Production Manager

Production Manager

Kosmopolis e.V. is looking for a Production Manager with a focus on Scheduling and Communication for the operation of the Oval Office Bar, starting 01.12.2026 (fixed-term contract until 31.07.2027).

We, Kosmopolis e.V., are looking for a full-time staff member to join our collectively run bar and event space, the Oval Office Bar. KosmoPolis e.V. (Association for the Promotion of Queer Nightlife Culture) operates the Oval Office Bar in cooperation with Schauspielhaus Bochum. It is a solidarity-based, non-commercial space, a basement bar with a stage where alternatives to our thoroughly commodified present are explored. The full-time Production Manager will work closely and collaboratively with two experienced colleagues, the association’s board, and its members to organize and maintain the bar’s operations. Experience has shown that approximately 1/3 of working hours are dedicated to dynamic teamwork, while around 2/3 are focused on your main areas of responsibility. The three employees form a team in which the following positions are covered:

• Production Manager specialising in Scheduling & Communication (we are hiring!)
• Production management with focus on Event organisation & Club maintenance (assigned)
• Production management specialising in Gastronomy & Space and community maintenance (assigned)

What is the area of focus for Scheduling and Communication?

Tasks:

• Coordination of our events, including:
• Scheduling and coordinating dates with Schauspielhaus, the team, and the association
• Managing external event inquiries (Emailing)
• Sharing information with and contributing to the Communications Working Group (our public outreach body)
• Maintenance and organisation of communication structures (Nextcloud, Signal, shared Calender, CryptPads and Email inbox)
• Evaluation und further development of these Communcation structures
• Within the team: Collaborative shaping of the project and shared responsibility for its development and implementation, curating the programme, and building networks with other cultural practitioners and organisations in Bochum and beyond.

What is the work focus on Scheduling and Communication?

You are the central point for all information regarding what is supposed to happen, when, where, and with whom. Your coordination ensures that these activities are well-planned and run smoothly. In this role, you work and plan long-term, months ahead and potentially across the entire theatre season. You keep track of the big picture and maintain the master calendar. Your responsibilities include coordinating schedules and dates between Schauspielhaus and the association. You may already have some basic knowledge/experience working with institutions. What matters for this position is a good understanding of their structural and organisational processes. You represent the association’s interests and needs in dealings with Schauspielhaus, including those relating to scheduling. You will also manage external event requests by receiving them via email and passing them forward to the plenary assembly. Once events have been approved by the plenary, you will coordinate their scheduling in collaboration with the other production managers and the association. For communication with the theater and handling event inquiries, you should be proficient in both German and English and be able to read and respond to emails. Furthermore, you are a full-time member of the Communications Working Group, ensuring that all dates and events relevant to our public relations work are consolidated and communicated to the group. You are the one who brings everything together: you have the skills to maintain an overview, distribute information, and structure your work effectively, allowing you to manage the mental load that comes with such a diverse range of tasks. Although our team frequently needs to respond spontaneously to various events, we are specifically looking for someone who is interested in learning from experience while keeping an eye on structural aspects. It is essential that we work together to expand and further develop our communication structures and work processes. Beyond your core responsibilities, it is important to us that you are motivated to work within a collective, self-organised structure. Both paid staff and volunteers at the Oval Office Bar are united by a shared commitment to creating and sustaining an explicitly queer, political, and artistic space. In this context, we place great value on upholding the integrity of every individual, fostering respectful communication, and appreciating both dissent and debate.

What tasks do you take on as a team?

The queer and independent scene needs a space. Opening the bar is our top priority. Our core operating hours are Thursday through Saturday, from 7:00 PM to midnight—though, depending on the mood and motivation, things might occasionally run later. Responsibility for managing the bar during evening shifts will be shared between the production team and a part-time staff member; the goal is to ensure that, on average, no one has to work behind the bar more than once a week. The exact distribution of these shifts is discussed within the team. In addition, there are regular plenary sessions concerning bar operations (programming and content-related matters), weekly team meetings with varying group compositions, meetings with the working groups, and ongoing dialogue with the association’s board and the Schauspielhaus. Within our team, we value reliability and a passion for communication. In this role, you’ll need to do a great deal of talking with a wide variety of people. Furthermore, we would be particularly happy to welcome someone with additional language skills to the team!

Perhaps you have already gained experience with collective working processes in other organizational settings. Together, we also share political responsibility for our space. Part of this work involves the ability to respond spontaneously to current events and emerging needs. We would like to warmly invite you to help shape the collective work processes and shared workflows in a spirit of cooperation and care.

What you would bring with you

• A connection to the queer community and a willingness to contribute to an explicitly queer and emancipatory project
• Experience in the fields of production and/or scheduling/coordination and/or event management
• Experience working with institutions welcome
• Willingness to communicate
• German and English language knowledge for spoken and written communication
• You are highly organized, maintain a good overview of tasks, and are capable of working independently
• A good self-assessment regarding your capacities and limits
• Willingness to work at night
• Primary place of residence in Bochum or the surrounding area
• Trade union membership is very welcome

What we offer you

• 25h/week with 2000 EUR gross monthly salary
• A politically and artistically unique project at the intersection of art, queerness, and politics
• A wonderful team of volunteers and permanent employees with whom you can pursue and realise shared visions
• Regular group coaching meetings for reflection on dynamics and other (Supervision)
• A work phone
• Within the scope of our financial resources, we would like to facilitate further training, workshops, etc.

General conditions and requirements for the position

The position is for 25 h/week, with a two-month probationary period. Your place of work will be Bochum. The salary is 2,000 EUR gross per month. Some tasks can be performed remotely, which is also encouraged, though this must be discussed with the team in advance. The position is initially limited to a fixed term ending on 31.07.2027, however, depending on our funding situation, we are very interested in a long-term collaboration.

Application Deadline & Interview

BIPoC (Black and Indigenous People as well as People of Color), FLINTA (women, lesbians, inter, non-binary, trans, and agender people), and/or disabled people, especially intersectionally marginalized people, are particularly encouraged to apply. The bar and the position are not fully accessible. However, we encourage you to speak openly with us about your access needs regarding the role, so that we can explore whether any adjustments are possible.

We look forward to receiving a comprehensive application from you, including your CV, a cover letter (max. 2 pages), and your earliest possible start date. You are also welcome to submit your application in the form of a video or audio recording (max. 5 minutes). Please submit your application materials exclusively via email, in PDF form or a video/audio file (.mp3 or .mp4 would be ideal), no later than November 5, 2026, to Jetzt bewerben

The job interviews are expected to take place in Bochum on November 13 and 19, 2026. We may also offer the option of a digital interview via Zoom.