Front of House Duty Manager
Front of House Duty Manager
Location: The Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities, Radcliffe Observatory Quarter, Woodstock Road, Oxford, OX2 6GG
Contract type: Fixed term (2 years)
Hours: Full time (including weekends and evenings)
About the role
You will work as part of the Front of House team at the Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities, helping to create a welcoming and well-run environment for everyone who visits the building. The Centre hosts a varied programme of performances, talks, exhibitions, and public events, and Front of House plays an important role in shaping how these are experienced by audiences.
As a Front of House Duty Manager, you will take the lead during your shift, with responsibility for how events run and how audiences move through the building from arrival to departure. You will supervise and support the Front of House team, making sure staff understand their roles and feel confident in delivering a friendly and professional service. This includes leading pre-event briefings, sharing key information, and managing staff across different areas of the building.
You will oversee audience management before, during, and after events, ensuring that visitors can access spaces easily and move safely throughout the building. This will involve managing queues, supporting ticket checking and ushering, and responding to any issues that arise. You will also act as the main point of escalation for customer queries, complaints, and incidents.
A key part of the role is maintaining a safe environment for both visitors and staff. You will support emergency procedures when required and work closely with technical, and operational colleagues. You will create event reports which identify any issues which arose during the event and support the Front of House manager in addressing issues and finding solutions, to continually improve the experience for our audiences.
Alongside this, you will support the Front of House Manager with day-to-day administrative tasks, including helping to manage rotas, preparing or delivering staff briefings, and contributing to the planning and coordination of Front of House activity across the Centre.
About you
You will have experience working in a busy, customer or visitor-facing environment, with previous experience supervising teams or leading operations during events. You will be confident taking responsibility on shift and supporting colleagues to deliver a high standard of service.
You will be able to remain calm under pressure and respond effectively to changing situations. You will be comfortable making decisions, managing competing priorities, and dealing with issues as they arise, using sound judgement and knowing when to escalate.
You will demonstrate strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to engage positively with a wide range of visitors and colleagues. You will be confident handling customer queries and complaints, maintaining a professional and approachable manner at all times.
You will be well organised and reliable, with the ability to manage your time effectively. You will have a good understanding of health, safety, and security within a public venue.
You will be willing to work flexibly, including regular evenings and weekends. An interest in theatre, live events, or the cultural sector would be advantageous. Experience in a performance venue is desirable, although not essential, and a willingness to learn and develop within the role is crucial.
Application process
For your online application, you will be required to upload your curriculum vitae and a supporting statement, setting out how you meet the selection criteria for the post, using examples of your skills and experience. As part of your application you will be asked to provide details of two referees and indicate whether we can contact them now.
For further details, please refer to the How to apply section of the job description. Any further enquires may be directed to hr@humanities.ox.ac.uk.
The closing date for applications is 12.00 noon on Friday 15 May 2026. Only applications received before this time can be considered.
Shortlisting is expected to take place the week beginning 18 May and interviews held week beginning 25 May.
Please quote Vacancy ID 186288 on all correspondence.
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