ZONAL OPERATIONS LEAD

What you'll bring to the team

Zonal Lead

Location: Chessington World of Adventures, Leatherhead Road, KT9 2NE

Contract Type: Permanent, hourly paid, £13.50 per hour

Hours: Full time fully flexible (any 5 days out of 7, including weekends and bank holidays)

We are recruiting for some new Zonal Leads to join our brilliant Operations Team!

Our Operations Team look after different areas of our beautiful resort (known as “Zones”), and as a Zonal Lead you will act as the first point of escalation within your assigned zone. Overseeing everything from guest interactions and in the moment feedback, colleague queries and coaching conversations, to ride availability and efficiency and commercial opportunities.

You will work closely with our frontline teams, providing real‑time coaching to ensure they remain polite, knowledgeable, and consistently uphold the high standards of appearance and behaviour that our guests are expecting throughout their visit to Chessington World of Adventures. Alongside the Zonal Operations Manager, you will consistently seek new ways to improve staffing, resources, and training needs within your zone to continuously enhance our KPIs and drive guest satisfaction.

You will maintain expert knowledge of your zone, enabling you to answer queries confidently, support staff effectively, and uphold the highest levels of presentation and operational readiness. A key part of the role includes delivering ongoing training and driving continuous improvement to ensure teams are performing at their best. You will also be responsible for monitoring the cleanliness and safety of our rides and attractions, retail units, car parks, admissions (ticketed entrances) and guest service areas in accordance with Merlin Health and Safety protocols. Health and Safety is a primary focus of all operational roles, and the Zonal Lead will take a proactive approach toward Health and Safety training, compliance, dynamic risk assessments and incident reporting in line with H&S legislation requirements.

A strong focus on guest engagement is essential in this role, and you will regularly seek guest interactions, respond to guest feedback, and identify opportunities to elevate the guest experience in direct response to your time out on the resort with your team. We want each and every guest to have a memorable experience throughout their trip to Chessington World of Adventures, and as a Zonal Lead you have every opportunity to create magical moments that our guests will cherish with their families.

If you are seeking a hands-on operational role where you have the opportunity to contribute to our guests making fantastic memories, why not apply today?!

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Qualifications & Experience

Previous Experience in a guest‑facing role within a theme park setting is essential

Ideally you will have previously led a team within a team or shift lead capacity

Passionate about guest satisfaction and an understanding of guest KPI metrics

An understanding of Health and Safety legislation in relation to theme park operation is advantageous

A clear and confident communicator in face to face interactions with guests, front line team members and operational managers from around the wider resort

You will be a motivational leader, with a keen interest in inspiring your team, leading by example to deliver exceptional service to our guests

Benefits

40% discount off LEGO® sets and products on the online LEGO Store!

Merlin Magic Pass: 20 free tickets for you, your family and friends to enjoy all of our Merlin Attractions across the world!

25% discount in Merlin retail shops and restaurants (a brilliant extra treat when you’re using your Magic Pass to visit!)

Staff discount codes for Merlin Annual Passes to gift to loved ones!

Private pension scheme

Life assurance scheme

Employee assistance programme

Access to Perks at Work which 30,000+ national & local employee discounts

Ongoing training & development

About Merlin

A job with Merlin isn’t like a job anywhere else. With attractions around the world, from rollercoasters to wax figures, we don’t trade in suits, handshakes or briefcases. We trade in fun. In smiles, shrieks and spine-tingles. In Memories. In magic. But there are no tricks behind our magic. Instead, there are people like you. Passionate, dedicated people who are committed to making sure our worldwide attractions and guests’ experiences are the best they can be.

If you have any questions or if you require any reasonable adjustments, because of a disability or medical condition, please contact us by email at recruitment@merlinentertainments.biz and one of the team will get back to you as soon as possible.

Pay Range

GBP £13.50/Hr.

At Merlin we welcome the world to our magical attractions and resorts every day and we want to reflect that same multicultural mix inside our business too. We strive to create an inclusive and diverse workplace where people can be themselves, have the same opportunities and thrive together. Because at Merlin, everyone matters!

Together, we work to create a workplace where everyone feels valued, no matter their age, race, gender, disability or sexual orientation. Although we understand that we'll always be learning and growing, we aim to be the most inclusive and flexible employer in our industry.