Chief Marketing Officer
Chicago Shakespeare Theater
Job Description
Position Overview
The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) supports the highest strategic priorities of the theater and serves as a member of CST’s senior leadership team. This person will lead the organization’s strategic marketing, communications, public relations, institutional branding, audience experience, and shapes CST’s institutional profile on a local and national level. They will focus on growing new audiences while retaining and deepening relationships with current audiences. Through effective communication of the mission, vision and programming activities, the CMO develops and executes plans and strategies to generate all earned ticket revenues for the theater, partnering with development, guest services, and education to realize their goals, and leading a staff in marketing, communications/public relations, CRM and website, box office, and graphic design.
The CMO will stay current on market research, consumer trends, and target audiences. They collaborate with cross-functional teams to create and implement integrated marketing campaigns, manage brand positioning, and enhance audience experience. This role will monitor marketing performance, analyze data, and make data-driven decisions to optimize marketing and brand strategy efforts.
This position reports to the Executive Director, and, as in all producing companies, an effective working relationship must be forged with the Artistic Director as well. The CMO’s direct reports include the Director of Communications, Associate Director of Marketing, Tessitura Administrator, Ticket Services Manager, and Graphic Designer. The successful candidate will have a strong, proven track-record in marketing, brand management, audience development, customer service, and will be a keen strategist. Candidates will also have the skills to effectively manage and inspire a staff team as well as partner with other departments. Candidates will have an understanding and strong experience in budget planning and fiscal management. Finally, and most importantly, candidates will also have an enthusiasm for producing theater, Shakespeare, and connecting audiences of all ages to live performance.
Essential Duties:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be requested to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.
Leadership Environment
- Collaborate regularly and forge effective working relationships with the Executive Director, Artistic Director, and senior staff team.
- Serve as a member of CST’s senior staff team and participate in driving the organizational strategic plan to achieve the mission and vision of CST.
- Create work plans and serve as staff lead for a new marketing committee of the Board of Directors. Ensure the work of the committee lends expertise that advances the branding, marketing, and communications efforts of the theater.
Strategic Planning, Branding, and Marketing:
- Create focus and articulation of CST’s brand and perception in the marketplace and partnering with the Executive and Artistic Directors to develop a brand strategy for CST that aligns with the mission, vision, and programming and creates distinctiveness externally.
- Oversee the management of the brand strategy throughout all areas of CST that elevates and differentiates CST through compelling strategies and visual and written communication.
- Plan and manage branding, positioning, messaging, visual identity, media planning, marketing segmentation, targeting, and pricing strategies.
- Develop annual and long range institutional, programmatic, and show specific marketing, communications, and audience development plans that align with CST’s vision, mission, brand, goals and growth objectives.
- Lead and supervise the implementation of all marketing, communications, public relations, web and social media, publications, promotions and sales plans to position the organization overall, attract and retain audiences, and achieve earned revenue goals through single ticket and season subscription sales.
- Drive integrated marketing efforts to further enhance show specific marketing across all media, including but not limited to SEO/SEM, content marketing, email marketing, social media and online advertising.
- Direct the development of all visual materials and images for all areas of CST, maintaining the strength, integrity, and consistency that codifies CST’s visual identity and image.
- Devise and supervise database and market research projects including analysis and interpretation of data for ongoing improvement and relevancy of marketing plans.
- Ensure Tessitura database and functionality is optimized, up to date, and driving data across departments.
Revenue Generation and Expense Management:
- Develop, monitor and achieve earned revenue projections; provide data analysis, modeling, and dynamic pricing procedures.
- Manage annual expense budgets for marketing, communications, sales, and ticketing services efforts and operations.
- Review and evaluate revenue and expense allocation to determine effectiveness of goal setting, expenditures, vendors, and ROI.
Institutional Messaging, Communications, Public Relations:
- Oversee the creation and execution of an institutional brand communications strategy that raises the profile of CST and its leadership locally and nationally to increase visibility for the institution and its programs that increases brand awareness, profile, and thought leadership. This strategy should incorporate a key message strategy for CST and make a compelling case for theater and its impact.
- Working closely with the Director of Communications, create the most compelling narratives and build brand and mission awareness for CST, and its programming locally and nationally that reflects CST’s vision and strategic plan.
- Ensure consistent voice, tone, and articulation for all aspects of CST communications and brand.
- Ensure strong relationships with the media and earned media coverage for all programming and for the theater.
- Lead, alongside the Director of Communications, any crisis communications needs in consultation with the Executive Director.
- Stay current and establish web development strategies and oversee the CST website content and design that is best and next practice.
Audience Loyalty and Experience:
- Oversee and manage Ticketing Services to ensure ticket buyers and other audience members have an outstanding experience where they feel appreciated, valued, and respected.
- Build a robust audience loyalty program that is personalized, relational, and increases multi-buyers, subscribers, and, in partnership with development, donors.
- In partnership with the Lifelong Learning and Education Department, create audience experiences that deepen their knowledge and understanding of theater and Shakespeare
- In partnership with Operations Department and Guest Services, collaborate to create an excellent experience for audience members in lobbies, the bars, and the Pub. Ensure consistent messaging and experience that builds engagement and loyalty.
Personnel Management:
- Lead, mentor, and manage a high-performing, results oriented, and data-driven team of 10 full-time staff and several part-time staff, fostering a culture of creativity, innovation, and excellence.
- Oversee Ticketing Services to ensure excellent customer service, and box office operations.
- Cultivate an innovative and positive working environment that enables growth in new technology and marketing and communications practices to ensure the Theater’s vitality.
- Lead a dynamic team skilled in data analytics, generative AI, and omnichannel marketing to drive innovation, enhance customer experience, and elevate brand recognition for market leadership.
Other Duties
- Attend full Board of Directors meetings as a member of senior staff
- Proactively contributes to CST’s mission and values.
- Positively contribute to the IDEA goals, creating a future where our theatre is a home for all people, reflective of our community.
- As a member of the leadership team, work some evenings and weekends as needed to attend Board meetings, opening nights, and community engagement events.
- Performs other related duties as assigned.
