Group Sales Manager

Lucas Museum of Narrative Art•Los Angeles, CA

12d•Onsite

About The Position

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, opening in September 2026, is dedicated to illustrated storytelling. Founded by George Lucas and Mellody Hobson, the museum's collection features a wide range of art from renowned artists and comic art legends. The museum is designed by Ma Yansong and is located in Exposition Park, Los Angeles. The Group Sales Manager plays a key role in creating a superior and inclusive visitor experience, focusing on groups such as tour and travel, school and youth, corporate, and community. This role is crucial for driving attendance and earned revenue. The Group Sales Manager is responsible for the entire group sales cycle, from prospecting to retention, and also develops and manages the Museum’s guided tour program. This is an entrepreneurial position requiring comfort with targets, pipeline management, and representing the Museum to external partners. The Manager will set and meet revenue and attendance goals, monitor market trends, and use data to inform pricing and packaging strategies. Cross-functional collaboration with departments like Visitor Services, Security, Retail, Food and Beverage, Marketing, and Finance is essential to ensure seamless group visits. The Manager will model and champion exceptional visitor experience, meaningful engagement, and the Museum’s mission and values.

Requirements

3+ years of experience in group sales, travel trade sales, tourism, or a comparable consultative sales role, preferably in a museum, cultural institution, attraction, or hospitality setting.
Demonstrated track record of meeting or exceeding revenue and booking targets.
Experience managing the full sales cycle — prospecting, pitching, negotiating, contracting, and account retention.
Familiarity with the tour and travel trade, including receptive and inbound operators.
Experience developing or managing guided tour programs, including working guides.
Proficiency with ticketing, CRM, and sales-reporting systems; strong comfort with data, forecasting, and spreadsheet analysis.
Strong commitment to and demonstrated ability to use data and experimentation to drive revenue and improve visitor experience.
Demonstrated commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility and Belonging in sourcing, partnership, service and access practices.
Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills, with the poise to represent the Museum to external partners and to host site visits.
Demonstrated ability to collaborate with colleagues across the Museum and to influence peers without direct authority.
Strong organizational and problem-solving skills, with meticulous attention to detail in contracts, rates, and bookings.
Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
Innovative thinker, with a track record for translating strategic thinking into action plans and output.
Ability to work under pressure, manage many bookings simultaneously, and meet deadlines.
Willingness to work occasional evenings, weekends, and holidays as group business and Museum operations require, and to travel for trade shows and sales calls.

Nice To Haves

Experience with the Los Angeles tourism market, international inbound travel, or multilingual capability is a plus.
Experience directly supervising personnel is a plus.

Responsibilities

Own the day-to-day operation of the group sales function, serving as the Museum’s primary point of contact for tour and travel, school and youth, corporate, and community group business.
Build and execute an annual group sales plan with defined revenue targets, attendance goals, and booking pace benchmarks by segment, in alignment with the Museum’s broader mission and strategic plan.
Develop and manage the Museum’s guided tour program — including public, private, school, and VIP tours — partnering with Visitor Services and relevant stakeholders on tour content, guide training, capacity, and quality standards.
Cultivate and maintain relationships with tour operators, receptive operators, destination management companies, travel agencies, hotel and concierge networks, convention and visitor bureaus, and regional tourism partners.
Develop corporate, affinity, senior, and community group business, including employee outings, membership organizations, and community-based organizations serving Exposition Park and greater Los Angeles.
Prospect actively — build and work a qualified pipeline through outreach, site visits, trade shows, industry conferences, familiarization (FAM) tours, and sales calls.
Negotiate and administer group rates, contracts, deposits, commissions, and cancellation terms in coordination with Finance and Museum leadership, ensuring terms are accurate, profitable, and consistently applied.
Manage the group booking pipeline in the Museum’s ticketing and CRM systems, maintaining accurate records of inquiries, holds, confirmations, payments, and post-visit follow-up.
Use data, experimentation, and visitor feedback continuously to refine pricing, packaging, lead sources, and the group visit experience.
Forecast group revenue and attendance, report on performance against target, and provide timely analysis that informs Museum-wide capacity planning and operating budgets.
Coordinate closely with Visitor Services, Security, Retail, and Food and Beverage to schedule group arrivals, manage capacity and gallery flow, and deliver a seamless on-site experience from bus drop-off to departure.
Design and package group offers that extend the visit and the Museum’s revenue — combining admission with guided tours, theater programming, dining, and retail.
Develop group sales collateral, itineraries, rate sheets, and web content in partnership with Marketing and Communications, ensuring the Museum is well represented in trade channels and travel-planning resources.
Ensure group sales practices, pricing, and tour offerings are accessible and welcoming to visitors of all abilities, languages, and backgrounds, working with colleagues on accommodations and inclusive access.
Manage and oversee ticketing fulfillment personnel, ensuring orders are accurately processed in a timely and effective manner.
Resolve group issues and service recovery with judgment and care, treating every interaction as an opportunity to build long-term loyalty.
Support the Museum’s opening by establishing group sales systems, policies, pricing structures, and partner relationships in advance of the first booking, and refine them continuously post-opening.
Actively champion the Museum’s commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility and Belonging in sourcing group partners, in pricing and access decisions, and in connection with visitors.