Visitor Experience & Commercial Operations Manager
Koala Conservation Australia Ltd (KCA) is one of the leading authorities in Koala care, education, conservation and research.
It is a not-for-profit organisation and is internationally recognised for its wild Koala conservation work.
The organisation operates the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital to care for sick and injured koalas, two koala browse plantations and Guulabaa, Wild Koala Breeding.
Role Purpose
Leads KCA's visitor experience and commercial operations.
This includes, education, retail operations and events, driving high-quality visitor engagement, strong commercial performance and sustainable revenue growth to support KCA's conservation impact.
This role will work across KCA's Port Macquarie Koala Hospital and Guulabaa, Wild Koala Breeding, both of which have different visitor experience offerings.
Closing Date: 14th August ****
Key Accountabilities
1. Strategy, Planning and Operations
Accountable for the strategy, planning operations, resourcing and continuous improvement of visitor experience, education and retail operations across Port Macquarie Koala HospitalorGuulabaa Wild Koala Breeding Centre.
Responsible for financial management of visitor-facing revenue streams, including ticketing, retail and tours.
Accountable for team leadership across volunteer teams in events, retail and ticketing, visitor experience and education, ensuring adequate capacity across two sites, with robust training, performance management and quality assurance processes in place.
Work closely with the Volunteer People and Culture Lead to identify and manage ongoing volunteer recruitment needs, capability gaps and continuous improvement of volunteer ways of working.
3. Visitor Experience




Responsible for ensuring high quality visitor education and experience at both sites, including training and quality assurance of guides.
Responsible for the design, management, and optimisation of visitor exhibits and visitor flow at both sites, including analysis of online visitor feedback, customer satisfaction and visitor trends
4. Retail & Product Management
Accountable for management of onsite and online retail strategy and operations, including stock management, retail floor presentation, point-of-sale operations, and merchandising.
Accountable for retail product management (including koala adoption packages) and the development and implementation of new retail product opportunities.
Accountable for the design, advertisement and orchestration of tour and education opportunities for local businesses, schools and tour groups, in collaboration with volunteer education and guiding teams.
Responsible for KCA event coordination, including logistics, resourcing, catering and event orchestration, working closely with Marketing and Fundraising.
Key Requirements
Demonstrated experience leading visitor experience, retail and events operations
Strong commercial acumen, including managing revenue streams and driving growth
Demonstrated ability to set and manage budgets, with a strong understanding of profit and loss and cash flow
Solid organisational and operational management skills across competing priorities
Practical experience in retail and event delivery, including merchandising, stock management, and end-to-end event coordination
Proven ability to lead teams, including staff and/or volunteers
Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills
Highly Desirable
Experience working within a volunteer organisation
Experience working in a not-for-profit organisation
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📌 Visitor Experience & Commercial Operations Manager (Port Macquarie)
🏢 Koala Conservation Australia
📍 Port Macquarie