POSITION:   Audience Engagement Manager

CLASSIFICATION:  Year-Round, Full-Time 

STATUS:   Exempt

REPORTS TO:   Assistant Managing Director

SUPERVISES:  Seasonal Audience Engagement team members

COMPENSATION: $60,000-65,000, commensurate with experience

LOCATION:   This position works out of the Williamstown, MA office year-round. 

HIRING TIMELINE: Applications to be accepted until the position is filled with a priority application 

deadline of November 15. Application review and interviews are to be conducted starting November 18 with an anticipated start date on January 6.

Job Summary

The Williamstown Theatre Festival is seeking a full-time Audience Engagement Manager to join the year-round team to oversee the ticketing and front-of-house operations for a 70+ year old nonprofit organization in a period of exciting growth and transformation. Reporting to the Assistant Managing Director, this position is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the audience engagement department, ensuring that all systems facilitating audiences – from back-end CRM (Customer Relationship Management) database to customer-facing forms and communications – are current and functioning in a manner that results in excellent customer service and responsible revenue management. This role also works closely with the Finance Director to ensure daily sales (earned and contributed income) are processed accurately and fully in the CRM database and entered into Quickbooks. Duties include:

• Manage the day-to-day Box Office operations at the Festival:
  • Assisting in the build of the season in the CRM platform (currently PatronManager/Salesforce)
  • Facilitating ticketing requests—selling and exchanging tickets by phone, email, and in-person and providing patrons with unparalleled customer service
  • Creating and sending all pre- and post-performance emails to patrons
  • Running house, performance, end of day, and weekly sales reports during the summer season, as well as providing cash/daily receipts reconciliation for the Finance Office
  • Processing House Seats, Press, Community, and Company ticket requests
• Accurately collect and process data in the CRM platform, while maintaining confidentiality and security of patron information and maximizing customer data for reporting and analysis
• Accurately process data in Quickbooks, MailChimp, and the Google suite
• Fully staff and supervise a seasonal Box Office and Front of House operation, including hiring and training audience engagement team members to be positive ambassadors and revenue generators for the Festival
• Work closely with the Assistant Managing Director to track the audience engagement department budget and forecast income and spending
• Coordinate volunteer ushers for seasonal productions prior to House Management team arrival
• Serve as one of the Certified Administrators for the PatronManager CRM platform the Festival uses for ticketing and development operations
• Support the audience development/diversification efforts for the Festival, identifying and activating opportunities to engage new audiences and build community.
• Support activities and projects of the Marketing & Communication and Development departments, as needed
• Handle daily mail collection in the non-summer months by scanning daily donations to the Development Office, entering bills and specific expenses into Quickbooks, and passing along other mail to pertinent staff members
• Develop a thorough knowledge of Festival history, relationships, and venues, and serve as an ambassador to the Williamstown and Berkshire community year-round, including attendance and visibility at Chamber of Commerce functions, community gatherings, marketing opportunities, recruitment fairs, and other events
• Embrace other responsibilities as needed ?

Key Traits and Characteristics

As the organization enters a new chapter, the Audience Engagement Manager will be a charismatic, front-facing, and patron-centric leader who is grounded by collaboration, rigor, curiosity, and joy. They will be a detail-oriented and organized project manager with an understanding of customer service best practices and strong sales environments. They will effectively communicate, both internally and externally, with a can-do attitude and sense of humor.

Other expectations include:

• Embrace the Festival’s commitment to EDIA and Anti-racism by actively participating in and encouraging behaviors among staff members that exemplify respect; interrupting microaggressions and other behaviors that hinder our EDIA and Anti-racism efforts; engaging in the diversification of the workforce; and demonstrating a degree of cultural competency that encourages healthy relationships with all company members.
• Must be able to lift at least 25 pounds
• Must be able to work on feet and stand for long periods of time
• An essential function of this job is in-person work in Williamstown, MA with occasional travel to NYC for staff retreats, events, and other relevant meetings.

Preferred Qualifications

• 5+ years of customer service experience, preferably with a performing arts company or an organization that produces in a festival model (e.g., Coachella, Sundance, etc)
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; ability to craft and deliver clear, accurate, and engaging messaging in the regular course of business
• Excellent interpersonal skills; ability to collaborate and facilitate conversations with a variety of stakeholders, including artists, press, patrons, donors, board members, and staff
• Previous experience leading a team, fostering a cooperative work environment, and positively influencing others to perform their jobs effectively
• Ability to think strategically, generate new ideas, problem-solve, handle multiple projects simultaneously, set priorities, execute goals and objectives, and meet financial goals and deadlines
• High aptitude for Point of Sale (POS) or Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems and data analysis
• Proficiency in G Suite software (Gmail, Google Drive, Google Docs, Google Sheets, etc)
• Familiarity with Quickbooks or other financial software
• Familiarity with MailChimp or other email marketing software
• Experience interacting with artists in a close capacity
• Passion for the performing arts and the development of its audiences and promotion of its work
• Ability to manage confidential information and use discretion when handling specific tasks 

Compensation & Benefits Package

Compensation range is $60,000-$65,000, commensurate with experience. Benefits package includes 25 days of flexible time off; 10 office holidays, plus one week in August at the conclusion of the summer season and the days between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day; health and dental insurance with employer contribution; and option to contribute to 403(b) with company match after 1 year of employment.

To apply: Please submit a cover letter and resume through our employment portal (Paylocity) outlining how your background and experience sets you up for success in this position and what you would hope to bring to this role. We appreciate the value of myriad life and work experiences, and we recognize that many paths might adequately prepare someone for this role. We encourage anyone who believes they would be a good fit to apply.

About Williamstown Theatre Festival

Williamstown Theatre Festival has brought emerging and professional theater artists together for 70 years to create a thrilling summer festival of world premiere work alongside fresh, new revivals. New plays and musicals commissioned, developed, and produced at the Festival fill theaters around the world. In recent years, WTF has been represented on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and regionally by The Sound Inside, The Rose Tattoo, Grand Horizons, Seared, Selling Kabul, Unknown Soldier, and Lempicka, among others. Cost of Living, which premiered at WTF, received the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Learn more at wtfestival.org.

Working and Living in Williamstown

Williamstown Theatre Festival’s season takes place on the beautiful campus of Williams College in Williamstown, MA with backdrops of the Berkshire, Green, and Taconic mountain ranges. Williamstown, MA (estimated pop. 7,813) is located in Berkshire County (estimated pop. 128,657) in Western Massachusetts and is an hour’s drive from Albany, NY and 30 minutes from Pittsfield, MA. 

The Williams College campus and the 62’ Center for Theatre & Dance are within walking distance of Spring Street, which has several restaurants with dine-in and takeout options, a pharmacy, a coffee shop, an ice cream shop, a movie theater, and several stores. The nearest grocery store is a 10-minute drive from campus and not within walking distance. Having a personal vehicle does provide more flexibility in grocery-shopping and expands dining and activities options. For those who bring vehicles, parking is free at designated locations on Williams campus with a parking pass.  For a list of all the things to do and see in Williamstown and the Northern Berkshires, visit DestinationWilliamstown.org.  

All staff are provided housing free of charge on campus at Williams College. Housing is dorm-style with private bedrooms and shared common areas, including bathroom and kitchen. Williams College housing is not air-conditioned. Weather ranges from evenings on the cooler side but can also be quite warm with temperatures in the 90s with high humidity.

We acknowledge that Williamstown Theatre Festival is a Predominantly White Institution (PWI) located in a county that is 91% white, according to the US Census Bureau. We are actively engaged in the work of becoming a more equitable, diverse, inclusive, accessible, anti-racist, and anti-oppressive institution that not only welcomes BIPOC artists and staff but nurtures an environment that allows everyone to thrive. More specific actions on these efforts can be found in our Progress Report on our website: https://wtfestival.org/work-learn/.

Williamstown Theatre Festival is committed to telling diverse stories and to fostering an inclusive environment both onstage and off. We are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants and teammates. We believe that opportunity, access, resources, and rewards should be available to and for the benefit of all. Therefore, WTF is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants shall be afforded equal employment opportunities without discrimination because of race, color, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, age, sex/gender (including pregnancy and gender identity), disability, military status, veteran status, marital status, familial status, ancestry, genetics, or any other class or characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. Candidates from populations underrepresented in the theater field are strongly encouraged to apply.