General Manager

If you want this choice position, have a cheery disposition… and a good head for business.

The Motley Bauhaus is looking for an experienced General Manager to help guide, shape and grow an established, much-loved independent arts business and the creative community that surrounds it.

You must have experience managing a team and be able to work independently, whilst incorporating direction from the Motley Director, you’ll take responsibility for the people, programming, finances and daily operations that keep the Motley thriving. 

This is not a position for people who stress easily or need a low stimulus environment. Every day is different, every week brings a new set of challenges. Tensions can get high, and issues do occur. Sometimes big decisions need to be made in the moment. This is a world where people care a lot and that can have the effect of dramatically raising the stakes. We need someone who can navigate their way through with calm reason and measured response. 

Don’t panic. It’s just art. Both vitality important and utter frivolity. The venue staff want a supportive and structured work environment, the artists are here to build their career and change the world, and the audience just want a good time.  You need to be able to balance all those needs whilst staying focussed on the bottom line.

We need someone who has a background in businesses and knows how to make them grow. We want someone who understands what makes the Motley special and has ideas about where it could go next.

Have a read of our manifesto:

https://themotley.com.au/about.html

About you

You bring sound judgment, personal accountability and experience leading a team. You know how to work with different personalities, communicate expectations clearly and create an environment where people feel supported and do their best work.

You have a good head for business, can look at stats and spreadsheets and use them to make good decisions that grow and nurture the business. You understand that the only way the keep the wheels of creativity turning is with a strong cash flow..

You’re approachable, curious and good company. You enjoy working with artists and front of house staff, and you can handle difficult conversations with warmth and confidence. You take the work seriously while keeping a good sense of humour.

When someone brings you an ambitious or unusual idea, your instinct is to work together to find how to make it happen. You can use the reality of constraints and turn them into opportunities for growth, whilst making sensible decisions about resources.

You’re also organised and financially capable. You can move between immediate demands and longer-term projects without losing track of commitments, budgets or deadlines. You notice what needs attention, follow things through and help others stay focused and tightly manage the budget.

Above all, you have an active connection to the arts. You understand the independent sector, value its communities and want to contribute to its future. Familiarity with the Motley—as an artist, audience member, collaborator or colleague—will be highly regarded. 

The role

Lead and support the team

• Manage the team and wider community, from venue staff, to presenting partners, audience members and all associated peoples of the Motley. Know who is who and keep everyone working together.
• Set clear priorities, allocate responsibilities and follow up to ensure work is completed.
• Help to coordinate staffing and rostering with the relevant managers, balancing event requirements, service quality and wage costs.
• Address performance issues, disagreements and operational problems promptly and fairly.
• Build a collaborative workplace where people can contribute ideas and take responsibility.

Shape and manage the program

• Maintain a full, varied and engaging weekly program across the Motley spaces.
• Manage the venue calendar, balancing performances, exhibitions, regular activities, rehearsals, private functions and other bookings.
• Actively develop bookings and relationships rather than relying solely on incoming enquiries.
• Work with the Director and festival programmers to deliver a full program throughout the year.
• Identify gaps in the calendar early and develop ways to fill them.
• Balance artistic ambition, community access and commercial viability.
• Develop new events, partnerships and recurring activities that strengthen the venue’s identity and income.

Keep the finances on track

• Establish budgets, monitor performance and manage operating costs.
• Keep a close eye on wages, purchasing, stock use and event profitability.
• Review weekly results and act when income or expenditure moves away from expectations.
• Identify savings and improve efficiency whilst maintaining the quality of the venue’s program and service.
• Ensure booking charges, deposits, invoices and artist settlements are coordinated accurately and on time.
• Assess new opportunities with a clear understanding of their costs, staffing needs and likely returns.

Work with artists and the community

• Be a welcoming, reliable point of contact for artists, producers, hirers and collaborators.
• Oversee the booking process, including enquiries, agreements, production requirements and internal handovers.
• Ensure artists understand the venue’s facilities, responsibilities, costs and promotional arrangements.
• Build lasting relationships with emerging and established artists.
• Maintain a visible presence in the venue and the wider arts community.
• Help make the Motley a place where people feel welcome, supported and encouraged to return.

Support the day-to-day operations.

• Oversee daily operations so the venue is prepared, staffed and ready for its program.
• Coordinate with front-of-house management on bar operations, patron experience, stock, presentation and service.
• Keep communication flowing between programming, production, hospitality and marketing.
• Maintain practical systems for bookings, schedules, records and task management.
• Coordinate maintenance, suppliers and contractors.
• Respond to incidents and unexpected problems, ensuring appropriate follow-up.
• Support operations at the WhereHaus, coordinating shared staff and resources where appropriate.

Coordinate production, technical needs and safety

• Oversee the planning and delivery of events with the production team.
• Ensure technical requirements are identified early, achievable within the venue and communicated clearly.
• Coordinate crew, equipment, access and production schedules.
• Oversee equipment care, maintenance and replacement planning.
• Provide practical assistance when needed and arrange specialist support where required.
• Ensure staff, artists and hirers receive appropriate inductions and understand relevant safety procedures.
• Oversee compliance with venue capacities, licensing conditions and workplace safety requirements.

Help develop the Motley’s future

• Bring ideas for strengthening the program, improving operations and growing sustainable income.
• Develop partnerships with artists, festivals, community organisations and other venues.
• Work with marketing staff to give events timely, coordinated promotional support.
• Improve systems as the organisation develops.
• Help turn creative ambitions into realistic plans with clear responsibilities, budgets and timelines.

Some Specifics…ish

Management.

This role reports directly to the Director of The Motley Bauhaus and works closely with them on the venue’s direction, finances and future development.

You’ll lead a core team of approximately five people across areas including front of house, production, programming and marketing. You’ll also oversee a casual workforce of approximately five to fifteen staff, depending on the season and the demands of the program.

Hours and flexibility

This role generally operates around 10am–6pm, with some flexibility in start and finish times. Depending on what is happening at the venue, a day might instead run 11am–7pm, or later when your presence is needed for an event, meeting or operational issue.

The intention is to arrange hours around the needs of the venue and the person in the role. For example, if you stay later one day, you may start later the next, if you need to leave early one day you can work longer the next… Sometimes working from home is fine. Some evening and weekend availability will be needed, particularly during busy periods and festivals. Hours and arrangements can be discussed with the successful applicant.

This role suits someone who enjoys having responsibility for a lively venue, can plan their own time and is comfortable adjusting their schedule when the program calls for it.

Experience and capabilities

We’re particularly interested in applicants who can demonstrate:

• Experience managing people in an arts, hospitality, events or venue environment.
• Experience with finance, including budgeting, cost control and managing business performance.
• Strong organisation and consistent follow-through.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work constructively with a broad range of people.
• Experience coordinating events, programming or artist relationships.
• An understanding of hospitality operations and the practical demands of a public-facing venue.
• Resourcefulness, initiative and calm decision-making under pressure.
• A working understanding of production and technical requirements, with the judgment to seek specialist advice when needed.
• A connection to Melbourne’s independent arts community and an interest in the Motley’s place within it.

We welcome different professional backgrounds and ways of thinking. You may be an arts manager with substantial hospitality experience, a venue operator with strong creative connections, or someone whose career brings these areas together.

This role sometimes includes evening and weekend work and requires a regular presence during the venue’s operating hours.