Chief Operating Officer (COO) Arena

Do you want to lead and develop the operations at one of the Nordics' most unique visitor destinations? Kolmården Zoo is embarking on an exciting development journey focused on overall experience, safety, and profitable operations. To succeed in this, we are now recruiting a Chief Operating Officer (COO) Arena – a key role with overall responsibility for the park's physical environment, technical infrastructure, construction and development projects, as well as safe and attractive operation of facilities and attractions.

About Kolmården Zoo

Kolmården is the largest zoo in the Nordics and part of the Parks and Resorts group. Every year, we welcome hundreds of thousands of guests to unique nature, animal, and experience environments. Our ambition is to offer world-class overall experiences, where guest experience, safety, sustainability, and commercial development go hand in hand.

About the role

As COO Arena, you have the ultimate responsibility for ensuring an efficient, safe, and well-functioning daily operation of Kolmården's business area Arena. You lead and develop the operations through clear structures, appropriate staffing, and continuous improvements – always with the guest in focus.

The role entails overall responsibility for results, personnel, and development within the business area, and you are a central link between management, employees, and external stakeholders.

You are part of the park's management team and actively contribute to strategic decisions and long-term development.

Main Responsibilities

• Operational management: Ensure that daily operations are efficient, safe, and deliver a first-class guest experience.
• Result responsibility: Full result and budget responsibility for the business area Arena.
• Leadership: Lead and develop a team of approximately 30 permanent employees (excluding seasonal staff) through several middle managers/Area Managers.
• Safety & risk management: Implement, follow up, and develop safety routines for both guests and employees.
• Planning & resource optimization: Responsible for capacity planning, staffing, and resource allocation based on season, events, and guest flows.
• Improvement work: Identify and drive initiatives that improve flows, efficiency, quality, and guest satisfaction.
• Collaboration: Collaborate with internal functions, the group, suppliers, and authorities.

About you

We are looking for someone with broad technical competence who, together with the team, will continue to develop our operations – always with safety in focus. You have experience in strategic property management, as Kolmården is responsible for a substantial portfolio of buildings and facilities.

You work systematically with routines and processes and have the ability to ensure structured working methods, good risk management, and compliance with applicable regulations. For you, safety is a natural and integrated part of business development.

We place great importance on your leadership and your ability to see, engage, and develop both employees and managers to create the best possible conditions for the business. The role also has a commercial dimension where the development of the park environment is an important part of strengthening attractiveness and creating an even better guest experience.

Experience

To succeed in the role, we see that you have:

• At least 5 years of experience in operational leadership with experience in leading larger teams and managers in complex environments.
• Experience from technology-heavy operations.
• Experience in systematic safety work, risk assessment, and compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Experience in strategic property management.
• Good experience in working with budgets, cost follow-up, and resource optimization.
• Ability to work data-driven with key figures and analyses as the basis for decisions.
• Very good communication skills and experience collaborating with many stakeholders.

Experience from industry, park operations, property, infrastructure, and visitor facilities is an advantage.

Personal qualities

We believe you are:

• A confident and inspiring leader who creates engagement and accountability.
• Structured, analytical, and solution-oriented.
• Decisive, stress-resistant, and used to handling unforeseen situations.
• Proactive, unpretentious, and with a strong guest and service focus.
• Flexible and thrive in an operation characterized by seasonal variations.

We offer

• A strategic key role in one of Sweden's most well-known destinations.
• The opportunity to influence and develop both the organization, working methods, and experience.
• A dynamic work environment where nature, animals, people, and business meet.
• Be a part of Parks and Resorts – a strong group with several leading experience parks.

Practical information about the position

The position is a permanent employment at 100% with an initial 6-month probationary period. Trust time applies. Start date is according to agreement. You will be covered by the collective agreement Visita-Unionen. Individual salary according to agreement.

Placement at Kolmården Zoo. To succeed in the role, you need to enjoy being close to the operations and employees – a present leadership with a high degree of physical presence is therefore a natural part of the assignment.

The last application date is 2026-03-23, but selection may occur continuously, so please submit your application today. We do not accept applications via email.

Warm welcome with your application, we look forward to hearing from you!

Questions about the position?

Contact Jeanette Sandberg, CEO of Kolmården Zoo, at [email protected].

If you have questions about the recruitment process, contact Emma Welander, HRBP, at [email protected].

Overlooking Bråviken lies Kolmården Zoo, a place filled with experiences for all ages, from roller coasters and Bamse's World to spa and conference opportunities at the fantastic Wilderness Hotel. And above all: the largest zoo in the Nordics. The zoo serves as an educational resource for Sweden's schools and is a member of the Swedish Zoo Association and international industry organizations EAZA, WAZA, and IUCN.

Kolmården is part of Parks and Resorts, the leading player in the experience industry in the Nordics. The group also includes some of Sweden's most popular destinations; Gröna Lund, Skara Sommarland, and Furuvik. Parks and Resorts is a family business that invests all surplus in the continued development of the operations.