Will AI replace entertainment and recreation managers?

Unlikely, though parts of the work are changing. About 34m of an 8-hour shift goes to tasks touched by robots. The other 7h 26m (93%) stays with people. Separately, BLS expects about 6% more of these jobs by 2035 (all jobs: +3.5%).

None of this job's tasks show regular AI use yet. That can mean the work is hands-on or in person, or simply that it rarely comes up in AI usage data.

For some tasks, yes. Robots have done 2 of this job's tasks in workplaces like this one, about 34m of a typical shift. 2 more tasks have only been done in factory setups built around the machine, so they stay with people here. For 2 physical tasks, no robot has shown it can do the work yet.

• Clean equipment and areas of amusement park, cruise ship, or other recreational facility. (17m a shift; e.g. Avidbots Neo, in use)
• Operate, drive, or explain the use of mechanical equipment in amusement parks, cruise ships, or other recreational facilities. (17m a shift; e.g. WeRide Robobus, in use)

7h 26m of a typical shift, or 93%, goes to tasks with no AI or robot evidence yet. No AI usage or robot deployment has shown up for these so far. The biggest:

• Plan programs of events or schedules of activities. (57m a shift)
• Talk to coworkers using electronic devices, such as computers and radios. (51m a shift)
• Plan, organize, or lead group activities for customers, such as exercise routines, athletic events, or arts and crafts. (46m a shift)
• Assign tasks and work hours to staff. (40m a shift)
• Calculate and record department expenses and revenue. (34m a shift)

Much of it comes down to where and how the work happens. In-person, hands-on and high-stakes work is where AI and robots have made the least headway so far. In the official O*NET survey of people in this job:

• 94% say dealing with the public is very or extremely important
• 79% talk face to face with others every day
• 77% carry high or very high responsibility for other workers' safety

On Indeed, job postings in the Management sector are at 104% of their February 2020 level (all U.S. postings: 104%), up 8.3% from a year earlier, as of Oct 9, 2026. BLS separately expects about 5,100 openings a year in this job through 2035. Across all U.S. postings, 7.3% now mention AI skills. Sector postings cover more than this one job and move for many reasons besides AI.

The median pay is about $79,520 a year ($38.23 an hour), 56% above the median for all U.S. jobs ($50,980). Most people in this job earn between $46,270 and $139,110 a year; that range covers the middle 80%. Pay figures are from BLS, May 2025, and vary a lot by state and employer. Pick a state to compare:

BLS projects growth of 6% from 2025 to 2035, compared with 3.5% growth for all jobs. That's about 47,000 jobs in 2035. It expects about 5,100 openings a year, mostly from people retiring or changing careers. These projections don't single out AI as a cause.

About 38,000 people in the U.S., roughly 0.02% of all workers (BLS, May 2025). That makes it the 432nd largest of the 796 jobs on this site. BLS expects about 47,000 in 2035.

The most common requirement is a bachelor's degree: about 52% of people in the job said so in the official O*NET survey. O*NET rates the job at level 4 of 5 for preparation, which usually means: bachelor's degree. Requirements vary by state and employer, especially for licensed work.

These come from the job's official skill ratings and from the tasks that AI and robots touch least today. Building them keeps you strong in the parts of the work that still need a person:

• Skills that matter more here than in most jobs: Coordination, Service Orientation, Social Perceptiveness, Time Management
• Get strong at the parts of the job that stay with people (listed above), which take 7h 26m of a typical shift
• Tools employers list: Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Excel, Adobe Acrobat, Apple macOS, Atlassian Confluence

These use similar skills, with less of a typical shift touched by AI or robots. Matches come from 109 official ratings of skills, knowledge and work activities, and each needs the same or less preparation unless the official list relates the jobs directly:

• Emergency Management Directors (0m touched, $93k median pay)
• Human Resources Managers (0m touched, $149k median pay)
• Recreation Workers (0m touched, $37k median pay)

Each task carries its own evidence label. For this job: 2 with robots in real deployments, 15 with no AI or robot evidence found. The minutes per task are estimates, not measured hours, and "no evidence" doesn't prove a task is safe.