Experience Manager

Blandford Nature Center • Grand Rapids, MI

19d • $42,000 - $47,000

About The Position

The Experience Manager is responsible for providing clear, strategic, and positive leadership for the work and staff of the newly restructured Guest Experience department consisting of the Experience Manager (Manager) who supervises three part-time staff working at the front desk of the Visitor Center. Each staff member focuses on their respective admin specialty areas - volunteer coordination, retail gift shop/facility rentals, and guest engagement. All support welcoming, hospitality, innovation, and achievement of departmental goals. The Manager reports to the Director of Development and is part of a cohort of managers for cross departmental learning, support, and collaboration.

In collaboration with the Director, this position co-creates the vision and strategic plan for the Guest Experience Department, and is the lead to ensure the plan is effectively and efficiently implemented, assessed, and revised as needed to meet goals, foster welcoming and belonging amongst guests, and provide excellent customer service.

This is a new structure. The core responsibilities and goals below will be rolled out in phases and supported by three part-time Guest Experience department staff members, Director of Development, and volunteers, including the new retail taskforce.

Requirements

• Interpersonal and management skills including a demonstrated ability to collaborate with colleagues and volunteers
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including occasional early mornings, evenings, weekends, and in critical situations as required
• Comfort working in an open workspace environment
• Excitement to build and implement plans, strategies, and processes to achieve goals
• Ability to speak in front of medium to large audiences, and build relationships with community partners.
• Demonstrated success working in a retail environment, hospitality and with volunteers
• Experience in overseeing cash-handling
• Demonstrated experience supervising staff, building teams, and a working knowledge of standard workplace procedures, techniques, and guidelines.
• A high level of energy to innovate and execute all aspects of the Guest Experience department, in partnership with the team.
• Discretion, ethics, and confidentiality in working with confidential and sensitive information.
• Proficiency with computers, typing, internet searches, data management, point of sales systems, Google Suite, and Microsoft Office applications
• Organizational and time management skills, with an ability to prioritize and manage projects on a deadline and with quality
• Enthusiasm, poise, flexibility, and a welcoming and approachable demeanor
• A positive attitude and ability to role-model professional behavior and high emotional intelligence
• A passion for the organization’s mission, vision, and values
• The desire to engage diverse communities and build community relationships

Responsibilities

• Cultivate welcoming, belonging, and inclusion amongst staff, through Department services, and throughout the organization.
• Inspire, train, supervise and evaluate Guest Experience team to connect guests with BNC programs, retail offerings, experiences, volunteer opportunities, and membership
• Provide recommendations for operation and policy enhancements of the Visitor Center, Guest Experience Department, and other departments that meet the needs of BNC and its guests. Develop strategy for improvements as appropriate.
• Collaborate with department managers to maximize experiences for BNC guests within the Visitor Center and organizational-wide initiatives such as volunteer experiences, special events, and admission free months.
• Manage Guest Experience team schedule and ensure appropriate coverage for Visitor Center hours.
• Prepare, propose, and maintain a fiscally responsible budget. Ensure accuracy through monthly reports and meetings with the Director of Finance. Set and meet revenue goals from retail gift shop (store and on-line), facility rentals, admissions, memberships, and add-on guest experiences.
• Cultivate and manage the retail taskforce and help manage other appropriate organizational volunteer committees.
• Through leadership, training, and accountability measures, ensure volunteer experiences are meaningful, engaging, and well organized.This will include the creation of volunteer coordination protocols and systems with admin support from staff.
• Set and implement the vision and strategy for volunteer recruitment, engagement, training, deployment, and appreciation for the organization.
• In collaboration with the leadership and managers team, innovate and lead efforts to embed meaningful volunteer experiences and leadership throughout operations.
• Ensure protocols and goals of volunteer experiences are accomplished, while actively looking for efficiencies and inclusion potential.
• Revise and ensure protocols of guest experience operations are effectively and efficiently implemented.
• Train and supervise a team of volunteers and staff to respond to guest inquiries (on-site, on-line, and via telephone) in a timely and professional manner, and ensure guests are connected with appropriate BNC resources and information.
• Create strategy to quantify and enhance guest experiences, and ensure the creation and utilization of tools to collect and track data on a monthly basis, such as survey results and demographic data.
• In collaboration and with admin support of the staff, generate add-on admission experiences, passive enrichment options, and guided interpretive experiences for guests as they independently explore the grounds and buildings of BNC.
• Set and implement the vision and strategy to meet Gift Shop/Retail goals, such as maximize revenue, diversify vendors, and expand sales to online.
• Train a team of staff and volunteers in inventory management and retail protocol.
• Leadership to train and support part-time admin staff person to order merchandise, price for profitability, ensure prompt payment to vendors, and general daily operations of the gift shop and online sales.
• In collaboration with the marketing and communications team, co-create and help implement marketing strategy to maximize sales and increase vendor diversity and opportunities with BNC.
• Ensure visual appeal, cleanliness, and organization of Gift Shop merchandise in coordination with the Guest Experience team.
• Innovate retail point of sale (POS) process for continued efficiencies and profitability.
• Lead the retail taskforce composed of staff, a board member, expert facilitator, and community members with the task of establishing retail goals (quantitative and qualitative), strategies to achieve those goals, and support in implementation and reimaging the physical and online stores to foster welcoming and revenue.
• Set and implement the vision and strategy to improve facility rental marketing, operations, and protocols to maximize efficiency, customer satisfaction, revenue, and repeat business.
• Lead collaborative efforts with BNC colleagues and volunteers to expand rentals throughout all applicable buildings and outside gathering areas; and co-create team protocols for rental logistics, such as space preparation and clean up before and after rentals.
• Innovate rental process for continued efficiency and profitability.

Benefits

• Blandford Nature Center offers a generous amount of paid personal time off (PTO) that increases overtime; paid holidays (9), paid day off for birthday, and paid time off during winter closure.
• This position is eligible for participation in health, vision, and dental coverage; a SIMPLE IRA plan with a 3% employer match; free BNC Membership; and discount on BNC program registrations and gift shop merchandise.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: No Education Listed
• Number of Employees: 1-10 employees