Director of Revenue, Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park & Museum

Job Opportunity:
Would you like to wake up every day knowing that your work catalyzes the ignition of a spark of imagination in eager minds? The Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park & Museum is seeking an exceptional individual to join our team as the Director of Revenue . Our mission is to excite visitors of all ages about the wonders of the natural world and to provide guests with immersive experiences like no other, and yours is to help keep our business units on track and growing so that the positive impact of our museum can be experienced far and wide.

The new museum is a place where visitors become active participants in uncovering the deep past, contextualizing the present, and plotting a better course towards a more sustainable future. Imagine giving guests the chance to connect with history firsthand by digging fossils with their own hands at a paleontological site of global significance. This hands-on experience will leave an indelible mark on their hearts and minds, fostering a lifelong passion for learning, exploration, and discovery.

As the Director of Revenue, you will be responsible for maximizing the museum’s business earned revenue streams through ticket, café, retail sales, and other creative methods. You will collaborate with the Executive Director and executive team as well as the marketing manager and managers of the retail store and cafe to develop engaging messaging, off-the-charts experiences, and innovative offerings that advance the museum’s mission as well as its bottom line.

Beyond the allure of dinosaurs, the museum is a powerful force in the fight against planetary overheating and biodiversity loss. In addition to the museum itself, each business unit within will play a role in pushing back against these global crises through the choices they offer, the practices they uphold, and the experiences they create for our guests. As a key member of a collaborative leadership team, you will also empower our patrons to become agents of change, working towards a sustainable and thriving future for our planet.

And, as the Director, you will have the unique opportunity to assemble a team of diverse, highly skilled, and passionate individuals who strive together towards a common vision, in a work environment that nurtures the human spirit while fostering productivity and innovation. Our organizational culture encourages individuals to bring their authentic selves to work, a place where their unique talents are valued and fully unleashed. All this takes place in New Jersey's largest Carbon Net Zero building—an architectural marvel and physical manifestation of our mission, set into a resplendent naturalistic setting.

Moreover, this project has garnered global attention and has been included in Smithsonian Magazine's list of Most Anticipated Museums in the World. The project is led by world renowned paleontologist and explorer, Founding Executive Director, Dr. Kenneth Lacovara, and by Managing Director, longtime Head of Conferences and Head of Curation at TED, Kelly Stoetzel. By joining us, you will be at the forefront of a global movement, making an impact on an international scale. If you are ready to kindle the flame of exploration in hearts of all ages, connect with a broad and curious community as your team builds our brand through marketing and social media, provides unforgettable retail, cafe, and event experiences, takes on the climate and biodiversity crises, builds a team of exceptional individuals, and works in a purpose-driven, trust-based, inclusive environment within a globally recognized project, then seize this extraordinary opportunity.

Particulars:
The Director of Revenue will be responsible for attracting and engaging visitors and learners of all ages and backgrounds through marketing and online media and maintaining exceptional offerings and experiences in the museum’s retail store and cafe. You will also develop and execute analytical studies that will provide high-quality business advice to the executive director and leadership team. This key position will be responsible for maximizing the museum’s revenue streams including ticket, event, cafe and retail sales, while ensuring an overall off-the-charts visitor experience for each person who enters the door. The Director of Revenue will enhance the museum’s messaging as well as its bottom line.

The ideal candidate for this role has a revenue background with experience in marketing and is excited about this opportunity to build something from the beginning, to innovate, to give life to new ideas, and to build and grow a successful business. This senior leader must be committed to being mindful of climate and biodiversity, to creating an inclusive and welcoming atmosphere for visitors and co-workers, and to inspiring every staff member to deliver unparalleled visitor experiences that are purpose-driven, convey a sense of amazement for the natural world, and deliver unending moments of surprise and delight to museum patrons. The successful candidate must be an adept team-builder who can foster an inclusive, positive work environment, and who thrives in a complex, fast-changing, publicly facing live work environment. The right candidate for this role is a builder—someone excited about this ground-floor opportunity to create, innovate, and to give life to an immerging world-class visitor destination. The position reports to the Managing Director and is part of the museum’s executive team.

Key Responsibilities:

• Be part of building an inclusive, fulfilling, purpose-based organizational ethos.
• Build and lead an all-star team, including the Marketing and Sales Manager, Cafe Manager, Retail Store Manager, and Event Sales.
• Help to train all operations staff members, including vendor employees, to deliver purpose-driven, quality care to all visitors.
• Build a comprehensive strategy to generate earned revenue for the museum through ticket sales, cafe sales, retail sales, and other avenues in collaboration with Executive Director and executive team.
• Develop, execute, and deliver data analytics to the executive director and leadership team that will give the Edelman Fossil Park & Museum a competitive edge.
• Advance the museum’s mission in all areas, while delighting guests. This includes cafe menu choices, retail product offerings and marketing / social media messaging.
• Oversee the development and management of membership programs to attract and retain members and give them a great experience.
• Manage the museum’s ticketing and admissions process, including pricing strategies, ticket sales and revenue tracking.
• Collect and analyze revenue data, sharing a daily report with stakeholders.
• Other duties as assigned by the executive director or managing director.
• Must be able to work flexible hours, including some weekends and evenings.

Requirements:

• A bachelor's degree or higher
• An advanced degree, such as an MBA is preferred
• A minimum of 5 years of relevant experience managing and leading teams to foster an inclusive, positive, fulfilling work environment.
• A proven ability to lead a business with financial success.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Outstanding organizational and project management skills, and a desire to produce the extraordinary.
• Ability to occasionally work outdoors, and to work flexible hours, including some weekends and evenings, and a willingness to travel on occasion.
• Strong analytical and problem solving skills.

Starting Date: ASAP

To Apply
All candidates should submit: 1) Resume; 2) Cover Letter outlining their suitability for the role, focusing on their ability to help advance the business, visitor experience, and sustainability goals of the museum. Include a description of relevant experience; 3) Provide references on request.

About the Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park & Museum

The Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park & Museum of Rowan University will transform lives by providing a unique opportunity to explore a remarkable site of scientific wonder. Visitors will embark on a personal, hands-on voyage of discovery in an extraordinary setting that bears witness to one of the most momentous events in our planet's history. By opening a window to the past, we imbue visitors with the thrill of scientific discovery as they develop a new appreciation for the preciousness of life that sustains our world today.

The museum under construction will become a one-of-a-kind destination that both educates and entertains. The local community will gain a world-class cultural institution that will attract visitors from across the country and around the globe. This venue will energize economic development in the region, elevate the prominence of Rowan University, and foster pride of place for Southern New Jersey.

Globally Important Research
At the Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park & Museum, visitors travel back in time to when dinosaurs ruled New Jersey. Sixty-six million years ago, an asteroid struck the Earth, wiping out the dinosaurs and 75% of species. The fossil park’s 4-acre fossil quarry, set into a 65-acre property, is providing scientists with the best view ever into this pivotal, calamitous event that ended an Earth era, paving the way for the modern world as we know it. Over the past 13 years, fossil park founder, Dr. Kenneth Lacovara, and his team, have unearthed over 100,000 fossils from a 66-million years old bonebed in the quarry bottom, and have catalogued over 100 fossil species.

A Rich Heritage
Surprising to many, New Jersey boasts a rich heritage of fossil discovery. In 1858, Hadrosaurus, the world’s first discovered nearly complete dinosaur, was found in Haddonfield, New Jersey. In 1866, the world’s first discovered tyrannosaur, Dryptosaurus, was unearthed just a mile from the fossil park. (T. rex, found in Montana, would come later in 1905.) Many other new species of ancient creatures have been discovered in New Jersey, from Cretaceous beds running from Freehold southwest through Swedesboro. Although dinosaurs were first recognized from fragmentary remains in England, southern New Jersey can rightfully claim its place as the cradle of dinosaur paleontology.

The Thrill of Discovery:
Hand-on, authentic discovery is at the core of the Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park & Musuem public experience. Above the research layer, there are areas designated for public digging. Nearly every child or grownup who visits the quarry to dig for fossil, finds a 60+ million-year-old fossil, with their own hands, that they get to take home. Over and over, this has been a transformational experience for people. When they make a personal connect between themselves and deep time, and the place where they live and the Earth’s ancient past, they never again see the world, or their place in it, in quite the same way. Children seem to understand the authenticity of the experience. The shark tooth or ancient clam that they may dig up, is a real discovery. At that moment, they become explorers, voyagers, authentic discoverers—an experience that can set them on a new path.

Sustainability
The core concept behind the Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park & Museum is that we must learn from Earth’s deep past to guide our way into the future. The extinction of the dinosaurs serves as a cautionary tale for the multiple, simultaneous existential crises we face today. In the Hall of Extinction & Hope, visitors will confront the alarming facts about the unfolding climate and biodiversity crises. And they will learn why there is hope in the battle to save Earth’s atmosphere and biosphere, and that we all must act now to create the future that we all wish for our posterity. Finally, through a personalized RFID system, visitors will connect with sustainability programs and organizations, giving them a sense of agency and avenues through which they can make a positive difference.

Carbon Net-Zero and Sustainable Construction
The Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park & Museum will be an all-electric building, deriving its energy from photovoltaics and geothermal heating and cooling. Upon opening, the museum will be New Jersey’s largest carbon net-zero facility. Further, construction is underway using reduced carbon concrete, bird-safe glass, and large amounts of embodied carbon contained within sustainably raised accoya cladding and wood-fiber-lamination beams.

About Rowan University
Rowan University is a comprehensive national university. The university enrolls approximately 22,000 students. Its main campus is in Glassboro, N.J., 20-miles southeast of Philadelphia. Philadelphia International Airport is 30 minutes away, and New York and Washington, DC are easily accessible by train from Philadelphia. Rowan has been recognized by US News and World Report and was named the third fastest-growing public research university in the nation by the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Rowan University promotes a diverse community that begins with students, faculty, staff and administrators who respect each other and value one another's inherent dignity. By identifying and removing barriers and fostering individual potential, Rowan cultivates a community in which all members can learn and grow. The Rowan community is committed to a safe environment that encourages intellectual, academic, and social interaction and engagement across multiple intersections of identities. At Rowan, creating and maintaining a caring community that embraces diversity in its broadest sense is among the highest of institutional priorities.

Advertised: Aug 23 2023 Eastern Daylight Time
Applications close: Oct 15 2023 11:55 PM Eastern Daylight Time