Business Manager (Part-Time)

PART-TIME BUSINESS MANAGER

About Puppet Showplace Theater:

Located in Brookline, MA, Puppet Showplace Theater (PST) has been dedicated to presenting outstanding puppetry to diverse audiences through performances, workshops, and community outreach activities since 1974. Now celebrating our 50th anniversary year, PST is focused on expanding affordable access; increasing representation, inclusion, and cultural stories; investing in artists and their work; listening to, expanding, and celebrating our audience; and updating our historic Brookline Village theater through an exciting renovation project.

Position Summary:

Puppet Showplace Theater seeks a someone with business & finance skills to join our leadership team in a part-time capacity. Working closely with the Executive Artistic Director (EAD), the Board of Trustees, our bookkeeper and accountant, you would lead all business and operational needs and be a key team member supporting our small theater. This can be an on-site role, or a hybrid role consisting of some remote work and enough in-person connection to our physical theater in Brookline Village.

As a key contributor on a small team, you will be an integral part of a beloved 50-year-old cultural institution that facilitates joy and connection for 20,000 theatergoers each year, ranging from babies to seniors. You will report directly to our Executive Artistic Director (EAD) and work with a small team of 3 FT and 2-4 PT staff, with opportunities to propose your ideas and lead projects and areas of impact, and contribute to culture-building during a time of growth.

Qualifications:

RESPONSIBILITIES may include some combination of the following:

Budget & financial management

• Prepare reports for the EAD and Board, andconduct business analyses (of revenue, attendance, buyer behavior, program activity, etc.) to evaluate the success of operations and programming, enabling team members to make modifications that respond to analysis of cost, impact, and level of service to our mission.
• Prepare and track against annual operating budgets with input from the organization and active collaboration with the EAD. Help to create and track program-specific budgets and set targets for earned and contributed revenue in collaboration with EAD and other team members.
• Contribute to strategic decisions around pricing, discounting, and other sales tactics for earned revenue across our product categories: ticketed shows, classes for adults, vacation week classes for children, membership program, pre-sales of tickets, field trips, touring shows, and birthday parties.
• Assist with preparing project and program budgets for grants, and submitting grant reports after the programs are completed.
• With Executive Artistic Director, set sales & donations goals. Empower and support the team to meet targets, including regular data-based reporting on progress.

Finance, bookkeeping, accounting

• Monitor, prioritize, and authorize expenditures in accordance with approved budgets and to inform decision-making about programs, negotiations with subcontractors, etc.
• Supervise accounts payable and receivables, overseeing the bookkeeping team and ensuring that artists, contractors, staff payroll, and expenses are paid promptly, that receivables remain current, and that good relations are maintained with all of our vendors, donors, partners, and contractors.
• Ensure that all necessary tax forms and fees are submitted to federal and state governments. Work with our accountant, bookkeeper, and Treasurer to provide the necessary support for our audit, insurance, and other business needs.

Staffing & Human Resources

• Assist EAD with staffing & resource planning and human resources operations and processes related to recruitment, interviewing, hiring, onboarding, as well as off boarding, leave, and other staff transitions; annual reviews and salary adjustments; updating job descriptions and the employee handbook; and tracking paid time off for staff.
• With Artistic Associate and EAD, manage, issue, and organize artist contracts and staff employment agreements.

EXPERIENCE & QUALIFICATIONS:

• You have familiarity and experience with budgets — developing, working within, and tracking against project and/or organizational budgets.
• Experience with Quickbooks, Excel, and accounts payable and receivable
• You’re someone who speaks numbers and understands how to turn data into information that the team can use. You’re good friends with Excel, you’re familiar with Quickbooks and/or other bookkeeping tools, you are comfortable learning to query a database (our current CRM is Blackbaud Altru, and we will be transitioning to a new CRM this summer), and creative in your approach to working the available data to answer key questions around our business and mission.
• You are detail-oriented, proactive, and excited to work on a small team where each team member’s contribution makes a big impact.

Excited by our mission but not sure? Your skill set doesn’t match exactly but you feel it could be a great match? We value non-traditional professional paths and diverse lived experiences and know that many wonderful professionals experience imposter syndrome. Even if you don’t match every requirement, applying gives you the opportunity to be considered and start a conversation.

EMPLOYMENT DETAILS:

• 15-20 hours/week, $30-40/hour, depending on experience
• Includes paid time off, pro-rated for half-time status
• There is a possibility of this role growing to full-time over the next 2 years. We are open to both candidates who are, and are not, interested in growing to 3/4 or full-time. We also do not expect that growth to happen within the first year.
• Location: This can be an on-site role, or a hybrid role consisting of some remote work and enough in-person connection to our physical theater in Brookline Village.
• This role also includes discounted/free access to shows, workshops, vacation week/summer camp-style programs, and our puppet store.
• Proof of vaccination against COVID-19, and CORI/SORI background check is required.

Accessibility & Location:

On-site work will typically take place on-site at our theater at 32 Station Street, Brookline, MA. Our building has a wheelchair-accessible entrance and bathroom, and all areas the team member will need to access are wheelchair-accessible. This role requires the ability to work on a computer for multiple consecutive hours and work in an environment that is sometimes loud or crowded.

We are directly across the street from the Brookline Village T station on the MBTA Green “D” Line, a 10 minute walk from the Green “E” line, and close to several bus lines, including the 66 and 65. Paid street parking is available, and free parking may be possible though cannot be guaranteed.

Puppet Showplace Theater is an equal opportunity employer, and does not discriminate based on race, religion, age, sexual orientation, gender identification, or physical ability, and is deeply committed to equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility.

How To Apply:

APPLICATION FORM:

Please use the form linked below to send us your resume (required), cover letter (appreciated but optional; we wish to respect the time it takes applicants to prepare), and short statement of interest (required):

https://forms.gle/kNevjzZk8Ly5jMDA8

About this Organization:

Puppet Showplace Theater is dedicated to presenting outstanding puppetry to diverse audiences through performances, workshops, and community outreach activities.

Puppet Showplace Theater is New England’s center for puppetry arts. Each year, we present over 300 performances by professional puppet companies to audiences of all ages at our intimate Brookline Village theater. Our touring productions reach thousands more at schools, libraries, theaters, and cultural centers throughout the Northeast region and beyond. We offer workshops, classes, summer programs, and training opportunities to both children and adults, and we partner with local and emerging artists to develop new and innovative puppetry productions.

• After decades in operation, our theater has become a treasured cultural institution. Puppet Showplace is run by an experienced staff and volunteer board of trustees. We are supported by contributions from individual donors, local businesses, and foundation and government grants. From children’s birthday party performances to provocative Puppets at Night shows, our programming is designed to reach a large and diverse audience of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities.