Company Description
Hello, art person! We’re so glad you’re here.
When you think of an art museum, you might picture paintings or sculptures. But art is so much more than the “traditional” forms you’re used to seeing in galleries. Nobody knows that better than Portland. Our city is bursting with all kinds of art forms–from craft beverages and comic books to artisan chocolate and collectible sneakers. There’s no one way to make art, and there’s no one way to be an art person.
That’s why you belong here. We’re a place that has room for all kinds of art (and art people).
We are a dynamic institution with multiple locations. Adjacent to the Museum campus in downtown, Portland, PAM CUT // Center for the Untold Tomorrow is an inclusive, modern, and welcoming hub serving a broad range of artists and audiences across all media art. Also nearby is the nonprofit Rental Sales Gallery representing regional artists. Across the river, in SE Portland PAM CUT’s Tomorrow Theater embraces cinematic storytelling in all its form through unique one-night-only events.
Job Description
The Director of Business Operations role at the Portland Art Museum is a key member of the Museum’s senior leadership team responsible for driving earned revenue, operational excellence, and visitor-centered business strategy across three major earned revenue divisions: PAM Venues (Events), Rental Sales Gallery (RSG), and The Shop at PAM, as well as digital commerce channels and cross-institutional revenue initiatives.
This role oversees strategic planning, financial performance, operational consistency, and cross-departmental coordination to ensure business units function cohesively and achieve the Museum’s revenue, audience, and engagement goals. The Director supervises the three department heads and provides leadership, analysis, and direction to support growth, sustainability, innovation, and mission alignment across all business functions.
This position plays a critical role in strengthening the Museum’s commercial portfolio, enhancing the onsite and online visitor experience, cultivating community partnerships, and positioning PAM as a vibrant cultural, commercial, and community destination.
In this role, you will
Leadership & Department Oversight
- Provide strategic leadership to the Heads of Sales & Experiences, Head of Retail, and the Head of RSG, ensuring clarity of direction, accountability, and alignment with institutional goals
- Coach and mentor departmental leaders, strengthening their capacity to manage teams, budgets, and business operations
- Foster collaboration among business departments to ensure integrated strategies and seamless guest-facing operations
- Oversee workforce planning, training standards, and customer service excellence in earned revenue delivery
Business & Revenue Strategy
- Set the overarching business and revenue strategy for PAM’s commercial departments, ensuring sustainable earned revenue growth across PAM Venues, Retail, and RSG
- Direct department Heads in developing accurate revenue forecasts, sales targets, and performance metrics, and ensure accountability for results
- Guide analysis of market trends, visitor behavior, and competitive benchmarking to inform departmental strategies and identify emerging revenue opportunities
- Lead business development efforts, including evaluating new earned-revenue streams, conducting feasibility studies, and guiding long-term commercial planning
- Integrate strategies across departments to maximum engagement and revenue
Digital Commerce, Technology & Data Strategy
- Oversee the Museum’s e-commerce strategy for retail, events, and gallery sales, ensuring cohesive branding and optimal user experience
- Partner with IT, Marketing, and Visitor Services to maintain and improve POS systems, online sales platforms, CRM integration, and dataflow between systems
- Develop and maintain dashboards and analytics tools that measure client satisfaction, sales performance, audience segmentation, and operational efficiency
- Use data-driven insights to inform pricing, product development, event programming, and customer experience decisions
Operational Management
- Establish and uphold operational standards, policies, and procedures that promote efficiency, visitor satisfaction, and consistency across all business departments
- Ensure that departmental operations, including event sales, retail operations, and rental sales gallery, are coordinated effectively with internal partners such as Marketing, Events, Curatorial, and Visitor Services
- Review and approve departmental operating procedures and business plans to ensure they are aligned with Museum standards and goals
- Identify and implement technology systems that support efficient operations, inventory management, labor optimization, and customer engagement
Financial Oversight
- Lead the annual budgeting and financial planning process for PAM Venues, the Shop at PAM, and RSG, ensuring alignment with institutional financial goals
- Review and monitor departmental financial performance, including revenue, expenses, margins, and profitability, and hold leaders accountable for meeting financial targets
- Review and approve pricing strategies, revenue goals, and business plans submitted by departmental leaders
- Oversee procurement processes and vendor evaluations to ensure cost-effective and mission-aligned purchasing decisions
Partnerships & Stakeholder Engagement
- Oversee the cultivation of key external relationships, including community partners, vendors, local businesses, and event clients, ensuring departments maintain strong and aligned stakeholder engagement
- Direct business departments in collaborating with Marketing, Development, and Curatorial to build integrated commercial strategies tied to exhibitions and audience initiatives
- Ensure vendor and artist partnerships reflect PAM’s DEAI values, prioritizing diverse, local, and culturally responsive collaborators
Brand, Customer Experience & Program Development
- Provide strategic direction for the development of mission-aligned retail experiences, experiential programming, and gallery initiatives that enhance visitor engagement
- Ensure the consistency and integrity of PAM’s commercial brand identity, storytelling, and customer experience across all business units
- Champion innovation by encouraging departments to explore new products, programs, and business models that expand PAM’s commercial presence onsite, online, and within the community
- Partner with Marketing and Visitor Services to implement guest feedback systems and translate insights into improved commercial offerings
Compliance, Policies & Risk Management
- Ensure that all business departments comply with Museum policies, financial controls, risk-management practices, and applicable laws and regulations
- Oversee departmental negotiation processes for vendor agreements, client contracts, and licensing arrangements, ensuring alignment with institutional standards
- Provide oversight and direction for risk management practices related to events, retail operations, art handling, and guest-facing business activities
Additional Responsibilities
- Maintain an awareness of all exhibitions, programs, and community partnerships
- Serve as a member of the Senior Team and contribute to institutional strategic planning, master planning, and capital project discussions
- Performs other related duties as assigned
Supervisory Responsibilities
- Direct supervision of the Head of Sales & Experiences, Head of Retail, and Head of RSG
- Oversight of approximately 40+ staff across PAM Venues, the Shop at PAM, and RSG
- Decisions are made within prescribed operating guidelines
- Total budgetary preparation/compliance accountability
- Totally accountable for control of capital assets/equipment
- Totally accountable for long range and strategic planning
- Recruitment, mentoring, performance management, training & coaching. Serves as a leadership example being clear on the strategic direction of the department, being accountable and holding others accountable, and centering collaboration and the values of the Museum
To be successful in this role, you have these requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in business administration, retail management, arts administration, hospitality, marketing, or related field; or equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience
- 7–10 years of progressively responsible leadership experience in business operations, earned revenue management, retail/e-commerce, event services, hospitality, or related commercial enterprises
- Minimum 4–5 years of supervisory experience overseeing multiple direct reports, managers, or complex business units
- Experience in nonprofit, cultural, or visitor-serving organizations strongly preferred; museum or arts-sector experience a plus
- Demonstrated experience managing digital sales channels, CRM or POS systems, budgeting software, or analytics platforms
- Professional training or certification in retail management, project management, hospitality, or business analytics is beneficial but not required
- Strong leadership and team management skills with demonstrated success supervising multiple departments and developing high-performing teams across retail, events, and guest-facing functions
- Expertise in revenue generation, business development, pricing strategy, and financial analysis within a multi-unit business environment
- Advanced skills in budgeting, forecasting, financial modeling, and operational planning with the ability to balance mission alignment and revenue optimization.
- Strong understanding of marketing, branding, digital engagement, and customer-experience strategy, including omni-channel and e-commerce environments
- Excellent communication, negotiation, contract management, and relationship-building skills with internal partners, vendors, and community collaborators
- Ability to analyze and synthesize sales, retail, e-commerce, ticketing, and visitor data to support strategic decision-making and performance improvement
- Proficiency with business systems such as CRM platforms, POS systems, inventory management tools, and analytics dashboards; ability to partner with IT to improve business technology
- Demonstrated commitment to equity, inclusion, and community-centered business practices, including diverse vendor engagement and culturally responsive customer experience strategies
- Creative problem-solving, innovation mindset, and adaptability in a dynamic cultural or public-facing environment
- Knowledge of retail operations, event sales, hospitality, or visual arts sales is highly beneficial
If you have any questions along the way including wanting to talk about a nontraditional career background, please reach out to HR.
Job conditions & physical activities
- Schedule/Hours: 40 hours per week (9:00am - 5:00pm)
- Onsite with occasional work from home flexibility
- Occasional travel
- Night, evenings, and weekend hours as needed
- On-call status
- Constantly operates a computer and other office equipment, such as a copy machine, phone, and printer
- Frequently communicates with team members or clients
- Frequently move about the museum
- Occasionally lift/pull/push up to 15-20lbs
This list highlights key physical and environmental conditions related to the role but is not an exhaustive representation of all job requirements. Additional tasks and expectations may apply based on operational needs.
Benefits
- This role is exempt and full-time
- The budgeted compensation falls within pay grade S-1 ($95,382 minimum - $119,046 midpoint - $142,710 maximum), based on experience
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance
- Retirement plan with employer match
- Generous paid time off and holidays
- Employee perks and discounts
Application Process for Director of Business Operations
Ready to join our team? To be considered please submit your resume, cover letter, and four references. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Application materials will be screened and interview candidates will be selected and notified by email. All applicants will be notified once the position is filled.
Application deadline
We will begin reviewing applications immediately, so please apply as soon as possible. The closing date is subject to change at any time.
