Customer Experience Manager

Description:

Join Royal & Derngate as our next Customer Experience Manager. If you're passionate about delivering exceptional customer service, leading high-performing teams, and creating memorable visitor experiences, this is your chance to make a real impact in one of the region's leading cultural venues.

About the RoleKey Task Areas:

Customer Experience & Customer Journey

• Lead delivery of an exceptional customer experience across both venues.

• Maintain a visible, approachable presence, particularly during busy periods.

• Ensure a consistent, welcoming and inclusive customer journey.

• Identify and implement customer journey improvements.

• Ensure Front of House teams consistently deliver Customer Experience Handbook standards.

• Work across the organisation to resolve issues and improve processes.

• Ensure inclusive support for customers with access requirements.

• Promote a strong culture of hospitality.

Front of House & Venue Operations

• Oversee effective Front of House operations during all activity including keyholder and alarm responsibilities.

• Set staffing and rotas to meet operational, service and safety needs within budget, correcting actual or forecast variances.

• Brief teams clearly on event requirements, risks and customer priorities.

• Liaise effectively with visiting companies, hirers, artists and colleagues.

• Ensure venues are prepared, presented and staffed before opening including VIP Lounge and related services.

• Maintain high standards of cleanliness, presentation and customer facilities.

• Check customer areas regularly and resolve issues promptly.

• Resolve operational issues and escalate appropriately.

Leadership & People Management

• Act as Duty Manager when required and provide visible, supportive leadership to Customer Experience colleagues.

• Line manage designated colleagues, providing supervision, feedback and development.

• Manage performance, attendance, conduct and employee relations with the Head of Customer Experience.

• Identify training needs and support the Customer Experience training programme.

• Ensure colleagues understand and can fulfil their responsibilities.

• Recognise excellent service and team performance.

Volunteers

• Support volunteer recruitment, induction, training and management.

• Ensure volunteers are briefed, supported and valued.

• Develop volunteer engagement, training and progression with the Head of Customer Experience.

• Ensure volunteers understand their role in the customer journey and culture.

Commercial, Budget & Financial Management

• Manage relevant income and expenditure within agreed budgets and targets.

• Monitor actual and forecast performance against budget and identify material variances promptly.

• Correct income shortfalls or overspends and escalate significant risks or variances.

• Support budgets and forecasts with accurate operational information on pressures and opportunities.

• Control staffing and other costs within budget while maintaining service and safety.

• Support commercial objectives through service and secondary-spend opportunities.

• Coach teams to increase appropriate upselling and customer spend without compromising experience.

• Oversee bars, retail and other customer-facing commercial activity.

• Monitor sales and financial performance against budget, understand variances and act on underperformance.

• Ensure effective stock, ordering, cash and EPOS controls to minimise waste, loss and discrepancies.

• Maintain high presentation standards in retail and bar areas.

• Implement commercial initiatives, promotions and new products.

Health, Safety, Safeguarding & Compliance

• Maintain a safe environment for customers, colleagues, volunteers and visiting companies.

• Ensure Health & Safety procedures are followed and communicated.

• Manage emergency procedures, including evacuation, lockdown and vulnerable-person incidents.

• Identify hazards, risks and maintenance issues and ensure action is taken.

• Ensure compliance with licensing and relevant legislation.

• Hold, or work towards, required First Aid qualifications.

• Contribute to relevant Health & Safety, Operations and safeguarding meetings.

General

• Work collaboratively across Royal & Derngate and Northampton Filmhouse.

• Represent the organisation professionally with customers and partners.

• Support organisational sustainability initiatives and ensure that customer experience minimises its impact on the environment.

• Attend relevant meetings and training.

• Undertake other reasonable duties as required.

• Work evenings, weekends, Bank Holidays and other hours required by venue operations.

Responsibilities are shared across the Customer Experience Manager team. Each post-holder has specific accountabilities while collaborating to provide consistent operational leadership across both venues.

Requirements

Essential Experience:

• Significant customer-facing management or supervisory experience in entertainment, hospitality, leisure, cultural or visitor environments.

• Experience leading and motivating teams in fast-paced operations.

• Experience delivering consistently high customer service standards.

• Experience dealing professionally with diverse customers.

• Experience resolving challenging situations and customer issues.

• Experience of working with EPOS/till systems.

• Experience of managing or supporting volunteers and/or casual staff

• Experience working evenings, weekends and busy periods.

• Experience managing income and expenditure against budgets or targets and acting on variances.

Essential Knowledge/Qualifications:

• Strong understanding of customer experience and the customer journey.

• Understanding of Health & Safety and safe working practices.

• Understanding of safeguarding responsibilities.

• Understanding of equality, diversity, inclusion and accessibility.

• Understanding of commercial service and secondary-income opportunities.

• Understanding of theatre, cinema or comparable venue operations.

• Willingness to develop knowledge of licensing and relevant legislation.

Essential Skills/Abilities:

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

• Strong leadership and people management skills.

• Calm, confident and solution-focused under pressure.

• Excellent organisational and time-management skills.

• Strong decision-making and problem-solving ability.

• Ability to prioritise in a busy, unpredictable environment.

• Ability to build positive relationships with customers, colleagues, volunteers and partners.

• Ability to coach colleagues and improve performance.

• Strong financial and commercial awareness; able to manage budgets, explain variances and take corrective action.

• Good IT skills, including Microsoft Office and operational systems.

• Ability to use data and feedback to improve customer experience.

• Commitment to equality, diversity, inclusion and a welcoming environment

Desirable Experience:

• Experience in theatre, cinema, arts, cultural or entertainment environments.

• Experience of managing Duty Managers or Front of House teams.

• Experience of working with volunteers.

• Experience delivering customer or operational training.

• Experience developing or implementing customer service standards.

• Experience managing events, performances or large customer operations.

Desirable Knowledge/Qualifications:

• Personal Licence Holder, or willingness to obtain one.

• First Aid at Work qualification.

• Knowledge of licensing law and premises/event licences.

• Knowledge of EPOS and stock management systems.

• Understanding of theatre/cinema operations and cross-departmental working.

How to Apply:

Please submit a covering letter outlining your interest and how your skills and experience fit the requirements of the role, along with your CV.

Closing Date: Wed 4th Nov 26

Interviews: 12th & 13th Nov 26