At The Obama Foundation, our mission is to inspire, empower, and connect people to change their world. We seek to build an active democratic culture where people are equipped and motivated to make change in the communities where they live, work, and play. Right here on the South Side of Chicago, we’re building a home for this vision, a global center for change with a range of opportunities - coordinated programming, community outreach events, educational moments, and more - that invite visitors from down the block or across the globe to turn hope into action.

Achieving our ambitious goals starts with an exceptional team built on our Hope to Action Values - Courage, Empathy, Integrity, Accountability, Community, Inclusivity, Pragmatism, Resilience, Imagination, and Hope. A Framework that anyone, anywhere, can use to build trust, activate participation, and expand opportunity in their community.

Purpose of the Role

The Manager, Ticketing & Distribution Channels for the Obama Presidential Center (the Center) will be responsible for the end-to-end management of the Center’s ticketing operations and the centralized contact center. This role oversees inbound visitor communications, the admission of all tour groups, school visits, and field trip reservations, and the ticketing lifecycle with direct accountability for driving group sales revenue performance through online travel agencies (OTAs), wholesale tour operators, and strategic distribution partners. This role is directly responsible for ensuring that visitor inquiries, sales execution, and ticket fulfillment operate as an integrated system aligned with attendance and revenue goals, and in adherence to service standards.

As the Manager, Ticketing & Distribution Channels, you’ll be reporting directly to the Senior Director of Revenue for the Obama Presidential Center.

Core Job Responsibilities

1. Call Center & Team Leadership

• Own daily operations and manage staffing models, schedules, and performance expectations of the centralized contact center, ensuring consistent service delivery through clear service standards, call handling protocols, escalation procedures, and quality assurance practices.

• Provide coaching, training, and performance management to build a high-performing, visitor-focused team.

2. Sales & Partnerships (Distribution)

• Identify new domestic and international distribution opportunities aligned with attendance and revenue goals.

• Lead strategy and execution for online tour operators and wholesale partners such as Viator, CityPASS, Airbnb Experiences, Klook, and other domestic and international tour agencies.

• Negotiate, execute, and manage distribution agreements, commission structures, allotments, and performance expectations.

• Monitor partner performance, content accuracy, rate parity, and placement to maximize visibility and conversion.

3. Ticketing Operations

• Oversee all pre-visit ticketing functions including platform configuration and management, individual sales, group reservations (10+), field trips, and wholesale allocations.

• Manage ticket inventory, pricing rules, blackout dates, and capacity controls in coordination with operations and finance.

• Ensure accurate reservation entry, ticket issuance, reconciliation, and reporting across all sales channels and maintain compliance with internal controls and audit requirements.

Key Deliverables / Outcomes

• Achievement of annual group sales revenue goals, including the establishment of OTA and wholesale contribution targets

• Average order value and per-cap revenue improvement

• Produce regular reporting on revenue, attendance, channel mix, conversion, call performance, and partner effectiveness.

• Contact Center Performance (e.g., first-contact resolution, abandonment rate, escalation effectiveness and speed of answer)

• Accuracy of reservations, ticket issuance, and reporting

• Maximize inventory-to-demand ticket utilization and effectively optimize capacity for maximum revenue capture

• Compliance with SOPs, financial controls, and audit standards

• OTA and wholesale contract compliance and partner production versus targets (e.g., content accuracy, rate integrity, and distribution health)

• Staff productivity, training, performance outcomes, and operational resilience

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, hospitality, arts administration, tourism, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.

• 4-6 years of progressively responsible experience in ticketing, box office, contact center, or sales operations within museums, attractions, performing arts venues, zoos/aquariums, or other high volume or capacity venues.

• Demonstrated experience managing ticketing systems, reservations platforms, and CRM or contact center tools.

• Proven success working with online travel agencies and wholesale tour operators, including contract negotiation and account management.

• Strong financial acumen with experience in revenue tracking, forecasting, reconciliation, and reporting.

• Exceptional communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to operate effectively across departments.

• Ability to work flexible schedules as required by operational needs, including peak periods and special events.

The salary range for this role is between $87,020 and $108,775.

This is an onsite role based at the Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park.

Don’t check off every box in the requirements listed above? Please apply anyway! If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to still consider submitting an application. You may be just the right candidate for this role or another one of our openings!

Equal Opportunity Employer

The Foundation is committed to creating a diverse work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. The Foundation does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, disability, parental status, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable laws. We encourage individuals of all backgrounds to apply. If you are a qualified candidate with a disability, please e-mail us at careers@obama.org if you require a reasonable accommodation to complete this application.