency procedures.
• Manage an operating budget of ~$500,000-800,000 and oversee $3-4 million in annual revenue operations.
• Develop and manage the annual Guest Experience department budget in collaboration with the CEO and CFO.
• Oversee Guest Experience Department payroll, expense management, and financial controls to ensure fiscal responsibility and compliance.
• Ensure a consistently positive, welcoming, inclusive, and memorable experience for all guests.
• Serve as a role model in direct guest engagement and service recovery.
• Establish and evolve guest service and guest recovery standards.
• Monitor guest feedback and satisfaction metrics; identify trends and lead continuous improvement efforts.

Qualifications

• Associates degree required.
• Bachelors degree (preferred)
• 5+ years progressive experience in high-volume guest-facing operations.
• 5+ years of leadership experience, including supervision of managers (required) and large seasonal teams (desired).
• Demonstrated experience managing department budgets and revenue operations.
• Experience administering POS/ticketing systems and cash control processes required.
• Experience working cross-functionally in a complex organization.

Pay

Annual salary range is $65,000-$80,000 commensurate with experience.

Schedule

This position follows a TuesdaySaturday or SundayThursday schedule, determined by Zoo operational needs.