Senior Technical Project Manager - Cincinnati - Five Star Parks and Attractions

Description

We are seeking a fractional contract Senior Technical Project Manager with deep experience managing Point-of-Sale (POS), cashless payment systems, food & beverage service technology, and admissions/ticketing platforms to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives from concept through delivery.

This role will play a critical part in modernizing and deploying enterprise systems that support admissions sales, ticketing, party and event bookings, concessions, kitchen operations, bar service, retail, and inventory management within high-volume entertainment venues.

The ideal candidate brings strong technical acumen, hands-on experience with FEC, hospitality, or high-transaction environments, and the ability to independently translate leadership direction into actionable plans, data insights, and operationally sound recommendations. The contractor will work with internal and external teams to lead the deployment of a new enterprise system spanning attractions, retail, admissions, and food & beverage operations.

Expected weekly commitment is 15–20 hours but will vary depending on the stage of the project and deployment.

Prior experience within a Family Entertainment Center (FEC) environment is strongly preferred, particularly in venues with integrated attractions, arcade, bar, concessions, and ticketing/admissions operations. Candidates with broader food service, hospitality, theme park, water park, ticketing, or high-volume retail environments will also be considered.

This role requires a self-directed professional who can operate with minimal supervision while maintaining tight alignment with executive, operational, culinary, and revenue leadership.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end delivery of technical projects related to POS platforms, admissions/ticketing systems, cashless card systems, payment processing, kitchen display systems (KDS), and enterprise system integrations
• Oversee deployment of enterprise systems supporting:
• Admissions and ticket sales (walk-up, online, kiosk, mobile)
• Memberships, season passes, and bundled attraction packages
• Concessions, bars, quick-service counters, and party/event food packages
• Retail and merchandise sales
• Optimize high-volume transaction flows across admissions gates, POS stations, kiosks, mobile devices, and cashless environments
• Ensure seamless integration between admissions systems and POS for bundled packages, promotions, time-based attractions, and cross-department reporting
• Translate leadership objectives and operational workflows into system requirements, pricing logic, ticket configurations, menu structures, reporting frameworks, and technical recommendations
• Configure and oversee:
• Dynamic pricing and bundled offers (admissions + F&B + attractions)
• Membership and loyalty integrations
• Event and party booking workflows
• Menu engineering, modifiers, combo pricing, and alcohol tax rules
• Inventory and COGS tracking for F&B
• Manage integrations between POS, admissions/ticketing platforms, inventory systems, accounting, loyalty programs, CRM, and reporting tools
• Analyze admissions and F&B performance data including ticket mix, per-capita spend, attachment rates, voids/comps, labor efficiency, and inventory shrink
• Manage project scope, schedules, budgets, risks, and dependencies across multiple concurrent initiatives
• Coordinate vendor relationships including POS providers, ticketing/admissions platforms, payment processors, hardware vendors, and managed service partners
• Ensure solutions meet PCI compliance, security standards, alcohol compliance requirements, and system reliability expectations
• Identify operational risks specific to admissions surges, peak-day throughput, downtime during service hours, or system latency and proactively develop mitigation strategies
• Provide clear, concise executive-level reporting tied to revenue growth, guest experience improvements, and margin enhancement
• Support operational teams during rollout, go-live, stabilization, staff training, and post-implementation review

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in technical project management
• Direct experience managing POS systems in restaurant, bar, concessions, or multi-unit food service environments
• Strong understanding of:
• High-volume transaction environments
• Kitchen production workflows
• Order routing and KDS systems
• Inventory and COGS tracking
• Alcohol service controls and reporting
• Hands-on experience with cashless environments and integrated food & beverage payment systems
• Proven ability to translate culinary and operational workflows into system configuration requirements
• Experience managing integrations between POS, inventory, accounting, loyalty, and event management systems
• Demonstrated success managing cross-functional and vendor-led implementations
• Strong understanding of retail and food service transaction flows, hardware/software integrations, and F&B data reporting
• Proven ability to work independently, taking high-level direction and executing without step-by-step guidance
• Excellent analytical, documentation, and communication skills
• Comfortable operating in fast-paced, operationally critical food service environments
• Prior experience in a Family Entertainment Center (FEC) environment strongly preferred
• Background in hospitality, restaurant groups, amusement, or high-volume entertainment venues
• Familiarity with APIs and data analysis related to POS and food service systems
• PMP or similar project management certification (preferred, not required)