Operations Manager

About Us

First London Cableway, a FirstGroup subsidiary, operates the London Cable Car for Transport for London which connects the Royal Docks with the Greenwich Peninsula. The cable car opened in 2012, as the first and only urban cable car in the UK, providing a unique way of travelling across the River Thames and the opportunity to experience incredible views. Our team of colleagues not only help up to 2,500 customers per hour to travel but also offer an exciting experience to include children's activities, historical displays, a VR experience, and teddy-bear making workshops. In addition, there is a café and gift shop based on the south side of the Thames for our customers to enjoy. With special events ran throughout the year, and the option to private hire the mezzanine level of the Cable Car Experience, the London Cable Car provides an exciting experience for all. The London Cable Car provides accessible step-free access, to ensure the exciting experience can be enjoyed by all wishing to travel.

About the Job

Champion the operation of London Cable Car and the Cable Car Experience. Lead the management of all operations colleagues, ensuring their safety, performance, and contribution to strong commercial performance. Produce all required operational and performance reports for presentation to the Client, and oversee the operational elements of the contract to ensure full compliance and high-quality service delivery.

Your Main Responsibilities will be:

• Oversee the operational management of London Cable Car and London Cable Car Experience.
• Manage and audit best practice procedures in line with First London Cableway and Transport for London (TfL) standards, covering Safety, Health & Environment (SHE), quality, environmental, and technical requirements.
• Lead and develop a team of approximately 55 colleagues, including coaching, performance management, and ongoing professional development.
• Accountable for managing disciplinary, grievance and absence cases end to end in line with company policies and procedures and the ACAS Code of Practice, ensuring fair, consistent and legally compliant outcomes.
• Produce accurate and timely periodical reports for the General Manager and TfL.
• Proactively manage the security subcontractor, ensuring all KPIs are consistently achieved.
• Ensure all client and contractual KPIs are met and where possible exceeded.
• Drive commercial performance across ticketing and merchandise sales through effective leadership of the operations team.
• Manage day to day relationships with Trade Unions, ensuring constructive communication and compliance with agreed processes.
• Take ownership of budget management across all operational areas, ensuring cost control and value delivery.
• Support the General Manager in coordinating emergency situations, including controlled disembarkation procedures in line with contingency plans.
• Lead risk management activities to minimise operational risk and maintain or improve profitability against agreed targets.
• Maintain ownership of all operational documentation, ensuring they are accurate, up-to-date, and compliant with required standards.
• Oversee the health and safety of all guests and colleagues, ensuring accurate reporting and thorough investigation of incidents.
• Maintain excellent customer service performance by driving service improvement initiatives across the team.
• Contribute to operational meetings and support the ongoing development of the Cable Car Experience.
• Take ownership of the external customer contact team and associated processes.
• Manage all staff training, competency assessments, and compliance with the competency management framework.
• Act as Incident Manager on a rotational basis (one week in every three), providing 24/7 on call support to day and night teams and following established incident management protocols.
• Carry out additional tasks as requested by the General Manager or senior leadership team in line with the needs of the business.

As a minimum you will need to have:

• Minimum of 3 years’ experience in a senior role within a visitor attraction, transport operation, or customer focused business.
• Degree level qualification or equivalent professional experience.
• Proven experience leading operational teams in a safety critical or high-footfall environment.
• Strong understanding of operational procedures, risk management, and incident response.
• Experience managing employee relations cases (disciplinary, grievance and absence), including conducting investigations and making fair evidence based decisions.
• Demonstrable experience delivering high standards of customer service, commercial and operational performance.

Desirable:

• Experience working with or supporting a high-profile client or public-sector partner.
• Health, Safety & Environment qualification (e.g., IOSH Managing Safely or NEBOSH General Certificate).
• Experience managing staff training, competency assessments, or compliance frameworks.
• Experience within the food and beverage industry with a knowledge of good food hygiene.

Location: London Cable Car, North Greenwich.

Working Pattern: Work 37.5 hours per week on a five-days-out-of-seven rota, based onsite at the cable car, including one weekend in every four. Serve as the Incident Manager on a rotating schedule (one week in every three), providing 24/7 on-call availability during assigned weeks.

Your benefits:

• Competitive Pay & Generous Holidays
• Travel Offers
• Discounts & Offers
• Health & Wellbeing
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Pension Plans
• Employee Share Plans