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Essential Functions & Objectives

The Alserkal Programmes Manager plays a key role in shaping the profile of Alserkal through the development of public programmes, multi-disciplinary initiatives and related projects involving members of the Alserkal Avenue community. The position plays a key role within a newly developed Special Projects team that will focus on increasing the visibility of Alserkal Avenue as a creative community and the region’s foremost destination for contemporary arts and culture. The role will work closely across Alserkal central teams to help deliver the organisation’s strategic goals by increasing financial sustainability and audience growth while maintaining and growing its position as a leading arts and culture programmer in the region.

This full-time position reports directly to the Special Projects Director.

Key Responsibilities:

Alserkal Programming & Community Activations

• Ideate, develop, manage and execute an exciting and rigorous year-round, multi-disciplinary public programme of talks, workshops, performances, film screenings and tours.

•These are experimental, and innovative interdisciplinary projects that bring together visual arts, music, performance, design, dance, theatre, commissions, public events, and special projects that engage Alserkal Avenue’s community and beyond.

•The activations must take into account the art galleries and creative spaces within Alserkal Avenue to ensure alignment and consistent programming that promotes the Avenue as the foremost creative community in the region.

•Ideate and manage a robust and engaging Ramadan programme that activates the Avenue at least twice a week during the Holy Month, in collaboration with our community members.

•Work closely with the community relations team to develop activations based on community feedback and needs.

•Ensure community-led activations are successfully executed keeping in mind a focus on footfall and commercial promotion of community members’ products and services.

•Build relationships with all community members with a view to create public programming that highlights their offering and draws attention to their concept while also appealing to the general public

•Liaise with internal teams on warehouse takeovers by partners, educational institutions, design initiatives, etc.

Special Projects

•Manage and ideate content for Quoz Arts Fest, including an overarching theme and activations through the two-day festival.

•Ideate, manage and execute programmes that feed into Alserkal Avenue community events such as Alsekral Art Week (in March and November) to ensure at least 10 activations by Alserkal Avenue during such special projects.

•Ideate and introduce new projects and activations that attract new and returning audiences to Alserkal Avenue.

•Work closely with Special Projects team to develop sponsorship opportunities and proposals for projects.

•Work closely with the Director of Special Projects to ideate and manage programming by Alserkal outside of Alserkal Avenue.

•Develop and manage collaborations with other organisations on engagement activities alongside the Special projects Director with a focus on content creation and control.

Project & Team Management

•Take charge of the delivery of all Alserkal Programmes, acting as the project manager and overseeing all programmes from concept through to execution, including project plans, deadlines, team assignments and progress reports.

•Manage team members, providing guidance, setting goals and managing day-to-day workload.

•Create and manage a process for content collation, including but limited to writing the concept notes for programmes, briefing the marketing team on themes and inspirations, and assigning deadlines as required.

•Coordinate with Marketing, Special Projects Team and Facilities Manager, to ensure successful implementation of public programmes.

•Oversee and share programmes calendar and coordinate with wider community programming and special projects calendar to avoid any clashes in scheduling.

•Work with Community Relations Manager to ensure all community members are aware of the events calendar and that any programmes they may have are incorporated to the extent possible.

•Manage any compliance-related matters associated with Alserkal-led Programmes

•Manage budgets and petty cash floats related to community events.

Required skills + experience

•5+ years’ experience in a fast-paced, high-volume environment in a related field

•A proven track record in project management and the delivery of projects with budgets exceeding AED 300,000

•An in-depth understanding and appreciation of the current public engagement and positioning of Alserkal Avenue

•A demonstrable understanding of, and commitment to arts and culture

•Attention to detail and efficient problem solving

•Educated to a Bachelor’s degree level or equivalent and holding relevant professional qualifications.

•A demonstrable understanding of, and commitment to arts and culture within MENA and Internationally

•Excellent organisational and administrative skills

•Excellent budget-keeping and reporting skills

•Excellent writing and communication skills

•Work experience in the GCC or wider region desirable

•Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work effectively as part of a team

•Ability to develop positive, cooperative relationships across functional boundaries.

•Self-motivated, with the ability to work within an ambiguous constantly changing environment

Position type and expected hours of work

This is a full-time position. Days and hours of work are Monday through Friday, from 10am to 6pm. Saturdays and overtime might be required during intense periods and/or during special projects and events.

This job description summarises the main key responsibilities of your role but there may be other reasonable requests made and other responsibilities included from time to time.