Theatre Duty Manager, Community Engagement & Volunteers

Theatre Duty Manager, Community Engagement & Volunteers 

Reports to: Head of Visitor Experience

Line Manages: Visitor Experience Teams & Volunteers

Salary: £31,186.68 pa

Theatre Royal Plymouth (TRP) thrives on creating memorable experiences for audiences. As the Theatre Duty Manager – Community Engagement & Volunteers, you will play a central role in delivering a gold-standard visitor experience for everyone, deepening their connection with the theatre's work and mission.

This role is a pivotal leadership position, blending customer service excellence, proactive audience engagement, and the complete management of the Visitor Experience (VE) volunteer program. You will be responsible for ensuring every visitor and volunteer has a smooth, enjoyable, and engaging experience.

You will act as a 'face' of the organisation, inspiring your team and volunteers to exceed visitors' expectations and ensuring they receive an inclusive and memorable welcome at every stage of their journey. This offers a chance to combine your passion for theatre with your expertise in customer service, volunteer management, and audience engagement.

You'll need to be adaptable and thrive in the dynamic environment of a major producing and receiving theatre, working flexibly across the week to support the department and organisational programme needs. You will act as a Duty Manager on a rota basis, which includes evenings, weekends, and festive periods.

Key Responsibilities

Volunteer Programme Leadership & Management

• Lead, motivate, and develop a high-performing team of Visitor Experience volunteers, fostering a positive and professional work environment.
• Recruit, train, and develop enthusiastic and committed VE volunteers to achieve TRP’s objectives.
• Design, develop, and implement a comprehensive training programme specifically for VE volunteers, including inclusive customer service, show-specific knowledge, accessibility protocols, and health & safety procedures.
• Oversee the efficient creation and maintenance of volunteer rotas and scheduling, ensuring staffing levels meet operational needs.
• Undertake essential administration for the volunteer programme, including performance appraisals for key volunteer roles.
• Inspire and motivate the volunteers to ensure excellent customer service and operational standards are always delivered during a busy and varied performance schedule.

Community Engagement & Interpretation

• Develop and implement creative programmes for proactive Community Engagement to deepen the visitor experience and connection with the theatre's work.
• This includes planning and coordinating engagement activities such as Meet The Matinee’s, Theatre Tours and interactive installations etc.
• Work closely with Creative Communities, Programming, Production, and Marketing teams to align engagement activities with specific shows and the theatre's mission and Vision.
• Champion an inclusive and accessible visitor experience, ensuring that both staff and volunteers are trained to deliver engagement activities effectively for all visitors.
• Develop and monitor service procedures related to engagement to ensure visitor satisfaction.

Visitor Experience & Service

• Implement and maintain high standards for customer service across all areas of visitor interaction.
• Ensure that the VE Team and volunteers always provide an exceptional, seamless visitor experience leading to repeat visits and long-term engagement with TRP’s programme and charitable mission.
• Address visitor concerns and complaints, ensuring efficient resolution.
• Actively engage in TRP's Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) programmes and represent the VE Department at relevant working groups.
• Ensure all visitor enquiries and feedback (in-person, email, or digital) are dealt with professionally and efficiently, collating and monitoring trends for reporting.

Operations & Performance

• Act as a Duty Manager for the overall operation of all Visitor Experience activities during a show shift and be available for events delivery responsibilities as required.
• Monitor Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), particularly those related to engagement, volunteer performance, and visitor satisfaction, and implement data-driven strategies for improvement.
• Liaise with other teams to open and close the building as part of the Duty Management role.
• In the absence of the Head of Visitor Experience, join and contribute to the work of the leadership team and represent the VE Team at relevant planning forums.

Health, Safety & Security

• Comply, implement, and monitor with all licensing, health & safety legislation, security, safeguarding, fire and emergency procedures, and other Theatre Royal policies.
• Contribute to the safety and security of all visitors by ensuring all VE staff and volunteers are aware of and trained on all H&S, fire, and emergency procedures.
• Act as a Personal Licence Holder.
• Act as a designated First Aider and Incident Controller, undertaking training as required.
• Take a lead role in and coordinate any emergency evacuations as required

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  Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Visitor Satisfaction: Maintain a high visitor satisfaction score with an aim for a continuous increase.
• Volunteer Program Health: Track key metrics such as volunteer recruitment, retention, and satisfaction via regular surveys.
• Engagement Activity Success: Measure participation rates and visitor feedback for all activities, tours, and installations.
• Training Completion Rate: Track the completion rate of staff and volunteer training programs.
• Scheduling Efficiency: Track the number of unfilled volunteer shifts, aiming to create efficient schedules.
• Number of Successful Visiting Company Productions: Track the smooth running of visiting companies' experiences and their successful inclusion in engagement activities.

The Person

Our Values are at the heart of everything we say and do and our people demonstrate these values in every aspect of their work.  To be successful in this role, you should be able to demonstrate the following skills, experience and behaviour in line with these values.