Senior Manager: Operations COE

Job Summary

The Snow Surfaces Center of Excellence drives operational excellence and employee experience across the largest resort network of snowmaking, grooming and terrain parks in the world. The Senior Manager Operations, Snow Surfaces COE will play a pivotal role in driving execution, accountability, and performance management across Grooming, Snowmaking, and Terrain Parks.

Job Specifications

• Starting Wage: $95,000 - $133,441.00 + annual bonus

• Employment Type: Year Round

• Shift Type: Full Time hours available

• Minimum Age: At least 18 years of age

• Housing Availability: No

Job Responsibilities

• Drive scaled execution of the Snow Surfaces strategic vision - by aligning people, processes, and resources to defined priorities, ensuring accountability through clear ownership, KPIs, and ongoing performance tracking.

• Develop and implement new strategic ideas and innovations – testing and scaling improvements that elevate safety, efficiency and effectiveness of key Snow Surfaces initiatives.

• Support career progression framework — support prioritization of scaled development opportunities and learning pathways for Snow Surfaces roles from entry-level operator to senior technician and leadership roles.

• Deliver capital planning governance framework — deliver templates, coordinate review cadence in alignment with overall company capital planning, decision criteria, and submission processes for Snow Surfaces capital requests across the enterprise.

• Lead a culture of collaboration and accountability – fostering a strong, unified Snow Surfaces culture by working closely with mountain operations and support teams, recognizing that culture and adoption are critical drivers of success across all Snow Surfaces functions.

• Execute on critical COE administrative activities — co-leading meeting facilitation, workplan coordination, vendor management, and budget tracking alongside the Senior Analyst, Snow Surfaces.

Job Requirements

• Knowledge and Skills:

  • Operational leadership and field credibility: Demonstrated ability to earn trust with operational leaders, field teams and resort MOLT Leaders & GMs through operational expertise.

  • Standards development: Experience creating and implementing operational standards, labor benchmarks, or governance frameworks across multiple sites or business units.

  • Training and facilitation: Identify and prioritize training needs, supporting program development - work with the mountain training team to support and coordinate subject expertise for functional training programs.

  • Operational management: Comfortable managing multiple workstreams simultaneously across a dispersed, multi-resort organization with strong follow-through and attention to detail.

  • Communication: Excellent written and verbal communication; equally effective presenting to resort senior leadership as working alongside operators in the field.

  • Organizational influence: Ability to drive adoption of new standards and programs without direct authority — through credibility, relationship-building, and clear communication of the 'why'.

• Experience:

  • 3 – 5 years of experience in mountain operations, or a closely related field — including direct experience managing or overseeing snowmaking and/or grooming operations

  • Experience working within a multi-resort operator or large hospitality/outdoor recreation organization preferred

  • Background in workforce planning, labor standards, or seasonal staffing in an operations-intensive environment

  • Exposure to capital planning processes for equipment-intensive operations preferred

Job Benefits

• Ski/Mountain Perks! Free passes for employees, employee discounted lift tickets for friends and family AND free ski lessons

• MORE employee discounts on lodging, food, gear, and mountain shuttles

• 401(k) Retirement Plan

• Employee Assistance Program

• Excellent training and professional development

Full Time Roles

• Health Insurance; Medical Insurance, Dental Insurance, and Vision Insurance plans (for eligible seasonal employees after working 500 hours)

• Free ski passes for dependents

• Critical Illness and Accident plans

Company Information

• Vail Resorts offers a ‘Hybrid’ work environment for Broomfield-based roles where employees must live within 50 miles of the Broomfield office and work on-site Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and have flexibility to work off-site on Mondays and Fridays.

• The ability to work in person or off-site, and the particulars related to such work, are subject to change at any time; and, accordingly, the Company reserves the right to change its policies and/or require in-person/in-office work or off-site work at any time in its sole discretion.

Application Instructions

• In completing this application, and when submitting related documentation, applicants may redact information that identifies their age, date of birth, and/or dates of attendance at or graduation from an educational institution.

• We follow all federal, state, and local laws including restrictions on child/minor labor. Minors hired into this position will not be asked or permitted to engage in any activities restricted to adult workers.

About the Role

• Vail Resorts is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status or any other status protected by applicable law.