Why This Role Matters:
The Grounds & Equipment Manager plays a pivotal role in safeguarding a UNESCO World Heritage Site, ensuring the safety of guests and colleagues, enhancing the guest experience, developing team members, managing operational risks, and ensuring the long-term sustainability of grounds and equipment operations at Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise.
Reporting to the Director of Engineering, the Grounds & Equipment Manager provides strategic leadership, planning, and operational oversight for all exterior property operations, seasonal programs, and assets at Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. This role is responsible for leading a diverse team, managing resources, ensuring safety and regulatory compliance, and delivering exceptional guest and colleague experiences. The successful candidate is a people-focused leader with a strong understanding of multi-season operations in a highly regulated alpine environment, including landscaping, snow management, and vehicle and equipment operations.
Start Date: September 2026
Contract Type: Permanent
Salary: $75,000/Year
Key Responsibilities:
Leadership & Management
- Provide visible, inspiring leadership to the Grounds team, fostering a culture of safety, accountability, and engagement.
- Define and communicate the vision for the Grounds department, translating it into actionable operational plans.
- Lead full-cycle people management, including recruitment, onboarding, training, coaching, performance management, and terminations in alignment with Fairmont policies and CBA agreements.
- Ensure all team members maintain current training and certifications, coordinating ongoing professional development.
- Manage operating budgets, payroll, and resources, ensuring cost control and optimal allocation.
- Collaborate effectively with internal departments to ensure smooth coordination of exterior operations with guest and colleague needs, without directing the work of other teams.
- Build leadership capacity within the team through mentoring, delegation, and structured development plans.
- Promote colleague engagement, inclusion, and alignment with Fairmont service standards.
Operational Oversight
- Direct and coordinate all daily Grounds operations, ensuring work is safely planned, prioritized, and executed efficiently.
- Lead snow removal operations across hotel and residence areas, including planning, staffing, and coordination during active weather events.
- Oversee summer operations, including landscaping, lawn care, floral displays, gravel removal, and line painting.
- Manage all commercial fleet and equipment, ensuring availability, compliance, reliability, and proper maintenance.
- Coordinate preventive maintenance, CVIP inspections, seasonal tire changes, and both on-site and off-site repairs.
- Monitor budgets, forecasts, and labor plans to meet seasonal and operational requirements.
- Ensure all Grounds colleagues are trained, qualified, and supported to perform their roles safely and effectively.
- Conduct daily reviews of safety conditions, weather impacts, and operational risks, implementing mitigation measures as required.
Program Management
- Oversee the planning and execution of major seasonal features, including natural ice rinks (~120,000 sq. ft.), Ice Castle, and Ice Bar structures.
- Serve as the site champion for Motive Fleet Management, ensuring compliance, maintenance tracking, and continuous improvement across all assets.
- Maintain exterior property conditions to ensure guest and colleague safety, proactively mitigating seasonal hazards in coordination with external vendors.
- Lead “one-season-ahead” operational planning, reviewing end-of-season needs, including servicing, repairs, replacements, and readiness requirements.
- Ensure environmentally responsible landscape management aligned with alpine horticulture best practices and National Park regulations.
Safety, Risk & Compliance
- Act as a visible safety leader, ensuring compliance with Alberta OHS, Parks Canada regulations, and Fairmont Health & Safety programs.
- Develop, communicate, and enforce safe work practices (SOPs) for all Grounds operations.
- Maintain accurate documentation related to safety, inspections, training, and regulatory compliance.