About Roots

Roots is not your typical festival.
It’s a living, breathing village. A co-created prayer. A remembering.

Held annually on Dharug Country (Webbs Creek, NSW), Roots Women’s Embodiment Festival brings together 600+ women to move, rest, rage, release, and rewild in sisterhood. Here, the feminine is not a brand… she is a force. Roots is what happens when women return to their bodies and the earth.

Our spaces are trauma-informed, earth-honouring, inclusive, and rich with artistic expression, ceremonial depth, and nervous system nourishment.

From the outside, it may look like a beautifully curated event - but behind the scenes, it runs on tight operations, clear communication, strong leadership, smooth logistics, and wise-woman presence.

That’s where you come in.

The Role

We're seeking an Operations Manager to become one of the key leadership anchors within the Roots Core Team - a woman who can lovingly steward the bridge between vision and execution.

Working as a trio, closely alongside the Event Director & Creative Director, you'll help weave months of dreaming, planning, and preparation into a seamless, beautifully held festival experience. From volunteer recruitment and contracts through to signage, build logistics, artist support, and site operations, you'll ensure the many moving parts of Roots are communicated with clarity, organised with intention, and delivered with care.

This role is about far more than logistics.

It's for a woman who can hold the pulse of a complex project without losing her centre. Someone who has done the inner work and knows how to discern what is hers to carry and what belongs to others. You remain steady when things become busy, communicate with fairness and kindness, and know that calm leadership creates calm teams.

You are deeply organised, yet never lose sight of the human beings behind every spreadsheet, roster, or radio call. You naturally become a grounding force for those around you - bringing clarity where there is confusion, structure where there is movement, and reassurance when challenges arise.

Throughout the build and festival, you'll become an operational anchor for the team - supporting leaders, solving problems with grace, and quietly holding the container so that hundreds of women can arrive into an experience that feels effortless, even though so much care has gone into creating it.

You understand that operations are an act of devotion. Behind every beautiful festival is someone tending to the unseen threads that allow the magic to unfold. At Roots, this role is one of those sacred threads.

Key Responsibilities

As Operations Manager, you'll work closely with the Event Director to help bring Roots to life from the inside out.

This is a diverse leadership role that spans planning, people management, communications and onsite operations.

Pre-Event

• Support festival operations, planning and communications.

• Coordinate Support Sister recruitment, onboarding and rostering alongside our Volunteer Managers.

• Assist with contracts, administration and Core Team onboarding.

• Coordinate site logistics including signage, late arrival processes and operational planning.

• Support the Creative & Sustainability Director with installation logistics where required.

Build Week

• Become the operational second-in-command to the Event Director.

• Lead volunteer arrivals, check-ins and crew onboarding.

• Support Volunteer Managers, Core Sisters and Team Leaders.

• Oversee campsite arrivals, wristbands, goodie bags and site logistics.

• Help ensure build remains calm, organised and on schedule.

During the Festival

• Act as one of the primary operational contacts across the festival.

• Support Team Leaders and troubleshoot operational challenges.

• Assist with volunteer management and site logistics.

• Help hold a calm, solutions-focused environment for the entire team.

After the Festival

• Support pack-down, site restoration and operational debrief.

Who You Are

We're looking for a woman who combines strong operational leadership with emotional intelligence. Someone who can hold a big vision whilst keeping an eye on the smallest details, and who genuinely loves supporting a team to thrive.

You are:

• Highly organised, proactive, and exceptional at project management, with the ability to coordinate multiple moving parts simultaneously

• An experienced leader who has managed teams, volunteers, projects, or events, and knows how to bring out the best in others

• Calm under pressure, able to think clearly, prioritise quickly, and make confident decisions when challenges arise

• An excellent communicator who leads with kindness, fairness, and clear expectations

• Naturally solutions-focused, taking initiative rather than waiting to be asked

• Experienced in creating systems, timelines, rosters, and operational workflows that keep projects running smoothly

• Comfortable using Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Drive, Gmail) and confident learning new digital systems where required

• Able to balance strategic planning with hands-on implementation- you enjoy both spreadsheets and getting your hands dirty during build week!

• Emotionally mature, having done your own inner work and able to discern what is yours to carry and what belongs to others

• Collaborative by nature, supporting the wider leadership team and knowing when to lead, delegate, or ask for support

• Passionate about women's work, conscious events, and creating experiences that are both professionally delivered and deeply meaningful

Highly Regarded Skills & Expereince

• Experience managing festivals, retreats, conferences, community events, or large volunteer teams

• Project management, operations, or production management experience

• Experience with volunteer recruitment, rostering, or HR administration

• Experience managing contracts or coordinating multiple stakeholders

• Familiarity with event build schedules, logistics, and site operations

• Previous experience at Roots Festival or within similar conscious community spaces

We value lived experience just as much as professional experience. If you're someone who leads with integrity, communicates with care, and can hold both people and projects with equal presence, we'd love to hear from you.

You Embody the Roots Principles

• Sovereignty - You lead with personal responsibility, clear boundaries, and empower others to step into theirs.

• Safety - You create environments where people feel supported, informed, and emotionally safe through calm, respectful, and transparent communication.

• Synergy - You believe the strongest teams are built through collaboration, trust, and lifting one another up. You naturally bring people together around a shared vision

• Sacred - You understand that operations are an act of service. Every roster, sign, conversation, and decision contributes to creating a transformational experience for hundreds of women. You honour the unseen work that allows the magic to unfold.

Bonus Skills (Not Required, But Valued)

• First Aid or Mental Health First Aid certification

• Knowledge of workplace health & safety (WHS), risk management, or event compliance

• Experience leading or coordinating volunteer teams of 20+ people.

• Project management or stage management experience

• Experience with event ticketing platforms such as Humanitix

• Eye for detail in stage/space design and flow

• A genuine passion for regenerative communities, women's leadership, sustainability, and creating spaces where people can flourish.

These bonus skills aren't essential- we're equally looking for someone with the right values, leadership qualities, and willingness to learn.

Timeline

• Applications close: Early September 2026

• Notified by: End of September 2026

• Onboarding & Planning: Onboarding/Systems - October 2026

• Pre-Event Scheduling, Admin & Communications - November 2026 - Feb 2027 (Roughly 50 hours total)

• On-Site Setup: Thurs 11th February 2027

• During Festival:

  • Friday: 4pm – 10pm

  • Saturday: 7:30am – 12pm & 4pm - 12pm

  • Sunday: 7:30am – 9pm
    (Approx. 25 hours onsite + 8-10 hours pre-event)

Employment Type: Paid Contracted Volunteer

How to Apply

Please email us at operations@roots-festival.org or click below with:

• A short intro (written, video or voice note!) sharing who you are and why this role feels aligned

• A clear description of your relevant experience, skills & expertise

• Whether you’ve attended Roots or similar women’s events
  

Applications close: Early September 2026
Responses by: September 2026
Onboarding: October 2026