Position Overview:

The Museum Store Assistant Manager is a hands-on highly visible position responsible for providing exceptional customer service to visitors, serving as acting manager of the store team at least two days each week, and ensuring that staffing and scheduling are functioning optimally so that the MIT Museum’s standard of excellence is delivered flawlessly and seamlessly. The Store Assistant Manager works in close partnership with the Store Manager, Director of Visitor Operations, and all other store assistants and temporay staff to collectively provide public-facing services of consistently high quality to visitors on a daily basis.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities (Essential Functions):

Operations

• Manage and oversee the smooth, efficient, and safe daily functioning of the MIT Museum Store; creating and sustaining a welcoming environment for all. As a keyholder, independently open and/or close the store. Responsibilities include store security, sales, cash distribution and reconciliation, and daily transaction reports.
• With the Store Manager and input from other museum teams, define, build, model and implement the hallmark qualities of the MIT Museum Store experience to ensure a premier experience for all.
• Support the Store Manager to deliver adequate daily staffing, opening and closing procedures, supervise cash distribution and reconciliation, engage with visitors and customers, and promote the museum store’s customer experience model by coaching and working closely with the staff charged with delivering the model.
• Ensure that point-of-sale database has a high level of accuracy for all entries. Become an expert in operation of point-of-sale system, and ensure proficiency and accuracy of all team members in said system.
• Develop, document and implement department systems, procedures and practices to support effective operations.
• Problem solve as needed: respond to first aid, accident or incident events and document according to museum/MIT protocols; resolve visitor complaints immediately.

Supervision

• Collaborate with the Store Manager to onboard, train, coach, supervise and mentor staff.

• Lead daily team meeting, when working as acting manager, to confirm daily assignments and museum schedule for the day. Monitor level of activity throughout the day and deploy staff as needed.
• Participate in regular cross-team meetings to discuss timely operational details and logistics, and any resource needs to be provided by the Director of Visitor Operations. Serve as the point of contact for all store related inquiries in the absence of the Store Manager.

Merchandise

• Ensure store displays reflect current stock levels, new merchandise, and are arranged to ensure maximum attractiveness. Ensure that at all times the store is neat, clean, and visually appealing.
• Ensure inventory levels adequaite for estimated sales by monitoring stock levels.
• Ensure all store staff including assistants to the manager, store assistants, and temporary staff are knowledgable about all store policies and stockroom procedures. Present documentation and train staff in new SOP’s as necessary and when directed by the Store Manager or Director of Visitor Operations.
• Supervise the organization of all incoming merchandise to be counted, priced, and stored. Ensure receivings have been entered into POS for all merchandise, reconcile unusual discrepancies, and notify Store Manager of discrepancies that may require executive attention.
• Assist and/or lead annual inventory of all store merchandise to comply with MIT accounting standards.
• Daily fulfillment of web-store sales. Train other store staff in procedures and practices for such sales as needed.

Other duties as assigned including those at a lower level when necessary.

Supervision Received:

Reports to the Store Manager and meets with regularly, receiving guidance on priorities and issues.

Supervision Exercised:

Two days each week and at other times when the Store Manager is not on site, supervises a team including assistant to the museum store manager, store assistants and temporary staff hired for peak periods of visitation.

With the Store Manager, recruits, hires, trains, develops, mentors and evaluates all store staff.

Qualifications & Skills:

REQUIRED:

• A high school diploma or equivalent.
• A minimum of 3 years of retail supervisory or management experience; including inventory management, in-store and online sales.
• Knowledge of and experience with point-of-sale/inventory systems as well as MS Office
• Excellent skills in written/oral communications, customer service, collaboration and team work, time management, multi-tasking, and attention to numerous details; creativity and problem solving ability.
• Position requires ability to work at least one weekend day per week.
• The successful candidate will be energetic, outgoing, unfailingly patient, courteous and tactful, and have a passion and commitment to delivering a positive customer service experience.
• Ability to be a quick and close observer of many staffing and scheduling needs and details, provide for them, and think and act strategically with good judgment to adapt and improvise as needed.
• Excellent organizational skills in order to maintain efficiency and safety in stockroom areas.
• May deal with confidential information and/or issues using discretion and judgment.

PREFERRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration,hospitality management, or a related field is preferred.
• Familiarity with museum and science and technology fields an advantage.
• Museum store, boutique retail experience, and/or web sales experience preferred.

This position is an MIT Pay Grade 6. To apply please visit the MIT Career Portal.