Organisation: Be Smart About Art Ltd.
Hours: 8-16 hours per week

Remuneration: £20 ph first three months and £22.50 ph after successful onboarding period 

Engagement type: Contractor 

Deadline to apply: 8th August 2023
Interviews will take place: via Zoom

Send your CV and cover letter to: [email protected]

Be Smart About Art

Be Smart About Art is an online-accessible professional development and networking platform focused on supporting micro art businesses.

Founded in 2012 by Susan J Mumford, the original program encompassed a membership networking (incl. a monthly networking event in London, online connectivity and resources and a partners’ program); a regular program of talks and panel discussions with industry insiders and leaders; online and in-person professional development workshops; online courses; mentoring and business development support; and a book providing career support.

The program has relaunched as a platform that champions the following actions for impact: Participate > Connect > Grow. The program features a members’ network (incl. a weekly #MemberMeetUp, access to member-only videos, audio recordings and posts), a shop that provides vetted products (physical + digital) for support the careers of small art business owners (artists, gallerists, and related) and our signature #ArtBizBootcamp course as well as individual  professional development workshops. 

Role overview

This independent contractor position is an opportunity to play a pivotal role in a community that actively supports and develops the careers of micro art businesses, primarily artists and art dealers. Embracing change and sector interruption is vital to surviving and thriving in the art market today, and the successful candidate will play an important role in members’ careers.

The individual’s areas of focus are:

>> Operational Oversight: Provide strategic direction and supervision to ensure smooth and efficient program delivery. Develop and implement standard operating procedures (SOPs) to streamline processes and enhance productivity.

>> Operational efficiency: Put in place integrations between platforms to avoid data duplication and keep information up to date. Regularly monitor and update as necessary.

>> Resource Management: Effectively manage and allocate company resources, including IP assets, budget and team, to meet operational objectives and business goals.

>> Team Leadership: Lead, mentor, and motivate the team to achieve high performance and maintain a positive work environment. Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.

>> Performance Monitoring: Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to measure the effectiveness and efficiency of operations, working closely with the Head of Content and Comms to evaluate and develop online engagement.

>> Quality Assurance: Ensure that products or services meet quality standards and customer expectations, notably online programs. Develop and enforce quality control measures and protocols.

>> Risk Management: Identify potential operational risks and develop strategies to mitigate them.

>> Supplier Management: Collaborate with external vendors to monitor performance and ensure delivery of agreed-upon terms.

>> Continuous Improvement: Drive a culture of continuous improvement by fostering innovative ideas and implementing best practices across operations. Change is the only constant!

Onboarding:
The individual will be onboarded by the Managing Director and Founder, who will continue to provide top-level leadership with a weekly management meeting to hold the individual accountable and to provide inspiration and motivation to meet aims and objectives.

Key Qualities of the successful candidate:

Self-starter with art market experience who values collaboration and thrives on learning how to use new technological innovations to be efficient, avoid mistakes and leave time for doing what only the human mind can do – all with a mindset for lifelong learning.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in the arts and/or business, with advanced qualifications a bonus.
• Proven experience as an Operations Manager or similar leadership role, preferably within the sector.
• Strong understanding of business processes (AP vs AR in accounts, for example) and how the art world works.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills – thinking “outside of the box”.
• Outstanding communication and interpersonal abilities to effectively collaborate with various stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience in managing teams.
• Proficient in using productivity and project management tools.
• Flexibility to adapt to changing priorities and work effectively as needed.

Platforms used:

Core applications being employed include (and are not limited to) Asana, Google Suite (Drive, Gmail, Analytics, Admin Console), Hubspot, Slack, Zoom, WordPress, Eventbrite, Vimeo, YouTube, iMovie, Meta, Facebook, Bufferapp, Instagram, Twitter / X, LinkedIn, Canva and Libsyn. ,  

Other requirements:

• Hours of work: Flexible according to your availability, with the ability to commit to set meeting dates/times. There are weekly team meetings and monthly campaign reviews.
• Place of work: The position is location independent.
• Equipment:  Your own laptop and work space (remote working, for example from home)

Time-keeping and invoicing:

The successful candidate will be responsible to keep an accurate record of the hours worked, invoicing Be Smart About Art on a monthly basis. Payment will be made by the organisation’s HQ in London, UK. As this is a freelance position, the contractor will be fully responsible for taxes and any other necessary filings.

Interested in applying?

Follow instructions at the top of this role description. We look forward to hearing from you, providing the role description jumps out as being made for your skillset and interests!