Manager, Events and Hospitality Services

Application Deadline: October 14, 2024

Annual salary: $60,000 – $65,000, Comprehensive benefits package

Term: Full-time, Permanent

About Us

The Gardiner Museum leverages the powerful storytelling attributes of ceramics as well as its rich history and universality to engage audiences of diverse backgrounds and experiences. As an essential civic institution in the city of Toronto, the Museum presents a full roster of exhibitions, programs, and hands-on classes, while stewarding a permanent collection of international significance. With over 5,000 objects from the Ancient Americas, Europe, Japan, and China, as well as an important collection of contemporary Canadian and international works, the Gardiner is among the few museums focused on ceramics and is one of the world’s most notable specialty museums.

This is an exciting time to join the Gardiner team as we celebrate our 40th anniversary in 2024, undertake a new strategic plan, and embark on a transformational renovation of our ground floor.

Our Venues

The Museum’s third floor houses a stunning minimalist event space with floor to ceiling windows, two patios, and remarkable views of Queen’s Park and the Royal Ontario Museum. Our 1300 sq. ft. newly-renovated Terrace Room, which serves as a restaurant and event rental space, is one of the city’s most sought-after venues for weddings and special events. The Terrace Room accommodates 140 guests for dining or a lecture style event, and up to 250 guests for a standing cocktail reception. Also on the Museum’s third floor, the Exhibition Hall, available on select dates from June - September, can be rented in combination with the Terrace Room, creating almost 5000 sq. ft. of venue space. Groups can also rent the spacious 1,000 sq. ft. lobby, or the Gardiner Plaza, nestled in our terraced garden.

The Gardiner Museum plays host to approximately 80-100 externally booked events year-round.

Job Summary

The Museum is seeking an energetic and customer-focused Manager, Events and Hospitality Services to join our organization. Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer, the Manager, Events and Hospitality Services is a key member of the Operations team. This role manages relationships with the Museum’s restaurant operator and clients including weddings, galas, receptions, private parties, product launches, and corporate events. The Manager, Events and Hospitality Services supports the revenue-generating operations of the Museum, including developing and monitoring the associated budgets to ensure that they meet or exceed revenue targets, and works closely with other departments, particularly with Curatorial, Marketing, and Development, to direct and supervise related staff and vendors to ensure efficient and effective operations. This role currently has no direct reports.

Hospitality Management

• Act as primary point of contact with our restaurant operator and external event planners.
• Oversee all event and space rental inquiries, ensuring exceptional client and patron experiences.
• Lead contract negotiations with preferred vendors at the Museum and identify new prospects.
• Address issues as they arise in relation to hospitality and restaurant facilities with the Manager, Facility Operations, and Chief Financial Officer.
• Oversee reviews and revisions to venue contracts and package as required.
• Organize and track in-depth financial information for the hospitality activities including venue rental fees, landmark fees, labor costs, and music licensing fees.
• Analyze and report on historical and current hospitality data to support the further development of hospitality activities. Identify and implement strategies to promote venue rental sales.
• Oversee Hospitality budget in collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer.
• Coordinate venue rental marketing strategies with managing caterer and the Museum’s Marketing team.
• Manage filming requests at the Museum.
• Assist in tracking and implementing all relevant guidelines, by-laws, and Health and Safety legislation that informs meeting and event spaces.
• Provide direction to Museum Security and Facilities Management as required.
• Consult cross-functionally with all Museum departments on issues related to hospitality, including internal functions and fundraising events.

Business Development and Event Supervision

• Identify and implement new and innovative rental opportunities for the Museum, including working with the Senior Manager, Marketing on promotional materials
• Work with corporate events organizers to develop long-term relationships and partnerships for events, exhibitions, and other programming.
• Manage all logistical needs and management of event site details by providing comprehensive plans, documentation, and communication across all departments and stakeholders.
• Oversee external event set-up and execution for externally booked events, as required, including weekends and evenings, to ensure client expectations are met.
• Responsible for meeting or exceeding budget targets and managing all budget lines related to revenue along with associated expenses.
• Monitor financial activity ensuring accurate and complete reports, adhering to all appropriate organizational policies and procedures.
• Organize and lead the weekly production meeting.
• Oversee event set up as required and act as a point of contact for troubleshooting, execution, and delegation of activities.
• Keep detailed post-event reports and provide analysis when needed.

Required Skills & Competencies

• Strong analytical, decision making, and problem-solving skills. Able to draw insightful conclusions from information and data. Assess situations to determine importance, urgency, and risks, and make clear and timely decisions in the best interests of the Gardiner Museum.
• Customer-focused. Anticipate, understand, and respond to the needs of others in a way that exceeds expectations.
• Attention to detail. Recognize and appreciate that details matter.
• Diplomatic, strong negotiator, and exemplary interpersonal skills.

Qualifications:

• Post-secondary education in Hospitality, Event Management, Business Administration, Marketing, or related discipline or an equivalent combination of relevant work experience and training.
• Minimum four years of experience in hospitality, event management, preferably in a cultural facility.
• Strong financial and resource management experience.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• History of success in customer service and client engagement.
• Supervisory experience required.

Working Conditions:

• The working arrangement for this position has been designated as onsite. No hybrid arrangements are possible.
• Lifting objects not exceeding 15 lbs
• Will regularly be required to work outside normal business hours (evenings and weekends) to ensure successful execution of events.

A competitive Health & Benefit package, a matching Group RRSP plan, as well as support for professional development are available to the successful candidate.

The Gardiner Museum is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from qualified candidates from visible and invisible minority group members, women, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, persons across the spectrum of sexual orientation and gender identities and others with the skills and knowledge to productively engage with diverse communities. We are committed to hiring on merit and to removing barriers in employment policies.

Reasonable accommodation for disabilities will be provided, on request, to support applicants’ participation in all aspects of the recruitment and selection process.

To apply, candidates should submit a letter of interest and CV in one PDF document by October 14, 2024 at 5 pm to hr@gardinermuseum.on.ca. Please reference “Manager, Events and Hospitality Services” in the subject line. No phone calls or visits please. For further information on the Gardiner Museum, please refer to our website: www.gardinermuseum.on.ca.

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.