Venue Manager

Who We Are:On Location is a global leader in premium experiential hospitality, offering ticketing, curated guest experiences, live event production and travel management across sports, entertainment, fashion and culture. On Location provides unrivaled access for corporate clients and fans looking for official, immersive experiences at marquee events, including the Olympic and Paralympic Games, FIFA World Cup 2026, Super Bowl, NCAA Final Four, and more. An official partner and/or service provider to over 150 iconic rights holders, such as the IOC (the Milano Cortina 2026 and Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games), FIFA, NFL, NCAA, UFC, WWE, and PGA of America, the company also owns and operates a number of its own unique experiences. On Location is a subsidiary of TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: TKO), a premium sports and entertainment company.

Title:  Venue Manager, In-Venue Hospitality Event Production

Department: Event Production

Reports to:  IVH Director

Location:  Milano, Italy or Depend on the venue assigned.

Type of contract: Fixed-term contract
Start date: September 1st.
End date: Depend on the venue assigned and if paralympic operations or not.

Who We Are:  

On Location is a premium experience provider, offering world class hospitality, ticketing, curated guest experiences, live event production, and travel management across sports, entertainment, and fashion. From unrivaled access for corporate clients to guests looking for fully immersive experiences at marquee events, On Location is the premier and official service provider to over 150 iconic rights holders, such as the IOC (Paris 2024, Milano Cortina 2026, LA 2028), NFL, NCAA, UFC and PGA of America, and numerous musical artists and festivals. The company also owns and operates several unique and exclusive experiences, transforming the most dynamic live events into a lifetime of memories. On Location is a subsidiary of Endeavor, a global sports and entertainment company.

Endeavor is a global entertainment, sports and content company, home to the world’s most dynamic and engaging storytellers, brands, live events, and experiences. The company is comprised of industry leaders including entertainment agency WME; sports, fashion, events, and media company IMG; and premier mixed martial arts organization UFC. The Endeavor network specializes in talent representation; marketing and licensing; content development, distribution, and sales; event management; and several direct-to-consumer offerings.

What You’ll Do:  

Venue Manager, In Venue Hospitality (IVH) Event Production is the HSP owner of the venue. It is a key role with a primary responsibility for the final preparations and world-class operations of his/her venue in conjunction with the venue owner/operator as well as MICO and OLE FAs plus internal and external stakeholders. This role includes implementing processes, managing, and coordinating all necessary resources, making the appropriate decisions, and leading the HSP venue team to ensure at each Olympic session (and paralympic for venues concerned) efficient, safe, and high-quality both working conditions for the suppliers and above all, services for every HSP guests.

The Venue Manager works closely with:

On Location side:

• the Director, IVH Event Production (N+1).
• the cluster referent.
• the other venue managers (to share both the best practices as well as the problems and the solutions provided).
• On Location FAs.
• Venue operator representatives.

MICO side:

• the Venue Business Operations Manager (VBOM).
• MICO FAs.

Third party providers:

• Production Agencies
• Caterers
• Entertainment providers
• Hospitality staffing agencies
• Other

Essential functions & responsibilities:  

• Being the eyes and ears on-site as well as the safeguard of the Event Production team and more globally of the company.
• Be the representative of the hospitality unit (led by OLE) in the global MICO venue business operations (VBO) department.
• Update and develop key operational documentation initiated by the cluster managers, existing or upcoming tools, policies & procedures.
• Support (in some cases lead) on-site working visits and other visits/tours leading up to the Olympic games.
• Attend all meetings (virtual/in person) in relation with his/her venue and report on behalf of the Event Production team(s) as it relates to the IVH hospitality program.
• Collaborate with the venue representatives and follow up on venue specific action points.
• Support the development of the HSP venue management training program & content.

• Support the delivery of the venue manager training.
• Attend the venue manager training.
• Make the team aware of the day-to-day progress and challenges and ask the management any input needed regarding every significant need/request to make decisions or get the decision allowing to move forward.

• Create with the venue team on-site, the conditions to deliver a unique HSP guests experience while ensuring good and productive working conditions for venue on-site staff; with some consistency from one session to another.
• Establish and implement effective project management (manage overall project milestones and timelines) to ensure smooth operations at the venue and high-quality MICO Olympic sessions organization according to OLE policies and MICO guidelines.
• Facilitate and lead production meetings with key staff.
• Troubleshoot, anticipate and act proactively on event aspects of role.
• Lead final preparations of the HSP spaces during the pre-set-up and set-up phase and ensuring the proper dismantling (including damage reporting) and hand back of the stadium HSP spaces to the owner/operator.
• Implement, together with the production agency, the IVH products respecting appropriate standard, MICO guidelines, and within the agreed budget.
• Aid in the production and delivery of Olympic Family and International Federation Lounges.
• Collaborate successfully with service providers, stadium operator/owner, police, emergency services and other relevant partners regarding HSP spaces.
• Manage the vendors contracts in relation to the venue.
• Manage P&L and track expenditures. Update budget after each decision made having an impact on it.
• Ensure that relevant partners are in full compliance with their contractual obligations, MICO requirements and agreed planning and deliverables.
• Train and lead the on-site HSP venue team in close cooperation with internal stakeholders.
• Produce debriefs and final reports.

Other Duties & Responsibilities

Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training venue staff; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems, alone or alongside On Location relevant management.

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of the employee's activities, duties, or responsibilities for this job. Duties, obligations, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

You Have These:  

• University degree or equivalent with a focus on event management.

• Minimum of 5 years of relevant experience in a sports event organization and stadium or arena management

• Minimum of 5 years of relevant experience inspiring people from different backgrounds and facing different challenges and responsibilities.

• Experience in managing and producing large-scale complex projects, especially in sports and in Italy.

• Olympics Experience or similar large-scale project is a plus.

• Speaks and writes fluent business Italian & English - other languages encouraged.

• Proficient user of Microsoft Office Suite.

• Knowledge of SharePoint | Smartsheet | Microsoft Teams | Zoom | Confluence | Air Table

• Highly organized and process oriented.

• Ability to:

• lead people.
• demonstrate excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• manage time and priorities to meet deadlines.
• multi-task.
• remain calm in high-pressure situations.
• work in a moving environment (growing company who recently joined 100% the Endeavor group and whose European subsidiary has been created only a year and a half ago).
• adapt.
• exceed all service expectations.
• create value.
• generate win-win solution.
• ignite and empower our team’s entrepreneurial spirit.
• execute respect and gratitude.

• Strong communication, interpersonal, negotiation and conflict resolution skills.

• Self-motivated, resourceful, and directed, requiring minimal supervision.

• Good timekeeping and work ethic that is characterized by commitment, motivation, and energy.

• Presently resides and/or is willing to relocate in Milan, Italy.

• Flexibility and positive attitude to work long days, evenings, and weekends when necessary.

We are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles in our organization.