Call for applications: Shubbak festival executive director

Since 2011, the biennial festival has presented the work of Arab artists on major stages in London and across the UK. In 2018, the festival, which is a member of Arts Council England, received the UNESCO-Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture.

The executive director will report to and be supervised directly by the artistic director/CEO to provide Shubbak with strategic leadership, particularly in the areas of business planning, fundraising and partnerships.

The successful candidate will be required to engage artists, venues and community organisations to produce an innovative festival, along with arts-focused participatory programmes on a year-round basis.

Responsibilities

The executive director will be required to:

• Work with the artistic director to develop new ways of ensuring Shubbak represents a platform for the very best contemporary artists, musicians, writers, filmmakers, architects and designers of Arab origin.
• Maintain relationships with current stakeholders, including patrons, and develop new relationships with key cultural organisations and individuals both in the UK, internationally and across the Arab region.
• Develop and lead on a robust fundraising strategy for Shubbak, in collaboration with the artistic director and the board of trustees.
• Develop job descriptions for staff and make hiring and termination decisions in cooperation with the board of directors.
• Manage the organisational and festival budget and oversee all accounting processes for the charity.
• Develop record keeping systems for the charity to include all legal paperwork, grant paperwork and finance paperwork
• Oversee all marketing and press activity of the festival.

Qualifications

Interested individuals should:

• Have held a senior management position in a cultural organisation or equivalent for a minimum of three years.
• Experience in working within an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation.
• Demonstrated ability to lead and inspire a team, manage staff and work closely with a board of trustees.
• Know the Arab contemporary arts sector..
• Have experience in scenario planning, business plan development and the setting of a long-term strategy.
• Possess strong diplomacy and astute negotiation skills, proven experience of using a fair and firm approach to negotiating complex terms with artists, partners and other stakeholders.
• Have experience in taking financial responsibility for organisations and major projects including setting and controlling budgets.
• Demonstrated ability to fundraise through public and private grant applications.
• Know trends within the arts, cultural field and, more broadly, the third sector so that Shubbak can maximise its ability to flourish, grow and play a leadership role.
• Know the current legislative framework and proper practice guidance for charities and limited companies.
• Have excellent writing and communication skills.
• Have excellent organisational and time management skills.

How to apply

To apply, interested individuals are expected to complete the Equal Opportunities form here, before sending their CV to [email protected] with ‘Executive Director’ in the subject along with the following documents:

• A cover letter of no more than two pages outlining how you meet the criteria for the post.
• Contact details of two referees.

The application deadline is 5 May 2019 midnight (BST).

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for interviews, which will start on 20 May at the Arab British Centre, UK.

For more information and inquiry, email [email protected]. View the original call here.