Head of Philharmonic Marketing

Salford, Manchester
BBC
Package Description

Job Reference: 17637

Band: D
Contract type: Continuing contract
Location: Philharmonic Studio, MediaCityUK, Salford
Salary: £39,390 – £56,897 depending on relevant skills, knowledge and experience. The expected salary range for this role reflects internal benchmarking and external market insights.

We’re happy to discuss flexible working. Please indicate your choice under the flexible working question in the application. There is no obligation to raise this at the application stage but if you wish to do so, you are welcome to. Flexible working will be part of the discussion at offer stage.

• Excellent career progression – the BBC offers great opportunities for employees to seek new challenges and work in different areas of the organisation.
• Unrivalled training and development opportunities – our in-house Academy hosts a wide range of internal and external courses and certification.
• Benefits – We offer a negotiable salary package, a flexible 35-hour working week for work-life balance and 25 days annual leave with the option to buy an extra 5 days, a defined pension scheme and discounted dental, health care and gym. You can find out more about working at the BBC by selecting this link to our candidate pack.

Freelancers are eligible to apply for an internal role if they are on a Worker Contract and they have worked continuously for 6 months. If they have worked for less than 6 months continuously or have a break of 3 weeks or more between engagements, they must seek Divisional HR approval to apply for an internal role prior to submitting an application.

If they are unsure which contract they are on, they can speak to their booker or the HR BP, however if it helps – both a PAYE freelance or Modus Gross contract is considered a Worker contract and covered by the Worker terms found here.

If you need to discuss adjustments or access requirements for the interview process please contact . For any general queries, please contact: .

Job Introduction

The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, celebrated for its dynamic performances and rich history spanning over a century, is looking to hire a visionary new Head of Philharmonic Marketing. This role is about deepening the relationship that the orchestra holds with its audiences – local, national, and global. The successful applicant will drive growth, build box office income, and enhance the Philharmonic brand. The role is instrumental in shaping the future of this iconic orchestra.

The Head of Philharmonic Marketing is a central role within the Philharmonic’s senior leadership team, equivalent to a Director-level marketing role at a non-BBC UK symphony orchestra. We are looking for someone with marketing savvy and management experience to help us tell our story and to connect with our current and future audiences. The job includes equal parts strategic planning, management responsibilities, and campaign delivery (including a significant brand and programme refresh aligned with the 25/26 season launch). Key partners will include BBC marketing and public relations teams, external agencies, creative personnel, and an international set of venues, festivals, and promoters.

This role is perfect for an experienced communications professional – someone with effective management skills and with a history of delivering high-impact marketing campaigns, managing brands, and developing marketing strategy.

While an extensive knowledge of classical music is not essential, it is important to us that applicants engage with the arts on a broader level and are passionate about different forms of culture – be it specific genres of music, dance, literature, visual art, or any other field.

To download a copy of this job pack follow the link here.

For any further information or to discuss the role further, please contact Adam Szabo, Orchestra Director at .

The internal CPF Job Title for this role is Band D / Marketing Manager.

Main Responsibilities

Campaign Delivery

• Oversee the effective planning and delivery of the marketing, communications, and brand strategy for the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.
• Lead on the concept delivery for the 25/26 season creative and season announcement, and all subsequent seasons.
• Lead on a brand refresh aligned with the 25/26 season launch.
• Oversee the planning and delivery of the Philharmonic’s digital content marketing strategy, leading on the production and distribution of all recorded, filmed, and written marketing content.
• Oversee the planning and delivery of the Philharmonic’s social media strategy.
• Lead on the marketing and campaigns for all BBC Philharmonic concert activity, with a responsibility for ensuring that box office targets are achieved.
• Ensure that BBC Editorial Guidelines are followed, and that the marketing team achieve 100% compliance on campaigns.
• Liaise with external partners, agencies, freelancers and artistic collaborators on the planning and delivery of targeted marketing and communications activity.

Strategy and Planning

• Oversee the communications timeline and resource allocation, including management of the marketing budget.
• Lead on audience development and audience inclusivity initiatives.
• Lead on the delivery of audience research and evaluation projects.
• Support the development of joint marketing and audience growth campaigns with project partners and artistic collaborators.
• Liaise with the Orchestra Director on the planning and delivery of key strategic initiatives.

Leadership and Management

• Line-manage the Marketing Executive and Marketing Assistant, supporting them with effective campaign planning and delivery, and with their professional development.
• Complete effective bi-annual MyConversation review processes with direct reports.
• Manage the relationship with the Philharmonic’s national media agency.
• Inspire the team to innovate, be aware of developments in marketing and technology/digital trends, maintain links with the industry and incorporate insight into marketing activity.

General

• Understand the BBC’s Mission to inform, educate and entertain.
• Live the BBC Values, and contribute to making the BBC a fantastic place to work.
• Follow the BBC’s policies on diversity and inclusion when hiring and managing others, and encourage diversity of thinking across the team.
• Attend concerts and special events as required.
• Represent the Philharmonic and the marketing team at internal and external meetings and events as required.
• Evaluate and report on the success and learnings from different marketing, communications and audience development initiatives.

Are you the right candidate?

Essentials (must have)

• Significant experience of leading on marketing and communications strategies, ideally within the creative industries.
• Experience of effective and supportive people management.
• Commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion principles.
• Personable manner with the ability to build warm relationships with colleagues, partners and creative collaborators.
• Experience of brand management, including social media and content strategy.
• Excellent planning and project management skills.
• Able to anticipate the challenges and opportunities which arise from marketplace developments and translate these into a coherent medium to long term strategy.
• Interest in classical music.

Desirables (nice to have)

• Understanding of the BBC and its current position in a rapidly transforming cultural sector.
• Experience of working with artists and creatives.
• Knowledge of the UK’s arts and culture sector.
• Knowledge of marketing best practice in the cultural sector, including current trends and challenges.
• Experience of leading on audience development initiatives and research projects.
• Experience working with Adobe InDesign, and more broadly, Adobe Creative Suite.

How to apply:

Applicants who wish to apply should upload the following documents along with their application:

Cover letter (no longer than 2 pages) addressing the following areas: What excites you about this opportunity and working with the BBC Philharmonic? Why do you think you are the right person for this role? What knowledge and experience will you bring to the team?

CV (no longer than 2 pages): including full name, contact details (phone and email) and location at top, and an outline of previous roles you’ve held, relevant skills and experience

About the BBC

The BBC is committed to redeploying employees seeking suitable alternative employment within the BBC for different reasons and they will be given priority consideration ahead of other applicants. Priority consideration means for those employees seeking redeployment their application will be considered alongside anyone else at risk of redundancy, prior to any individuals being considered who are not at risk.

We don’t focus simply on what we do – we also care how we do it. Our values and the way we behave are important to us. Please make sure you’ve read about our values and behaviours here.

Diversity matters at the BBC. We have a working environment where we value and respect every individual’s unique contribution . click apply for full job details