Chief Operations Officer

FRIEZE; Greater London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading art events company in Greater London is seeking a Chief Operations Officer (COO) to oversee operations within art fairs and support business growth. The COO will manage teams across Events Production, Digital and Data, and Fair Operations, ensuring sustainable venue plans and maximising profitability. Ideal candidates have significant leadership experience, preferably in events, a passion for the arts, and a record of developing scalable teams and processes.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Diversity and inclusion initiatives

Growth and development opportunities

Qualifications

• Significant leadership experience in a consumer-facing organisation.
• Experience within events is preferred but not disqualifying.
• Strong interest in the arts is an advantage.

Responsibilities

• Ensure effective running of operations at art fairs.
• Develop scalability of the business for growth.
• Manage Events Production, Digital and Data, and Fair Operations teams.

Skills

Leadership experience

Change management

Influencing skills

Communication

Team player

Job description

At Frieze we believe art is vital to communities and cultures. Bringing together galleries, artists, institutions, and art lovers all over the world to make art flourish. Frieze began in 1991 as frieze magazine which to this day publishes 8 editions per year. Today Frieze is a media and events company that comprises seven international art fairs: Frieze London, Frieze Los Angeles, Frieze New York, Frieze Seoul, Frieze Masters, EXPO CHICAGO and the Armory Show. At each fair Frieze publishes a magazine to amplify the reach of the event. The host cities are galvanised by our presence with events and openings curated by galleries, museums, brands and Frieze itself throughout the week of the fair. In addition, we have frieze.com, the definitive online resource for contemporary art and culture, and a membership programme Frieze Connect, which gives access to Frieze both digitally and physically. Frieze has two permanent gallery spaces 9 Cork Street in London and Frieze House in Seoul. In 2026 Abu Dhabi Art Fair will become Frieze Abu Dhabi, run in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture & Tourism.

The Chief Operations Officer (COO) works closely with the CEO, Frieze management team and the MARI Group. Frieze is part of MARI, a new group created by Ari Emanuel and Mark Shapiro dedicated to the premium live events space.

The mission for the COO is to ensure the effective running of operations, primarily within the art fairs, develop the scalability of the business to enable further growth, ensure that there are sustainable long term venue plans and strong venue relationships for each host cities and help maximise the profitability of all elements of the Frieze business through efficient and strategic procurement plans. In addition, this role will play an active role advising the CEO, Frieze management team and MARI leadership team on key business initiatives as well as playing an active role in company-wide initiatives & decision making as part of the Frieze management team.

The COO will have responsibility for the following teams: Events Production, Digital and Data and Fair Operations. They will also be the person responsible within Frieze for ensuring that Legal and Insurance risks are managed effectively between Frieze and MARI.

Events Production

• Manage and develop a professional and customer focused team able to meet the needs of the business and its customers
• Responsible for venue search and developing strong venue relationships that effectively support the gallery team to deliver a sustainable, long term venue plan for existing and new fairs
• Ensure that Frieze’s major cost line (production) is well managed and procurement efficient
• At the same time ensure that Production, H&S and litigation risks are well managed
• Identify opportunities to look at alternate, more cost-effective production models e.g. insourcing vs outsourcing, rental vs ownership and vertical integration in the supply chain
• Champion sustainability through the supply chain
• During Fairs act as “Chief of Staff” and run the Major Incident Response team coordinating the decision cycle for assessing and responding to a major incident.

Digital and Data

• Manage Director of Digital and Head of Data and their associated teams that are responsible for all Frieze customer facing digital platforms and audience data management and insight
• Ensure overall resilience and security of platforms in partnerships with the MARI central team
• Work closely with wider Frieze business to ensure that customer facing platforms and processes meet the needs of our audience and demonstrate the highest quality in customer experience
• Ensure business priorities are managed in a transparent way through a digital roadmap and that key projects are delivered to time and budget
• Identify opportunities for digital and data to improve customer experience for existing Frieze products as well as new business development opportunities where digital and data can support the growth of the business.

Legal & Insurance

• Act as lynchpin between MARI Legal and Frieze business partners to ensure that Frieze / MARI corporate legal risks are being properly considered for all key contracts
• Ensure that MARI Legal are being kept abreast of Frieze business development
• Sign off on material contracts entered into by the business
• In partnership with MARI Insurance and Frieze business partners ensure that Frieze has the correct insurance in place as the business evolves

Office Operations

• Oversee the management of Frieze estate in all locations, working with designated contacts to ensure they are run smoothly and are compliant with local Health & Safety legislation
• Ensure that the lease and sub-let arrangements are regularly reviewed and new agreements signed when required
• Maintain relationships with the key stakeholders, e.g. landlords, tenants and property lawyers

Fair Operations

• Oversee staff that manage staff travel to and from the fairs. Ensure traveller lists are optimised in consultation with Frieze Finance team and suitable group accommodation is booked
• Ensure onsite operations for permanent and temp staff run smoothly

Skills & Qualifications

• A COO with significant leadership experience in a consumer facing organisation. Experience within events preferred though not disqualifying.
• Strong interest in the arts and the brand would be an advantage
• Experience of working cross borders is helpful, particularly in the UK and US
• A strong change manager, who can demonstrate that they have developed scalable and efficient teams, processes and systems as a business has grown whilst maintaining day-to-day control
• Experience working in fast moving growth organisations
• Strong leadership and influencing skills across all areas of a business
• Proven communicator who is clear and concise and empathetic
• Voices an opinion and makes creative suggestions
• Team player
• Takes responsibility and follows through on commitments/decisionsmade
• Good record for hiring and retaining quality staff
• Open to criticism and feedback – wants to learn and constantly improve

Our Diversity & Inclusion Statement

Frieze unites people in our love of the arts. We understand this can only be accomplished when we harness the entirety of our company and lead with a lens of diversity, equity and inclusion in everything we do. As a global company that drives culture, we are committed to practicing anti-discrimination including race, gender identity, sexual orientation and disability, together with artists, writers and cultural practitioners from all backgrounds. There is still much work to be done to address systemic inequality and discrimination within the arts and culture industry, and we are dedicated to making progress both within our own organization and the art world at large.