English National Opera

Head of Retail and Buying

Candidate Pack

Your journey starts here...

English National Opera Candidate Pack

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An introduction from our Chief Executive

I’m Stuart Murphy and welcome to English National Opera.

At ENO there are a few values we live by– we strive to be world class ineverything we do – in what we perform on stage and in the pit, in how we treat our customers and how we treat one another inside thecompany.

The thing that connects us all is that we are here to make world-classopera for anyone.

We sing in English, and take seriously our commitment to offer accessible pricing, with free tickets on Fridays, Saturdays and Opening nights if you are under 18, and lots of tickets at £10 for the rest of us.

We have an extensive learning and participation programme at the heart of our company,called ENO Baylis and we offer training, coaching, mentoring and professional development not only to our performers and to the next generation of musical talent, but toall of our staff.

Our home is the stunning London Coliseum – the largest theatre in theWest End of London, designed as a people’s palace of entertainment. But we are increasingly staging work outside the theatre walls.

We are fair, honest, transparent and put a premium on excellence – so if you love creating, imagining, supporting brilliant musical and theatrical endeavour, there are few places in the world that offer the scope of what we offer here.

I hope that once you have read this candidate information pack, you willconsider applying for this position. We look forward to receiving yourapplication.

Very best wishes,

Stuart Murphy, Chief Executive

English National Opera Candidate Pack

English National Opera exists foreveryone, creating new experiences withopera that inspires, nurtures creativityand makes a difference. Our vision isfor lives changed through opera.

We take a fresh inspiring approachto opera to reflect the diversity of ourculture.

We believe that opera is a living art formable to connect to people from all partsof our society. We collaborate with arange of artists and art forms as part ofour commitment to the future of the artform. We sing in English, as we believeit enhances the emotional connectionbetween performers and audiences.

We encourage creativity throughoutthe company and our commitment tothe future of opera provides a platformto develop outstanding careers.

We are a world-class national companyrecognised internationally for thestandard of our work. We nurture talentacross the entire company includinga platform for young singers to startand then develop global careers.

We connect to audiences throughinspiring, accessible, world-class operaand stimulating, creative participationprogrammes.

We create our productions for thewidest possible audiences and aim tointroduce completely new audiencesto the magic of opera whether atthe London Coliseum, outside of ourtheatrical home or internationally.

We make our productions accessibleby offering a large proportion of ticketsat affordable prices, and through ourattendance schemes.A

boutus

We work with a wide range of visitingcompanies to generate essential revenueand welcome new audiences to sharethe experience of our theatre.

English National Opera isfounded on the belief that opera of the highest quality should be accessibleto anyone.

English National Opera Candidate Pack

Relevance throughout the country

We believe a national opera company has a duty to stage work that people outside the capital can enjoy. We partly do this byproducing a range of digital content from our productions that can be accessed from across the globe; and we are now stepping upour ambition to perform work outside Central London with announcements planned in the future.

Staging Distinctive world class work

ENO has always staged opera that is different. We are known as a place that embraces and encourages artistic daring and creativerisk. We do this in tandem with employing British-based, British-trained talent (80% of performers last season). We develop Britishsingers to learn opera in English, who work closely with our chorus and orchestra.

We work closely with other opera houses around the world, co-producing work. Our biggest Box Office success ever, last season’sPorgy and Bess, was co-produced with the New York Met.

ENO’s Annual Revenue

We have a mixed business model with £12.3m a year invested by Arts Council England (we are an ‘NPO’ – a National PortfolioOrganisation). Almost 60% of our revenue comes from fundraising, our endowment fund, ticket sales, merchandising and rentingout the Coliseum to ballet and musicals.

The ACE investment goes to support a range of initiatives that we wouldn’t be able to support without government money such as:

• Reduced priced tickets for those with disabilities, for schools and other audience development schemes aimed at increasing andretaining the opera audience in the UK

• Annual upkeep and insurance of the London Coliseum

• Maintain a chorus of 44 singers for nine months a year and have an orchestra all year round

• Free tickets to under 18’s and community groups

• Stage opera that isn’t commercially viable but important for the industry and genre

• New talent development training and learning and participation programmes

• Employ full time in house craft departments such as sets, props, costume, wardrobe, hair and make up

ENO’s philosophy, to be the national opera for everyone, means we encourage people to be forward thinking and inventivethroughout this exceptional organisation.

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English National Opera Candidate Pack

English National Opera is founded on the belief that opera of the highest quality should be accessible to everyone.

At ENO opera is theatre; expressing drama through the unique combination of music, text, dance, and design. We sing inEnglish and believe that singing in our own language connects the performers and the audience to the drama onstage,and enhances the experience for all.

We collaborate across contemporary art forms, to reflect the growing diversity of our culture. And we take a freshapproach right across the repertoire, from baroque to contemporary, as well as commissioning new works as part of ourcommitment to the future of the art form.

We bring our productions to the widest possible audience, whether at the London Coliseum, nationally or internationally.We make our work accessible by offering a large proportion of tickets at affordable prices, and by distributing it widely onscreen and via digital media.

We also aim to introduce completely new audiences to the magic of opera through stimulating and creative learning andparticipation programmes.

We are a national company of internationally recognised standard. We nurture talent across the entire company, whetheron-stage, backstage, or in the pit. We provide a platform for young singers to develop global careers.

Our vision is to be synonymous with making great opera accessible to the widest and most diverse audiences. We willcontinue to forge ground-breaking collaborations across art forms, and our world-class productions will inspire, surpriseand captivate. We will be recognised as the national centre of excellence for developing opera, and as the benchmark fornurturing new talent. We will reach out to communities who might think opera is not for them.

We will tell the world’s most timeless stories, unforgettably.

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English National Opera Candidate Pack

The

role

Department: Commercial OperationsReporting To: Director of Commercial, ENO and London Coliseum Salary: Competitive, commensurate with experience

The London Coliseum is the home of English National Opera and the largest theatre in the West-End. AS well as World ClassOpera, the London Coliseum offers a diverse performing arts programme including National and International Dance,Limited run sell-out Musicals and a number of one night only rock, pop, comedy and live Cinema events. At the same timeas creating a profitable business, this role is responsible for the strategic development of retail, publishing and licensing forall aspects of ENO and London Coliseum.

The retail operations of London Coliseum comprise the Shop on the ground floor as well as a pop-up on the Upper Circle leveland a number of sales points on each level of the theatre. Additional Pop-up’s in other locations might be created from timeto time, as well as a wish to develop designer markets in the front of house spaces. Additionally, there is a big growthopportunity in on-line business. This role is also responsible for managing the merchandise sold in association with theartistic events, e.g. ice cream and confectionery or merchandise associated with a particular Production.

This appointment will be made on merit, but we believe that diversity strengthens and enriches us, and that it is the responsibility

of everyone at ENO to make the arts and cultural sector a more diverse and equal place. As Black, Asian and minority ethnic

(BAME) and disabled people are currently under-represented at ENO, we particularly encourage and welcome applications from

BAME and disabled applicants.

To Apply

To apply, please complete Part 1 and Part 2 of the application form and the Equality and Diversity Monitoring Form and return as separate attachments to workwithus@eno.org by Monday 04 November 2019 at 10am.

Head of Retail and Buying

English National Opera Candidate Pack

The

role

MAIN RESPONSIBILITES

OBJECTIVES• Overall responsibility for developing the strategy and setting sales targets for the retail operation of ENO / London

Coliseum. To be fully accountable to the Director of Commercial for the achievement of agreed objectives.• Overall responsibility for the develop sales strategies to achieve agreed targets and implement in collaboration with the

House Manager• Using sales and trend forecasting as a basis to make recommendations for new product ranges.• Overall responsibility for the buying process and directing the product development.• Ensuring best practice, and that opportunities are maximised, in on-line sales both through ENO / London Coliseum’s own

online shop and through any third party vendors.• Overall responsibility for the day-to-day management of the Buying and Merchandising and Retail Operation, including

specialist books and music.• To develop a strategy and exploit the commercial opportunities in Publishing and Licensing for ENO / London Coliseum.

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT & BUYING

• To develop high quality, relevant merchandise for London Coliseum and ENO that reflects and supports the artisticprogramming and takes into account the on-going values and brand of ENO / London Coliseum

• To ensure that commercial opportunities around Visiting Companies are fully exploited• To monitor and analyse relevant product trends and incorporate findings into retail strategy• To oversee retail visual merchandising strategies to ensure that they are consistent, professional and innovative• To be responsible for the buying process to ensure stock is purchased in optimal quantities to maximise turnover and

profit and that all products, whether purchased or developed in- house, are appropriate to ENO / London Coliseum andconsistently meets the needs and interests of our diverse audiences.

RETAIL FINANCE & OPERATIONS

• Develop a commercial sales strategy with the Director of Commercial and the House Manager, that will ensure thatagreed sales and profit targets are achieved

• In consultation with the Director of Commercial, prepare annual budget estimates of income and expenditure for theretail department, and once agreed, ensure these targets are met and expenditure is tightly controlled

• Overall responsibility for the negotiation and procurement process for all retail suppliers and contractors.• Ensure that the utilisation of a retail stock system is optimised through the delivery of ongoing training and best practice

initiatives and that the system is well maintained and meets the needs of the developing business• Ensure that approved and accurate financial controls and procedures are in place to meet the needs of Internal Audit• To take responsibility for observing Health & Safety policy and procedures within the Retail team• To support the House Management team on a day to day basis to ensure the maximum spend per visitor is achieved.• To ensure the delivery of high standards of visual merchandise presentation through the House Manager and FOH Team• To work collaboratively with the House Manager to ensure that the team is structured and resourced appropriately to

deliver the maximum retail sales return.

English National Opera Candidate Pack

The

role

OTHER KEY RESPONSIBILITES

• Working with ENO’s internal marketing and communications teams and any external PR companies to enhance coverage innational, international and online press and marketing channels for ENO / London Coliseum retail operation.

• Overseeing relationships with key external stakeholders and business/social enterprise partners to ensure that ENO / LondonColiseum retail and shop is pioneering in cultural entrepreneurialism.

• Representing ENO / London Coliseum during external speaking engagements with cultural bodies and at events.

PERSONAL SPECIFICATION

Skills & Experience

• A successful track record at management level in a high street or arts retail sector environment – demonstrate evidence of flairin developing or creating a destination shop (ideally with an arts or design bias).

• Broad, extensive and up to date retail experience with emphasis on business development as well as staff and financial management.

• Substantial experience in product development and the buying process.• Ability to analyse and monitor major product trends.• Ability to identify new talent and mentor emerging designers and to develop craft markets and/or showcase artists.• Experience in managing a destination retail operation and demonstrable competence in operational process and systems.• Proven ability to set, meet and be accountable for ambitious retail targets. • Strong business acumen and demonstrable ability to maximize commercial opportunity• Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills, including tact, influencing skills and experience of commercial negotiation

and relationship management of a complex range of stakeholders and suppliers.• An experienced manager, with the ability to influence and focus a team around retail objectives. • An interest in the performing arts is essential

Values & Behaviours

We expect all employees to abide by and work in line with ENO’s values and behaviours.

English National Opera Candidate Pack 8

When you join us at ENO, we’ll provide you with an in-depth induction that will introduce you to your role, your department and give you the opportunity toexplore all areas of the company.

“My most enjoyable thing about working at ENO is working with a supportive, fun and energetic team”

“The variety of what we do is amazing, from drinks receptions and garden parties, toopportunities to see performances from Stage Prompt or the Flys - every day is different and exciting!”

“The most enjoyable thing about working in the Development team at ENO is being able to collaborate with everyone in the organisation -Marketing & Comms and Baylis, as well as the teams at the Coliseumso there is a great sense ofcommunity within the company”

From our second annual staffsurvey in May 2019,we foundthat:

89% of people at ENO feel pride in the work they do and the results achieved

75% of people plan to be working at ENO in three years fromnow

84% of people in the company feel they are trusted to do their jobwell

Whole Company StaffBenefitsAt ENO, we believe our staff are our strongest asset, and we offer support beyond your salary. We will also invest not only inyour professionaldevelopment, but also in your wellbeing.

Our current staff benefits include:

Professional Development• Annual Professional Development

Review to support your personaland career ambitions and achievements

ENO and LondonColiseum Performances• Access to complimentary tickets

for ENO and selected London Coliseum performances

• Access to astaff rate for ENO performances

• Complimentary tickets to talks, recitals and behind-the-scenes events

Staff Well-BeingActivities• Generous annual leave entitlement• Access to subsidised activities such

as massage and yoga• Access to an employee assistance

programme

Financial Support• Employer pension contribution of3%,

with employee contribution of 5%• Digital payslips accessible through

mobile apps• Staff canteen at the LondonColiseum• Star of The Month Scheme• Employee discount programme

through Perks at Work• Interest-free travel season ticket loans• Cycle-to-work scheme• Eye care vouchers

Why work at ENO?B

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English National Opera Candidate Pack

English National Opera Candidate Pack 10

ConfidentialityConfidentiality is so important in this roleand our policy is strict. All informationconcerning staff, patrons and other ENObusiness, the disclosure of which couldbe detrimental to the company, must beheld in the strictest confidence and maynot be divulged to any unauthorisedperson at any time.

Data ProtectionData Protection and adherence toGDPR is equally important. We thereforerequire that computer informationshould only be accessed if this has beenauthorised and is necessary as part ofthe postholder’s work. You will need to beaware of the GDPR 8 key principals, andthe Computer Misuse Act1990.

Health and SafetyHealth and Safety is so important atENO and we would expect that thepostholder will be happy to undertakepersonal responsibility for safety as willbe outlined in the ENO safety policy andthe Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

Equal OpportunitiesEqual Opportunities is a given. We willexpect the postholder to abide by ENO’spolicies on Equal Opportunities andDignity at Work.

Code of ConductCode of Conduct is sometimes assumed,but at ENO we will require the postholderto act in accordance withENO’s Codeof Conduct whereby everyone shall betreated in a professional and courteousmanner with full regard to the avoidanceof discrimination, consistentwithcurrent equal opportunities employmentlegislation.

Info

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English National Opera is a charitable company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales (Company number 00426792). Charity Registered Number257210