Assistant Manager, Venue Reservations and Operations Venue and Production Management

Duke University:

 

Duke University was created in 1924 through an indenture of trust by James Buchanan Duke. Today, Duke is regarded as one of America’s leading research universities. Located in Durham, North Carolina, Duke is positioned in the heart of the Research Triangle, which is ranked annually as one of the best places in the country to work and live. Duke has more than 15,000 students who study and conduct research in its 10 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools. With about 40,000 employees, Duke is the third largest private employer in North Carolina, and it now has international programs in more than 150 countries.

 

Positional Summary

The Assistant Manager, Reservations & Operations supports the Venue and Production Management (VPM) team, overseeing reservations and operations for venues on Duke University’s campus, such as Page Auditorium, Reynolds Theater, the Arts Annex, and the Rubenstein Arts Center. This role is a key component of the VPM team and customer facing services. The Assistant Manager will be responsible for a complex operation of managing reservations, event logistics, and cultivating relationships across the university and community.  The Assistant Manager ensures smooth coordination of reservations, event workflows, and internal teams, supporting a variety of events, from complex university functions, one day performances, and community performances. On-site event support is required, which will include nights and weekends.

 

Key Position Duties

Reservation Management - 25% of Effort

• Manage the reservation process, requests, and space agreements for multiple venues, including the Rubenstein Arts Center, Arts Annex, and other locations.
• Ensures seamless event tracking by formalizing space agreements, managing event logistics, including production details, front-of-house needs, and ticketing solutions.
• Manage and maintain consistent workflows and data management practices within the departmental event database, Momentus, to ensure efficiency.
• Collaborate with the management team to schedule advancing meetings, provide event package estimates, and finalize billing settlements. 
• Collaborate with Student Involvement and Leadership on the event approval process in Campus Labs database for Recognized Student Organization events ensuring all necessary approvals and logistics are in place.
• Assist in the settlement process of events as needed.

 

Customer Service & Engagement - 20% of Effort

• Deliver a customer-focused, high-quality experience for all interactions.
• Demonstrate strong listening skills, showing empathy and understanding to effectively comprehend and address requests effectively and respectfully.
• Work closely with academic units, students, student organizations to understand the needs of curricular and co-curricular elements involved in the day-to-day needs of all stakeholders throughout the year.
• Uphold policies and procedures of the department, division and the university.
• Work with the VPM team, or others as needed, to confirm the event details, ensuring smooth operations and alignment with VPM goals while striving to exceed client expectations.

 

Event Communications - 15% of Effort

• Schedule and attend client advancing meetings with VPM production and front of house teams to discuss event logistics and details.
• Lead weekly event staff meetings to review past and upcoming events.
• Schedule and coordinate services for events, workshops, and programs.
• Ensure that resources, such as, appropriate card access plans, parking, and other services are scheduled properly based on event requirements.
• Manage the monthly calendar for campus partners, communicating event details and schedules to ensure coordinated planning and resource allocation.
• Ensure successful space usage and operations with thorough correspondence with clients, vendors, and assisting with staff and resource scheduling.
• Collaborate and effectively comm