Rugby World Cup Projects Manager - Rugby World Cup Australia Local Operating Company

Organisation: Rugby World Cup Australia Local Operating Company

Position title: Rugby World Cup Projects Manager

Division: Business

Hierarchy level: Manager

Reports to: The Managing Director (interim)

Employment type: Fixed term contract until end of January 2028

Location: Sydney

World Rugby is the international federation responsible for the global development of Rugby. It’s strategic mission is to accelerate the growth of Rugby, inspiring more people to engage with the sport.

Australia’s hosting of Rugby World Cup 2027 and 2029 are at the heart of that mission, representing an exciting growth opportunity for Rugby in Australia, the region, and the global game more broadly.

Rugby World Cup is one of the biggest sporting and entertainment brands in the world and the dual men’s and women’s hosting model creates a transformative opportunity to showcase the very best of Rugby and Australia to an unprecedented global audience.

The 2027 tournament will be a nationwide celebration of the sport, its values and Australia’s cities, culture and people, engaging new audiences and inspiring a new generation of fans and players.

In Australia, the tournament is expected to generate $860m in direct visitor expenditure across Australia from more than 200,000 international visitors and inject a further $300m into the Australia economy as a result of hosting in 2027 alone.

With women and the heart of World Rugby’s growth mission, Rugby World Cup 2029 represents a transformative opportunity take the sport to the next level. Women’s Rugby is one of the world’s fastest growing sports and the fanbase growing at a faster rate than other sports with 166 million fans globally. The commercial value of women’s Rugby is expected to grow by 10x over the next decade, which is great for Australia.

Hosting both tournaments also presents a fantastic opportunity for Rugby Australia to harness the power of the Rugby World Cup and grow its participation across Australia and the ambition to bring 30,000 players into the rugby ecosystem.

This is an exciting and unique opportunity to be part of a global event that will set new standards and drive the growth of Rugby. We are looking for candidates who are passionate about sport, understand the power it has to make a difference and have a strong commitment to promoting diversity and inclusion for the event.

You will be part of a team that aims to inspire a new generation of audiences and participants.

The Rugby World Cup Projects Manager has the responsibility, under the guidance of the Managing Director (in the interim) and working with the wider executive team of the Local Operating Company (LOC) to assist with projects across all areas of the business. This role requires a broad knowledge of how events are hosted in Australia - in particular Rugby content.

This position demands a strong attention to detail and the ability to work collaboratively with various departments and external stakeholders. Your role will require a keen understanding of event and venue delivery, tournament services, team services and city operations.

The role requires an individual with a high degree of project management and operational planning experience including high quality stakeholder engagement skills, strong communications skills – particularly technical writing and working against fixed deadlines.

What you’ll be doing:

• Working with the Australian team, World Rugby and Australian stakeholders developing project plans and operational plans outlining the requirements, tasks, timelines, resources, and budgets.
• Working with the executive team to assemble cross-functional and cross-stakeholder discussions, assigning tasks, and ensuring clarity in roles and responsibilities.
• Facilitating effective communication among team members and stakeholders, to ensure everyone is aligned on project and operational goals, progress, and changes.
• Regularly track project progress against the plan, identifying and addressing any deviations, and making adjustments as needed.
• Liaise with the World Rugby EventsCo team to ensure project plans and operational plans are in accordance with Rugby World Cup best practice.

Whilst the LOC has carriage of both the 2027 and 2029 RWCs, all roles are being recruited on the basis of working to deliver 2027, with a contract end date reflective of the successful conclusion of 2027. All roles within the LOC will be reviewed at the appropriate point in time to determine whether they will be extended to cover 2029 and to suit the needs of the business at that time.

Essential

• High degree of knowledge of event management, match venue operations, training facilities, host cities operation for a sporting events and venues within Australia.
• A demonstrated ability to manage multiple tasks at the same time and prioritise accordingly.
• Strong working knowledge of the international rugby environment and the hosting of international rugby matches in Australia.
• Experience in working with multiple stakeholders and project managing interfaces between them.
• Ability to create and deliver clear operations plans and project management reports.

Desirable

• Demonstrated understanding of the operations of the major stadia in Australia.
• Experience in a working environment supporting multiple individuals across a varied portfolio of responsibilities.
• Experience in event delivery and operational planning for multi team major events.
• Experience dealing with budgets, purchase order systems, other enterprise system tools, project management tools such as WeTrack.

• Diploma in Event Management with at least 5 years’ industry related experience.
• Advanced computer software skills, including the Microsoft suite of products.

• A passion for sport and to contribute to the further growth of the game.
• Takes positive action to build a diverse team and develop a culture of inclusion and belonging.
• A positive, ‘can-do’ attitude.
• Adept at working under pressure in a fast-paced environment.
• A collaborative team player, who builds strong relationships with colleagues and a diverse range of stakeholders.
• Excellent planning and organisational skills, managing multiple workstreams
• Can navigate ambiguity and cut through complexity, taking a logical and creative approach to problem-solving.

The Rugby World Australia Local Operating Company is committed to building a diverse workforce and therefore strongly encourages applications from underrepresented groups. We are committed to equality and inclusion and welcome applications from all individuals, regardless of their background. We strive to be a diverse and inclusive workplace, which reflects the global sport we want to be and where everyone can be themselves and feel they belong.

The role offers hybrid working during the initial phases of planning, noting that as the event draws near the role will be required to be full time in the office integrating with the rest of the team. The current planning is based on a minimum of:

• 2023 – 3 days in the office (Tue, Wed, Thu)
• 2024 – 4 Days in the office (Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu)
• 2025– 4 Days in the office (Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu)
• 2026 and 2027 – Full time in the office

To apply please send your resume and covering letter to Rachel.Buckling@rugby.com.au

Applications close COB Friday 8th December 2023