Chief Operating Officer (COO) - Film, TV, Video Production, Live Events, Post-Production & AI

Reference: CPT000101-MC-1

Our client in the Film, TV, Video Production, Live Events, Post-Production & AI sector requires a COO, Sandton Duties & Responsibilities

Operational Right Hand to the CEO | AI-Fluent | Data-Driven | Systems-Focused

Salary: R55,000 – R65,000 CTC

The ideal candidate must be exceptionally sharp, confident, commercially minded, and highly accountable. They should be comfortable making independent decisions, managing people firmly, addressing underperformance, driving accountability across departments, and taking ownership of problems rather than simply escalating them.

This role requires strong analytical and systems capabilities. Advanced Excel, data analysis, management reporting, systems thinking, AI, and automation form an important part of the position. The successful candidate will be able to consolidate information from multiple areas of the business, interrogate data effectively, identify trends and issues, and convert findings into clear management insights and actionable recommendations. Industry experience within film, television, advertising, creative agencies, events, media, or other fast-paced project-based environments will be advantageous. However, exceptional candidates from other sectors with strong and transferable operational leadership experience will also be considered. Industry

Film, TV, Video Production, Live Events, Post-Production & AI

This is a hands-on Chief Operating Officer role, not a traditional administrative Operations Manager position.

We require an operational leader who will become the CEO's trusted right hand by:

• Connecting people, projects, systems, and departments

• Resolving bottlenecks before they escalate

• Driving accountability and execution

• Ensuring business priorities are delivered consistently

The role spans

• Production operations

• Resource planning

• People management

• Recruitment

• Sales accountability

• SOP development

• Data analytics and reporting

• Financial and commercial insight

• Workflow design

• Continuous improvement initiatives

The successful candidate must be equally comfortable operating strategically and managing execution in the detail.

AI Fluency: A Core Requirement

AI sits at the centre of how the business intends to scale. The successful candidate must be genuinely fluent in:

• AI tools and platforms

• AI agents

• No-code automation

• Workflow integration

• AI-assisted business systems

They should naturally ask: “Can this be automated, simplified, measured, or made smarter?” This individual must also maintain exceptional system discipline, including:

• Clean, accurate data

• Consistent naming conventions

• Clear ownership and accountability

• Documentation and version control

• Testing and quality assurance

• Reliable follow-through

We are seeking someone who uses AI to drive measurable operational leverage, not merely experiment with new tools.

Key Responsibilities

1. Company Operations & Accountability

• Own the smooth day-to-day running of the business.

• Keep business priorities visible and on track.

• Identify operational bottlenecks early.

• Drive execution and accountability across teams.

• Build a culture of ownership, urgency, and responsibility.

2. Production Traffic & Resource Management

• Oversee multiple productions and deadlines simultaneously.

• Monitor capacity planning and resource allocation.

• Identify scheduling conflicts before they impact delivery.

• Improve visibility and utilisation across teams.

• Ensure effective handovers between departments.

3. People, Performance & HR

• Define roles, responsibilities, KPIs, and performance standards.

• Conduct performance management processes.

• Address underperformance and disciplinary matters.

• Support organisational planning and workforce development.

• Build a high-performance culture.

4. Recruitment & Onboarding

• Identify hiring requirements alongside the CEO.

• Assist with recruitment and candidate assessment.

• Participate in interviews for key roles.

• Design structured onboarding programmes.

• Continuously evaluate team structure and staffing requirements.

5. Systems, SOPs, AI & Automation

• Improve workflows across Monday.com and related systems.

• Develop practical and adopted SOPs.

• Implement automation opportunities and AI-enabled workflows.

• Use AI for reporting, workflow routing, QA, recruitment, and administration.

• Ensure data accuracy, system discipline, and quality control.

• Evaluate new technologies and adopt those generating measurable value.

6. Data, Analytics, Excel & Commercial Intelligence

• Drive a data-led management culture.

• Build advanced dashboards and reporting tools.

• Develop sophisticated spreadsheet models.

• Analyse large datasets and multiple information sources.

• Present insights clearly and concisely.

• Provide financial and commercial analysis relating to:

• Budgets vs actuals

• Labour utilisation

• Resource allocation

• Cost trends

• Operational efficiency

7. Sales Oversight

• Monitor sales activity, pipelines, and follow-up processes.

• Improve sales accountability and reporting.

• Ensure opportunities progress effectively.

• Strengthen collaboration between Sales and Production.

• Provide concise sales reporting to the CEO.

8. Cross-Department Coordination

• Connect Sales, Pre-Production, Production, Post-Production, Delivery, and Finance.

• Improve communication and workflow handovers.

• Reduce duplication, rework, and information gaps.

• Ensure project learnings are captured and implemented.

9. Management Reporting & Business Improvement

• Create weekly and monthly management reports.

• Analyse trends, root causes, and business risks.

• Identify opportunities to improve:

• Profitability

• Resource utilisation

• Delivery performance

• Turnaround times

• Help develop the operating structure required for growth.

Ideal Background

Strong preference will be given to candidates from

• Film and television production

• Commercial production

• Advertising and creative agencies

• Marketing agencies

• Events and experiential agencies

• Broadcast and media

• Post-production, animation, and VFX

• Content studios and social media agencies

• PR and communications

• Design and branding environments

The key requirement is experience operating successfully within fast-moving, deadline-driven, project-based businesses.

Minimum Requirements

• At least 7 years' management experience

• Minimum 3 years in senior management or operational leadership

• Relevant qualification in Business, Management, Finance, Operations, or a related field advantageous

• MBA or advanced qualification beneficial

• Proven operational leadership experience

• Strong people management capability

• Advanced Excel and spreadsheet modelling skills

• Strong analytical, numerical, and commercial capability

• Experience improving systems, processes, reporting, and accountability structures

• Hands-on experience with workflow tools, automation platforms, and AI technologies

What We Are Looking For

Proactive Identifies issues before being asked and closes loops effectively. Meticulous Maintains exceptional standards around detail, data accuracy, documentation, and deadlines. Analytical Transforms complex information into actionable insight. Financially Minded Understands the commercial impact of operational decisions. AI-Forward Actively leverages AI and automation to improve outcomes. Accountable Takes ownership of outcomes and drives accountability in others. Direct but Constructive Comfortable handling difficult conversations professionally. Structured, Not Bureaucratic Creates clarity and discipline without slowing execution. Commercial Prioritises decisions that improve profitability, efficiency, service levels, or growth. Calm Under Pressure Performs effectively in dynamic, changing environments. Entrepreneurial Thinks beyond the boundaries of a traditional jo