Recruitment Pack
DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
‘I am immensely proud to be President of Birmingham Royal Ballet. The Company exemplifies modern, ambitious and world-class ballet, and inspires, develops and showcases the very best of our country’s talent and creativity.’ HRH THE PRINCE OF WALES PRESIDENT, BIRMINGHAM ROYAL BALLET
‘The future of ballet was right there in Embrace.’ AUDIENCE MEMBER TWITTER
‘A standard-setting Company, that other ballet Companies, and Youth Ballets learn from. I have enjoyed seeing such a variety of their works.’ AUDIENCE MEMBER FACEBOOK
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BACKGROUND
Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB) aspires to be the world’s leading touring classical ballet company. Our home is in Britain’s second largest city, but our life is on the road, performing over 140 shows every year at as many as 15 venues. We have up to 60 permanent dancers and our own outstanding orchestra, the Royal Ballet Sinfonia, led by Koen Kessels, which is renowned for its performances of some of the best orchestral music in the UK. Our annual turnover is c£14 million and we regularly an audience in excess of 185,000.
In January 2020 Carlos Acosta CBE, one of the world’s most recognised dancers, will join Birmingham Royal Ballet as the company’s new Director. Carlos has an exciting vision for the company and we are recruiting for a Director of Development to lead our talented fund-raising team and to work with Carlos, Chief Executive Caroline Miller OBE and the Board, to raise the funding required to realise our ambition.
This is a rare opportunity for a talented and dynamic individual to join one of the world’s leading ballet companies at a point of exciting change, and to be part of the leadership team that builds the strategy to deliver Carlos Acosta’s artistic vision for BRB.
Birmingham Royal Ballet proudly produces and tours some of the most iconic large-scale classical ballets throughout the UK and internationally. We are also leading the most ambitious commissioning programme of new work for a generation. Our Ballet Now programme was launched in 2017 as a five-year project to commission and present ten new ballets, complete with new orchestral scores and designs. At a cost of £2.2 million, Ballet Now is supported by the Oak Foundation and many individual donors. It has drawn international attention and has led to co-commissions with Dutch National Ballet and Queensland Ballet, Australia.
“It’s fascinating to see what the young British choreographers are up to.”
THE TIMES on Embrace by George Williamson, BRB’s 2nd Ballet Now commission (June 2018).
Birmingham Royal Ballet: recruitment information for Director of Development, May 2019 page 2 of 7 A SPECIAL COMPANY LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
Birmingham Royal Ballet traces its antecedents to the original Vic-Wells Ballet founded by Ninette de Valois in 1931. In 1946 by ‘Madam’ was invited to bring the Vic-Wells to the Royal Opera House as resident company and there our modern history began. In 1990, then Director Sir Peter Wright, brought the Company to Birmingham and BRB was born, taking up residence at brand new purpose built headquarters in Thorp Street. In 1995, Sir Peter stepped down and a young choreographer named David Bintley took over as Director. In July 2019, David Bintley CBE will himself will step down having led the company for almost 25 years.
Carlos Acosta will inherit a Company in very great shape including an impressive, extensive catalogue of works featuring some of the finest ballets of the last 73- years and a rich history of successfully bringing world-class ballet to audiences everywhere.
“Birmingham Royal Ballet dazzles their way through new and recent work, dancing with boldness and individuality.” The Independent – four stars (June 2018)
We are proud of our home in the centre of Birmingham, one of the youngest and most diverse cities in Europe. From the traditional to the modern, our performances inspire, entertain and delight, delivering the highest standards of artistry in music, dance and design wherever we perform.
Alongside our main-stage performances, we engage in many ways to introduce our art form to everyone. We aim to remove barriers to participation, introducing and providing access to ballet to those who may otherwise be unlikely to engage with dance and the arts. Every year, more than 20,000 participants aged from 0 – 90 take part in engagement and participation activity in Birmingham and across the UK. This includes 3,000 children from primary schools across Birmingham, many of whom live in areas of multiple deprivation, who have the opportunity to take part in workshops and audition for free ballet classes. Our Dance Track programme, celebrating 21 years of success this year, identifies upcoming talent from diverse backgrounds and offers access to free classes to those who may not otherwise have such opportunities. To date, individuals on this programme have secured places at world-renowned ballet schools, some of whom have gone on to have professional dancing careers.
Birmingham Royal Ballet is the world’s only Ballet Company whose second Company - Freefall Dance Company - is a collective of highly gifted dancers with severe learning disabilities. Freefall provides the opportunity for these talented dancers to achieve beyond that which it is so often expected of them by society and themselves. The response to the disciplined approach of ballet produces amazing personal growth,
Birmingham Royal Ballet: recruitment information for Director of Development, May 2019 page 3 of 7 fantastic performances, award-winning films and life-changing encounters. One of our key goals is to develop and expand this incredible programme still further.
BRB’s Dreams projects connect the company with children and adults who train at local dance schools across the country. We offer them the opportunity to be taught by Company alumni and learn the actual choreography from some of the world’s great ballets. The finale of every Dreams project is seeing the students perform a real ballet on main stage, in authentic costume, against the actual ballet set and dancing alongside BRB’s Principal dancers. In 2020, Swan Lake Dreams performances will take place at the Birmingham Hippodrome, Southampton Mayflower and Plymouth Theatre.
It is fundamental to BRB’s philosophy that great ballet should be available to everyone. We are committed to growing our audiences and will extend the reach of our work with significant new investment in digital development over the next two- years. Digital will not only help us attract new theatrical audiences, but better reflect the diversity of today’s cultural and entertainment landscape by offering new ways to discover, experiences and engage with BRB. It will also transform how BRB’s Development team manages its communication with BRB Friends and donors. Last year, our audience across the UK exceeded 180,000 people at over 140 performances in nine UK venues. We are dedicated to touring, with 90% of our performances outside the capital city (2017/18: 146 UK performances; 14 in London) but there is still opportunity to grow. 2019’s ‘Home from Home’ tour will bring live music and ballet to over 5,000 theatre-goers in towns around Birmingham with a focus on families and schools. Overall, the Midlands and Birmingham in particular, is becoming a national beacon for dance. The new Dance Hub opens alongside our Birmingham headquarters in Summer 2019. Funded by Arts Council England and featuring new studios, offices and commissioning opportunities, it will add to the Birmingham Hippodrome, DanceXchange and BRB’s emerging ‘dance campus’ on Southside.
“I have been enjoying Birmingham Royal Ballet for 15 years and donating for much of that time. It is such a wonderful feeling to be a little part of the Company. I get to see rehearsals and meet members of the Company for my donations. Marvelous!” DONOR
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VISION FOR 2019-2022
Birmingham Royal Ballet is proud to be a world-leading company based in UK’s youngest city. We are committed to performing a classical and contemporary repertoire to diverse audiences throughout the UK and beyond. We support all Arts Council England’s objectives and are particularly committed to ensuring that more people have the opportunity to experience and participate in great art. The breadth of our touring pattern and our geographic reach remain hugely important to us, developing relationships with our audiences and funders today and well into the future.
BRB’s 2018-2022 Business Plan (as an ACE National Portfolio Organisation) challenges us to:
• Be a global leader in everything we do: provide unrivalled opportunities for dancers, musicians, designers and choreographers by working with them to develop their skills, from the earliest years of training through to career-long development. Our close relationships with The Royal Ballet School and Elmhurst Ballet School help to ensure that we have access to young artists of the finest talent. In fact, BRB is the largest single employer of graduates from The Royal Ballet School. We also seek out new artists working in ballet, design and music by commissioning with the advice of an international consortium of experts for the Ballet Now project. These approaches not only support choreographic development and the Creative Case for Diversity, but by working with young and diverse voices, experiencing today’s world, we will reflect the ideas, trends and aesthetics of the UK of today. • Be the place where new talent aspires to be: produce an annual programme of new creations and collaborations, and increase diversity across our creative collaborators through our ground-breaking Ballet Now programme. We want to create an environment that fosters innovation, creativity and excellence across all disciplines. • Grow audiences and extend the reach of our work through engagement and outreach programmes and develop digital projects that expand both the Company’s output and use technology as a platform to break down barriers to engagement. Our ambition is to develop dance in the digital arena, making use of cutting-edge technology to produce bold new work. • Increase the quality, creativity, ethnic diversity and perceived status of all areas of work at Birmingham Royal Ballet.
Birmingham Royal Ballet: recruitment information for Director of Development, May 2019 page 5 of 7 FUNDING
Birmingham Royal Ballet is one of four major ballet organisations funded as part of Arts Council England (ACE)’s national portfolio. In the last ACE funding round, we were awarded standstill funding of £7,891,000 for the years 2018/22 for which we are incredibly grateful. BRB’s annual fundraising target is approximately £1.4 million. Our ambition is to grow that figure over the next four years, alongside increasing ticket sales income.
We have a strong portfolio of supporters from trusts, foundations (both Midlands-based and national), corporates and individuals. The challenge is to increase the level of income through fundraising as well as increasing income from tickets sales and other commercial avenues, while reducing reliance on Government funding.
As we say thank you to Director, David Bintley and look forward to the arrival of Carlos Acosta, BRB is planning the best ways to support this transition and to enable its future ambitions. We are looking for a new dynamic Director of Development to steer BRB’s fundraising to achieve its goals. If you are ready to change our fundraising landscape, then we’d love to hear from you.
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JOB DESCRIPTION
THE ROLE Job Title: Director of Development
Location: Based in Birmingham and required to travel regularly to London or touring venues as required. The post holder would be expected to have knowledge of the local as well as the national fundraising environment.
Reports to: Chief Executive
Direct Reports: The Development team is currently made up of 6 members with the following reports (I –indirect):
• Senior Manager: Trusts & Foundations • Senior Manager: Individual Giving • Trusts & Foundations Officer (I) • Membership Services Officer (I) • Development Events Officer • Corporate Partnerships Officer (I - reports to the Chief Commercial Officer but with dotted line to this role)
Key Relationships: The Director of Development will liaise with a wide range of external and internal groups and individuals, maintaining and growing effective working relationships with:
• Portfolio of high net worth individuals • Portfolio of trusts & foundations both present and future • Portfolio of corporates both present and future • Chief Executive and Director • The Board of trustees • BRB senior managers • BRB finance department • External fundraising consultants if necessary • External agencies and suppliers
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Purpose: To work as part of the senior team at BRB to affect a further step-change in the Company’s income generating abilities by providing strategic direction and leadership. The Director of Development will design strategies and implement programmes that achieve increased support for the Company, and the new Director’s programme, contribute to BRB’s sustainability and enhance its reputation whilst increasing donors/audiences locally, nationally and internationally.
KEY CRITERIA FOR SUCCESS
After 12 months in post, the successful candidate will have: • Developed and implemented a robust innovative development strategy responding to the vision of the new Director, Carlos Acosta. • Developed a strong network of valuable new contacts and cemented relationships with existing networks as well as bringing in new financial support for the company • Built productive and close working relationships with the Senior Management Team, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Director and Board of Trustees • Demonstrated credibility to represent BRB at all levels both internally and externally. • Built a supportive and dynamic culture in the Development Team
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
• Building on the work already underway, develop and implement a development strategy in support of current ACE NPO plan period remaining (2019-2022) and the new Director’s vision, particularly raising funds for Carlos Acosta’s first full season (2020/2021) and beyond. • Review the existing development programme and create detailed operational plans and targets to improve income generation from corporate bodies, trusts, individuals and any other appropriate fundraising sources. • Agree, monitor and deliver annual revenue targets and expenditure in consultation with the CEO and Chief Operating Officer (COO). Ensure all income is managed in strict accordance with BRB’s policies and procedures and handled as tax effectively as possible. • Improve the existing donor relationship strategy to ensure that good relationships with donors and sponsors are maintained at all times, with an emphasis on creating meaningful long-term relationships so that their support is retained and developed into the future. • Identify new opportunities and develop identifiable programme areas of fundraising that are not currently exploited to include growth in the portfolio of legacies. • Manage, motivate and appraise a team of staff through setting and monitoring
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PERSON SPECIFICATION
Skills, Experience & Knowledge
• Proven track record of achieving significant financial income targets • Extensive knowledge of the fundraising scene preferably in the Midlands and London • An established pool of donor relationships would also be a useful asset • Educated to degree level or equivalent • Experience of influencing, negotiating and presenting at a senior level • Thorough understanding of all components of a broad fundraising portfolio • Demonstrable experience in developing a team to deliver to the highest level • Demonstrated ability to think strategically • Excellent communication skills, both written and oral • Demonstrated ability to prospect, cultivate and manage high level donors • Demonstrable experience of effectively using contacts and networks • Detailed knowledge of all key legislative and financial standards and regulations relevant to third sector fundraising • Lateral and creative thinking skills • Comfortable with CRM and/or donor management systems and applications • Experience in the cultural sector is desired but not essential. • Interest in ballet, music and arts education.
Disposition/Attitude
• Results-oriented • The ability to inspire and motivate others both internally and externally • A good listener with superb interpersonal skills • Ambitious, bold and creative • Flexible and adaptable - an enthusiasm for rethinking accepted norms • Articulate and persuasive, both orally and in writing • Strong networking and relationship building skills • A good team player and collaborative worker • Outgoing and self-motivated • The ability to work with charm, sensitivity and maturity • A genuine and keen interest in the arts, particularly ballet.
Birmingham Royal Ballet: recruitment information for Director of Development, May 2019 page 9 of 7 TERMS
Salary: c £75k, based on 40 hours per week
Place of work/Travel: Your normal place of work is Birmingham Royal Ballet premises, Thorp Street, Birmingham B5 4AU. However, in the course of your duties you may be required to travel to and work at other venues at which the Company is performing/working.
Hours: This position is based on 40 hours per week and is open to flexible working. We recognise that the best fundraisers are in high demand in the arts so we are open to proposals in order to secure the most talented individuals to join the BRB team.
Annual Leave: 5 weeks paid holiday plus an additional 1 week company holiday during the Christmas New Year period.
How to apply Please submit a CV and cover letter outlining how you meet the person requirements, and including salary history.
Email: [email protected] Post: HR Department, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Thorp Street, Birmingham B5 4AU
The closing date for applications is noon on Friday 07 June 2019. Interviews planned to take place in London, on 26 June 2019.
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