Gallery & Exhibition Planning Manager, France

Fondée en 1744, Sotheby's est le leader mondial de la vente aux enchères dans les domaines de l'art et du luxe. Synonyme d'innovation, Sotheby's favorise l'accès, la connaissance et la préservation des œuvres d'art et des objets rares par le biais de ventes aux enchères, de ventes privées et de points de vente. Notre marché international s'appuie sur un réseau de spécialistes répartis dans 40 pays et couvrant 50 catégories telles que l'art contemporain, l'art moderne et impressionniste, les tableaux anciens, les arts d’Asie, les bijoux, les montres, les vins et spiritueux et le design, entre autres.

ROLE

Gallery & Exhibition Planning Manager, France (L3 – Manager)

REPORTS TO

Head of Exhibitions & Property, France (VP)

Role Overview

This role serves as the strategic hub for the France sales calendar, including exhibition and auction programming, as well as building activations such as events, rentals, and space allocation in Paris. The role includes oversight of all space scheduling within the building—salons, galleries, blacklight rooms, freight landings, and other shared areas—and requires close coordination to anticipate and manage operational impacts. In a project-management and communications‑heavy capacity, this leader ensures that all stakeholders—from Specialist departments to Events, Partnerships, Facilities, and Exhibition Design—have clarity on what spaces are available, what is booked, and how activities impact one another. The role proactively anticipates pressure points, aligns timelines, and provides clear guidance on potential conflicts or constraints.

Key Responsibilities

Sales Calendar Ownership

• Lead development of the Paris sales and exhibition calendar in partnership with Specialist departments, Sales Directors, General Managers, Bids, Private Sales, and regional colleagues.
• Manage turnaround timelines and ensure schedule cohesion across Paris galleries and activities.
• Communicate sale dates to global colleagues and competitors where appropriate.
• Lead the annual planning process for worldwide gallery scheduling, ensuring alignment across regions.
• Notify global counterparts of changes promptly and maintain strong channels of communication to avoid conflicts.
• Serve as a liaison with scheduling counterparts at other major houses to monitor and mitigate sale calendar clashes.

Space Planning

• Serve as the primary point of contact for all Paris space allocation—including exhibitions, private sales, events, viewings, and construction impacts.
• Partner with Logistic manager to ensure proper space allocation.
• Assess space requests, identify conflicts or downstream impacts, and recommend appropriate allocations or adjustments.
• Provide visibility to all teams on building constraints, closures, or schedule adjustments.
• Maintain a real‑time understanding of building activity, upcoming sales, major art fairs, and global events that impact scheduling.
• Share updates and planning documents with key internal stakeholders to ensure alignment.
• Partner with Logistics, Exhibition manager and Facilities to improve the space’s flow, functionality, and visitor experience.

Exhibition Planning & Execution

• Translate exhibition design concepts into executable plans, coordinating closely with Exhibition Design on intent, materials, timelines, and constraints.
• Lead installation and breakdown with the Art Handling team, ensuring safe, efficient movement and placement of all property.
• Plan and manage gallery turnovers, lighting adjustments and any required construction or customizations.
• Work in partnership with Facilities teams—including Carpentry, Electrical, and Painting—to ensure all built elements, repairs, and adjustments meet design and safety standards.
• Manage project costs and ensure expenditures align with approved budgets. Identifying ways of making savings across Gallery & Exhibition design.

Stakeholder Management

• Manage 2 people: Exhibition Manager, Logistics Manager.
• Partner with Events, Facilities, Marketing and Logistics to communicate how programming decisions impact timelines, labor planning, and readiness.
• Escalate scheduling conflicts early and propose solutions that meet business needs.
• Work in close partnership with the Director of Gallery Operations to ensure adequate turnaround time for deinstall, installation, and resets between exhibitions.
• Collaborate with the Head of Warehouse and Exhibition Manager to plan the transfer schedule for property moving in and out of the building and ensure that logistical constraints are incorporated into the programming calendar.
• Map projected costs associated with compressed turnovers, obtain necessary budget approvals, and communicate financial impacts to leadership.

Operational Leadership

• Lead the Gallery Operations and Exhibition Operations teams, fostering a culture of hospitality, precision, and accountability.
• Manage and develop Art Handlers, ensuring clear expectations, safe practices, and strong communication.
• Execute programming developed by the Gallery & Exhibition Programming Manager, ensuring all requirements are translated into actionable plans.
• Oversee day‑to‑day gallery conditions to ensure spaces remain visually brand‑enhancing, safe, and aligned with design standards.
• Keep all Back-of-House (BOH) areas tidy, organized, and optimized for efficient property flow and safe working conditions.
• Plan overtime needs for the Property Handler team and assign daily tasks for the team based at the Breuer, ensuring alignment with budget—escalating to the VP when timelines or project compression make budgets unattainable.

On‑Site Readiness & Scheduling

• Maintain constant oversight of gallery readiness during pre-sale, sale, and post-sale periods.
• Troubleshoot installation challenges creatively and diplomatically, escalating issues when necessary.
• Set up exhibition kick‑off meetings with Specialist departments and Exhibition Design, establishing a clear runway and structured planning timeline.
• Hold cross‑functional teams accountable to deadlines to ensure exhibitions remain on track and are delivered at a consistently high standard.

Client Journey, Hospitality & Space Presentation

• Own the planning, presentation and upkeep of all ground floor display vitrines, ensuring they remain fully curated, visually compelling and aligned with the business, exhibition and commercial calendar at all times.
• Coordinate the vitrine programing across departments, managing schedules, content rotations and installations to ensure a dynamic and consistently premium presentation.
• Oversee the presentation and operational readiness of the First Floor client areas, including the Restaurant and Salon spaces, ensuring they are maintained to the highest standards at all times and provide an exceptional client experience.
• Act as the key liaison between Gallery Operations, Restaurant and Hospitality teams, coordinating activities, shared spaces and scheduling to ensure seamless day‑to‑day operations and a consistent level of excellence throughout the building.
• Ensure all client‑facing areas, signage, wayfinding and displays are impeccably maintained, supporting a best‑in‑class visitor journey from arrival through departure.

Skills & Qualifications

• 5-7 years of relevant experience in gallery operations, exhibition planning, auction house operations, museum operations, or a comparable environment.
• Strong project management and planning skills.
• Demonstrated ability to own and maintain schedules, anticipate constraints, and manage tight turnarounds across multiple stakeholders.
• Proven cross‑functional partnership experience.
• Confident communicator and effective problem‑solver, able to resolve conflicts professionally and elevate issues appropriately.
• Strong understanding of spatial planning, exhibition scenography, visitor flow, and client experience design.
• Education from a leading design or interior architecture school, such as Penninghen, École Camondo, or an equivalent institution, would be a plus.
• Financial and resource awareness, including understanding labor and cost impacts associated with compressed schedules.
• People management experience, including oversight of direct reports and coordination of team workflows.
• Detail‑oriented with high standards, maintaining excellence in visual presentation and client experience.
• Flexibility to work evenings and weekends as required by business needs.
• Fluent in French and English.

Sotheby’s applique à tous ses recrutements un principe d'égalité des chances et considère tous les candidats à un emploi sans discrimination conformément aux dispositions du Code du Travail et aux valeurs de l’entreprise.