Senior Music Manager – Job Description
We are a multi-award winning, creative and innovative organisation. The Senior Music Manager is a key role in War Child’s well-known Music and Events team, which creates powerful experiences that bring people together to inspire and entertain, and is driving War Child’s place as one of the leading charities within the UK music industry.
Building on War Child’s history of working with the best from UK music, the Senior Music Manager will raise funds for War Child’s work through live music events and music activations. They will use their project leadership and live events experience to deliver a portfolio of creative, innovative and income generating events for War Child that also leverage our strategic objectives. The post-holder will have exceptional relationship management skills, strengthening and growing our relationships within the music industry and showcasing the power of music to do good.
If you share our values and believe that children’s lives should not be torn apart by war, we want to hear from you.
- Team and Department: Fundraising Engagement Team, Fundraising & Communications Department
- Contract Type: Permanent
- Place of Work: Our office is in Camden/Kentish Town (NW1). This role is open to hybrid working.
- Working Hours: Full-time is 37.5 hours. This role is open to flexible working including compressed hours, part-time hours, flexi-time
- Reports to: Head of Fundraising Engagement
- Salary: Circa £46,000 per annum, full-time equivalent
About us
War Child, the specialist charity for children affected by conflict. For more than two decades we’ve delivering high-impact programmes that are rebuilding lives across Afghanistan, Iraq, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Central African Republic and Yemen. We understand children’s needs, respect their rights, and put them at the centre of the solution – from reintegrating children formerly associated with armed groups and armed forces (CAAFAG) in the Central African Republic to reuniting children with their families in Afghanistan. We look forward to a world in which the lives of children are no longer torn apart by war. This is a vision that can only be realised through the collective actions of children themselves, communities and their leaders, organisations like War Child, governments and key decision makers.
Our values
- Bold: We use our passion and creativity to deliver high-quality, evidence-based work designed to maximise our beneficial impact for children in conflict
- Accountable to children: Children rely on us to respond to their voices and treat them with respect and dignity
- Transparent: We expect to be held to account by our supporters and participants, and we respond with openness and respect
- Committed to each other: We support each other to achieve ambitious goals and be the best we can be. We are honest and open, sharing our successes, and confronting challenges
Our benefits
- Flexible working – we recognise the considerable benefits that flexible working can bring and are happy to discuss any possible flexible working options with our employees from hiring. For most roles, the following types of flexibility are usually possible: flexible hours, occasional working from home and compressed hours.
- Annual leave – 28 days per year (full-time) rising to 33 days with service, plus bank holidays
- Pension – all eligible employees automatically enrolled into a Group Personal Pension Plan with a 5% employer contribution, with minimum employee contribution on a salary sacrifice basis
- Family leave – we offer enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption & shared parental leave
- Health & wellbeing – employees may take advantage of a healthcare cash plan and a range of wellbeing initiatives and training. In addition, all employees have access to free, confidential one-to-one wellbeing consultations with trained counsellors.
- Learning & development – dedicated to the investment in learning and continuing professional development for all our employees
- Workplace Nursery Benefit – Make tax and NI savings on nursery costs for children up to the age of 5
- Range of flexible benefits such a Cycle to Work scheme and season ticket loans.
How to apply
- Please download the application form here: https://www.warchild.org.uk/who-we-are/jobs
- Submit a completed application form and a recent copy of your CV to recruitment@warchild.org.uk by 11:59pm on 16/07/2023
- Due to limited resources, we will contact only the shortlisted candidates
- Interviews will be held on 20/07/2023
- If you have any questions about reasonable adjustments before or during your application, we welcome the opportunity to talk about what we can do to fairly adapt our process for you. Please share what you’re comfortable with to help us put the right support in place, by emailing recruitment@warchild.org.uk. Anything you tell us will be kept completely confidential by our HR team.
- We are unable to provide sponsorship for this post. In order to apply, you must be able to demonstrate your eligibility to work in the country where this role is based.
Contact information
To explore the post further or for any queries you may have, please contact: Charlotte Nimmo, Head of Fundraising Engagement, CharlotteN@warchild.org.uk. For general information about working for War Child please visit: https://www.warchild.org.uk/who-we-are/careers
Safeguarding
Our work with children and at-risk adults to keep them safe is the most important thing we do. We are committed to the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults in all areas of our work. We have zero tolerance for any behaviours and practices that puts children and/or vulnerable adults at risk of abuse and/or harm. All candidates selected for interview will be asked relevant child safeguarding question(s) during the selection interview. Successful applicants will be expected to be compliant with and sign up to our Safeguarding policy, our Code of Conduct and PSEAH (Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Abuse & Harassment). You can find these policies: https://www.warchild.org.uk/our-work/policies-and-reports/safeguarding
Diversity and Inclusion
We value diversity and inclusion and are committed to ensuring that all our people and job applicants are treated fairly, irrespective of where, what or whom they were born, or of other characteristics. We want to offer a safe and inclusive workplace where all our people, especially those who are currently marginalised or underrepresented, can be themselves at work. You can read our Diversity and Inclusion policy on our website, and if you have any questions about our commitment to diversity and inclusion do get in touch: https://www.warchild.org.uk/our-work/policies-and-reports/diversity-and-inclusion
Pre-employment checks
Employment with War Child will be subject to the following checks prior to your start date:
a satisfactory police record check to include a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and/or an International/National Criminal Record Check, and a clear vetting and Due Diligence check receipt of two professional satisfactory references
Senior Music Manager
Your role:
The Senior Music Manager will raise valuable funds for War Child by developing a portfolio of live music events and other fundraising products. The Senior Music Manager will manage relationships with key music industry contacts in close collaboration with the music team Leads, and steward our day-to-day relationships with some of our highest profile supporters. You will use your creativity, credibility and commercial know-how to approach new partners and develop and deliver some of our highest profile events and activations, ultimately cultivating War Child’s unique support to raise funds and achieve strategic objectives via the music industry.
The Senior Music Manager will build on War Child’s music heritage to diversify and grow War Child’s sustainable income. You will have significant experience working in a music industry-focused role and an understanding of how to lead multiple projects and deliver strategic goals. You will also have a demonstrable knowledge of event production and working on music partnerships to generate income, as well as a passion for the power of music to make positive change. This role will support and develop a small, dedicated team to achieve through strong leadership, line management and excellent project management.
Your responsibilities
- Use your experience of delivering music events and activations to help plan a balanced live event portfolio – prioritising income, diversity and reputation
- Project manage and deliver live events, ensuring they’re produced to the agreed plan and budget with adequate resource, and work closely with the Music
- Projects & Events Manager and Music & Events Executive to support them on their events and projects
- You will lead project teams or support project managers depending on the scale of the campaign or event(s), ensuring successful delivery
- Provide first-rate line management to the Music Projects & Events Manager and Music & Events Executive, as well as any relevant freelancers and agencies. You will model excellence in management that will result in your reports thriving in their role, with high standards of performance and behaviour, and a team member that is developed to achieve their best, whilst maintaining strong wellbeing. As a senior member of the Fundraising Engagement team you will model these high standards of performance and behaviour to support the Head of Fundraising Engagement
- Support the Head of Fundraising Engagement, Director of Fundraising and Communications and Music team Leads on the development and implementation of the live and recorded Music strategies, including budgeting, reporting and planning for Live Music opportunities, and owning those workstreams
- Lead on appropriate and viable opportunities and new partnerships within the music industry to raise funds and leverage strategic objectives
- Act as an ambassador for War Child within the UK music industry, building and maintaining strong relationships with artists, labels, sponsors, promotors, media partners, venues and agents, amongst others
- Manage select relationships across all levels of seniority whilst being able to negotiate their support for War Child. You will work closely with the music team Leads to determine how key relationships are best managed
- Deliver projects in the annual plan that engage the music industry and audiences (public or private) with War Child’s work, working closely with the team to ensure there is a fundraising project pipeline and that we are actively considering diversity and inclusivity in all live events
- Work with the Music Projects & Events Manager and Partnerships team to plan and deliver new media, brand and sponsorship partnership targets and growth as part of the wider music strategy
- Work closely with the music team Leads and other members of the team to prioritise asks and engagement with the music industry
- Responsible for ensuring our events and products are delivered safely and their brand identity is protected and enhanced, as well as ensuring fundraising compliance
- Work closely with the Comms & Content team to ensure audiences are understood on a project-by-project basis and comms are tailored to their needs to promote longer term engagement
- Work with Supporter Engagement to ensure the circumstances around the events you deliver are optimised to capture relevant data about our supporters, events and products, to feed a culture of learning and continuous improvement within the team
- Work with the Philanthropy & Partnerships team to ensure donor journeys and relationship plans are built into all relevant projects
- Contribute to creating a culture committed to the safeguarding of children and adults and compliant to WCUK’s Safeguarding and PSEAH (Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Abuse & Harassment) Policies.
These duties provide a framework for the role and should not be regarded as a definitive list. Other reasonable duties may be required consistent with the grade of the role.
You are:
- Experienced in producing and delivering sector-leading music events that are proven to deliver against their concept, budget and plan and manage risk appropriately in order to maintain War Child’s reputation
- Knowledgeable in the workings of the music industry including key figures in the industry, promotional and touring cycles, artist marketing campaigns and market trends
- Solid experience of line management and a strong understanding of the principles of motivational people management and individual development
- Strong experience of project leadership, including critically evaluating activities to achieve strategic priorities and maximise their effectiveness
- Networked within the UK music industry with the ability to build and maintain strong, strategic relationships with artists, labels, sponsors, promotors, media partners, venues and agents and other senior members of the music industry
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with a high degree of emotional intelligence to deal with a variety and internal and external stakeholders and the ability to build effective working relationships at all levels
- A highly competent negotiator with the ability to negotiate successful agreements with artists, labels, sponsors, promotors, media partners, venues and agents, amongst others
- Able to work effectively as a team leader within a fast-paced event delivery environment, with the ability to quickly problem solve, make logistical decisions to maintain the integrity of an event and stay calm under pressure
- Able to meticulously plan and budget for events as well as manage your workload and your team’s workload to meet deadlines, manage priorities and hit targets
- A confident presenter with the ability to pitch War Child passionately, concisely and professionally to potential supporters across all levels within the UK music industry
- Highly knowledgeable of music industry specific marketing and PR best practice
- Always demonstrating a passion for music, proactively meeting contacts and willing to attend events in the evenings and weekends
- Up to date knowledge of fundraising regulation and GDPR, and its implications for fundraising policy and practise
