We are recruiting for a General Manager, Venue

About Nesta

We are Nesta, the UK’s innovation agency for social good. We design, test and scale solutions to society’s biggest problems. Our three missions are to give every child a fair start, help people live healthy lives, and create a sustainable future where the economy works for both people and the planet.

For over 20 years, we have worked to support, encourage and inspire innovation. We work in three roles: as an innovation partner working with frontline organisations to design and test new solutions, as a venture builder supporting new and early stage businesses, and as a system shaper creating the conditions for innovation.

Harnessing the rigour of science and the creativity of design, we work relentlessly to change millions of lives for the better. Find out more at nesta.org.uk.

Whatever it takes

Everyone works at Nesta because we are driven by a deep commitment to our missions. A guiding principle of our culture is that we do whatever it takes to achieve them, bringing our best to all our work. You can read more about our culture on our website.

Overview

We are seeking an exceptional and commercially astute leader to head our event venue operations. You’ll be joining at an incredibly exciting time, as we relaunch our venue brand with a stunning new space. This pivotal role involves the strategic and commercial stewardship of our event spaces, driving both top-line revenue growth and operational excellence. You will be responsible for the end-to-end performance of the venue, ensuring impeccable event delivery and exceptional client experience, whilst upholding our brand standards and balancing profit with social and environmental values.

The role

Commercial & Revenue Strategy

• Own the P&L for the venue, including rigorous budget management, accurate financial forecasting and disciplined cost control.
• Develop, implement and monitor revenue strategies, pricing approaches and yield optimisation tactics to maximise commercial returns and market share.
• Identify and secure new business opportunities and commercial partnerships.
• Drive repeat and referral business through exemplary service delivery and effective stakeholder management.
• Translate long-term commercial strategy into actionable, measurable execution plans that strengthen the venue's market position and reputation.

Operational leadership & delivery

• Provide strategic leadership to the venue operations, sales and marketing teams, ensuring all events are sold, planned and executed to the highest standards, providing a seamless client experience.
• Define and continuously review standard operating procedures (SOPs), systems, and workflows to strengthen efficiency, consistency, and brand protection across all spaces.
• Proactively diagnose operational challenges, developing solutions that balance immediate needs with long-term strategic goals.
• Work closely with the Deputy Director of Property and Sustainability to ensure that all aspects of the venue operations, including health and fire safety, licensing, security, accessibility and sustainability standards, are upheld.
• Provide cover for the Deputy Director of Property and Sustainability, when required, ensuring continuity of leadership across internal service lines.

People Leadership & Culture

• Build, mentor, coach, and develop a team, setting clear expectations around accountability and continuous improvement.
• Drive a culture of professionalism, ownership and client-centricity, ensuring all staff operate as ambassadors of the venue.
• Oversee onboarding, training and continuous professional development for the team.

Client & Stakeholder Management

• Act as the senior point of accountability for venue experience and service outcomes, building and nurturing strong, long-term relationships with high-profile clients and partners.
• Oversee the delivery of a consistent, high-standard client journey from initial enquiry through to post-event review, driving advocacy and high referral rates.
• Represent the venue with integrity and professionalism at external events.
• Lead cross-functional collaboration with internal departments.

The Person

You'll have

• Demonstrable leadership experience in either event venue operations, venue sales, or as a senior leader at a B2B events company or an events agency.
• Proven ability to manage and deliver complex corporate events and large-scale activations for high-profile clients and audiences.
• Demonstrated track record of financial leadership and P&L ownership.
• Demonstrable success in developing and executing a commercial strategy.
• Exceptional leadership, coaching and team development skills, with the ability to inspire and empower a diverse team towards a shared vision of service excellence.
• Knowledge of UK venue compliance, including licensing, risk management, accessibility and health and safety regulations.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, with the gravitas to influence and negotiate with senior internal and external stakeholders.
• A strategic mindset capable of leading significant change, coupled with a pragmatic, hands-on approach to operational troubleshooting.

What we offer

Salary: circa £80,000(subject to seniority and experience)plus target-based bonus scheme. We also offer an array of benefits, including private medical insurance, dental insurance, the ability to buy and sell annual leave, eyecare vouchers and more.

Location: This role is based in London, Blackfriars.

Term: Permanent.

Hours: Full-time, 37.5 hours per week (plus additional hours when required for events). During the initial setup phase, the role is expected to be office-based four days a week. Once this phase is complete, you will have more flexibility, with a minimum expectation of being in the office at least three days per week.

Reports to: Director of Property and Operations

Direct reports: Venue Manager, Sales Manager, Marketing Officer, Venue Operations team

Making an application

To apply for this role, please submit a CV and cover letter before 8:00am on 1 Dec 2025.

Interviews will take place w/c 8 Dec 2025.

58VE and Nest58 are trading names of Nesta Enterprises Limited. The profits from 58VE and Nest58 support the work of Nesta. Nesta is a research and innovation foundation that designs, tests and scales solutions for the biggest challenges of our time.

At Nesta, we believe that a diverse workforce leads to an organisation that is more innovative, more creative and gets better results.

We want our workforce to represent the diversity of the people and communities we serve. We also want our workplace to be one where different experiences, expertise and perspectives are valued, and where everyone is encouraged to grow and develop.

This means that when we are recruiting, we actively seek to reach a diverse pool of candidates. It also means that we are happy to consider any reasonable adjustments that potential employees may need in order to be successful.

We recognise the importance of a good balance between work and home life, so we do everything we can to accommodate flexible working, including working from home, compressed or part-time hours, job shares and other arrangements.

Please just let us know in your application or at any stage throughout the process (and beyond) if these are options you’d like to explore.