Production Manager, Frieze London & New York

About The Frieze Production Department

The Production team are responsible for delivering all physical elements of the fairs and ensuring it’s safe, timely and successful delivery. This team is an operational one, based in London, made up of two distinct subsets, with a Head of Department for each:

Exhibitor Production – focuses on all production elements related to the Exhibitors at the fairs, including; booth builds, complex artwork installation, technical support, drafting, floor planning, art shipping logistics, Frieze Sculpture management, production schedules (venue builds), Health & Safety

Fair Production – encompasses all other areas of the fair, including; tent builds & related infrastructure, F&B, contract management, Partnership lounge support/production, other non-gallery build, fair design, site infrastructure, security, cleaning, contractor management, production schedule (tent builds), Health & Safety

Each fair has a Production Manager, based in London, who is responsible for all the Fair Production elements as well as coordinating with the various departments across Frieze. Usually, a Production Manager works on one UK and one US show (being opposite times of the year). The Exhibitor Production Department work across all fairs but are more heavily involved in the US fairs where we don’t have a single stand-building vendor (in the UK and Korea we use one stand-building vendor for each show) – for the US the internal team act as the stand-build vendor, and exhibitors order their additional walls, lights, etc from Frieze rather than an external party.

Who We Are Looking For

The newly created Production Manager position will primarily be overseeing the production and operational running of Frieze London, and Frieze New York

The role will act as day-to-day liaison and management of various Frieze contractors, and internal stakeholders. They will work closely with both the Head of Fair Production and the Executive Director of Production, to ensure delivery of the events to a high standard, within budget and on time.

The candidate must be a logical thinker who has the ability to work to tight deadlines. They must have experience of managing budgets, as well as negotiating contracts and pricing for large scale consumer events.

Strong negotiation skills and an approachable manner are essential, as well as having the ability to co-ordinate between various stakeholders at different level of input and needs.

Responsibilities Include But Not Limited To

• Management and operational delivery of Frieze London and Frieze New York
• Support Head of Fair Production with the management of the fair architect and designers to determine the overall ‘look & feel’ of the show
• Oversee show signage plan, along with the Design and Marketing teams
• Day-to-day liaison with the production company on Frieze London and production support team on Frieze New York 
• Ensuring show is built to correct plans and specifications
• Management and implementation of all non-gallery areas and F&B (“Features Areas”)
• Working with Coordinator on the ordering of furniture, build elements and required equipment needed on site
• Working with the contractors, production teams and internal stakeholders to ensure the show complies with Health and Safety regulations and venue regulations
• Day-to-day management of the show production budget, to ensure accurate forecasting, as well as raising of Purchase Orders and processing invoices
• Support Head of Fair Production on future planning and budget forecasting
• Ensuring sustainability policies are implemented, where applicable, and find new ways to improve
• Attending relevant and appropriate training on health, safety and environmental issues
• Methodical filing and record keeping, arranging meetings, keeping minutes and follow up correspondence
• Post show evaluation and development reports
• Working on other special projects that may launch in future, as needed
• Supporting other production team members, as and when required, on other events during the year

You Will Have The Following Strengths

• Strong operational event management experience of large publicly attended events
• Stakeholder liaison management (internal and external)
• Experienced in working with a number of contractors
• Experienced and able to work well in a team, as well as autonomously
• Budget management experience
• Understanding of operational, venue and local authority procedures
• Knowledge of UK Health & Safety Regulations

We'd Also Love If You Have These

• Experience of working with temporary structures
• Background knowledge of the arts and gallery systems
• Some knowledge of working with CAD
• Knowledge of exhibition production (outside of the art world)
• Experience working in the USA
• Knowledge of best working practices in US and UK
• Health & Safety qualification (IOSH or above)
• Strong communication and negotiation skills
• Innate high standards and concern for a high level of quality
• Excellent problem solver and multi-tasker
• Ability to calmly work under pressure
• Adaptable with excellent attention to detail
• Able to deal with a broad range of people at every level
• Self-motivated and able to take responsibility 
• Competent in the use of Microsoft Office, in particular Excel

Working Conditions

• This is a permanent position.
• Please note this role will be based at our offices in Surrey Street, London.
• Working hours are 10:00 – 18:00, Monday to Friday, with some flexibility on remote working as appropriate
• Unsocial hours may be required, as dictated by the demands of the business schedule
• There will be travel to the US required as part of this role, during events and on shorter trips when required.
• Adapting to use of new systems and technology where appropriate

Frieze unites people in our love of the arts. We understand this can only be accomplished when we harness the entirety of our company and lead with a lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion in everything we do. As a global company that drives culture, we are committed to practicing anti-discrimination including race, gender identity, sexual orientation and disability, together with artists, writers and cultural practitioners from all backgrounds. There is still much work to be done to address systemic inequality and discrimination within the arts and culture industry, and we are dedicated to making progress to both within our own organization and the art world at large.