Job Description
Business Manager, 20th & 21st Century Art
The Company
Christie’s, the world’s largest Art Business, is an incredibly exciting & enriching place to start or continue your career. Whether you work within one of our Specialist Art Departments or in our more Operational focused teams we are all working together with one common goal in mind: to continue the success of this 250 year old company, steeped in history, bringing constant innovation whilst not forgetting our age old values; Passionate Expertise, Exceptional Client Service, Teamwork, Integrity, Business Judgement & Innovation. Colleagues across all departments are truly passionate about what they do and it is constantly inspiring to work with industry leaders across all segments of the business.
Why This Role Matters
The Business Manager is responsible for the financial, strategic and executional management of the bi-annual sale seasons, as well as working on broader department objectives. Partnering closely with international specialists on their activities in relation to the sale season, and in conjunction with the 20th and 21st Century Evening Heads of Sales, Business Director and Regional Managing Director (RMD), this role is involved in making decisions relating to the areas outlined below.
How You Will Make An Impact
Leadership and People Management
Directly supervises department coordinators, copyright coordinator and at times seasonal employees. Responsibilities include hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance and setting development plans; addressing challenges and resolving problems
Collaborate with Heads of Sale to develop and lead onboarding and development planning for the sale teams, including assisting as needed in annual performance reviews
Partner with Business Director to identify staffing needs, long term development plans and succession planning
Effectively and regularly communicate to ensure organizational clarity around key dates, strategic direction, deadlines, deliverables, roles and responsibilities, and department culture/ behavior
Manage cross-departmental sale initiatives, working as key liaison with other specialist departments and regional sale locations to identify and implement new sale opportunities
Operational Management
Maintain relationships with critical business partners, including operations, publishing, finance, marketing and legal to ensure all functions run smoothly to support the sales
Facilitate communication with external support teams as needed to ensure proper support, trouble shoot potential issues and define and implement process improvements
Work closely with sale coordinator to ensure flow of information, management of deadlines and deliverables, and accurancy of all sale related information and commitments
Resolve and escalate where necessary all operational issues
Work closely with sale team, marketing, publishing and others to ensure key sale deadlines are met
Partner closely with international business management team to discuss allocation of resources, property movement and strategic opportunities
Financial Management
Review all non-standard financial deals for applicable sales and approve with RMD and Commercial Office as necessary
Work closely with Commercial Office to prepare all commercial deals for review and approval and reconcile pipeline with Commercial and specific sale teams
Track and manage house guarantee risk, working with the Commercial Office and sale team to offset risk
Oversee consignment agreements to ensure they conform to the agreed terms and conditions of sale
Work with Commercial Office, Finance and sale team to create, manage and update sale tracker
Provide insight and information to Finance Partner to enable pipeline updates, annual budgeting, forecasting, sale P&L and other reporting
Partner with Marketing team to assist in monitoring budget and overall marketing plan
Work with Finance Partner to ensure that all statistics are available for each sale to enable adequate and accurate debriefings post sale including pre/post sale statistics of competitors
Maintain profitability by monitoring deal and sale costs, identifying possible areas for improvement
Manage and resolve client concerns, working closely with client contact and internal departments as needed
Work with sale team and credit to monitor payment terms and other sale financials
Strategy and Business Planning
Participate in, make recommendations for, and lead where appropriate, strategic initiatives as directed by the Business Director, including areas for opportunity and growth
Work with the Business Director on preparing and delivering all internal and external communications for significant events, including policy, staffing, best practices and any strategic changes
Develop and implement improvements to operational systems for the department, working closely with other support departments and international team to ensure consistent approach within the global team
Work with Business Director to monitor and mitigate outstanding risk, identifying areas for improvement
Partner with external departments to ensure proper support and implementation of business plan
Provide competitive analysis and insight on market segment
Other duties as defined by manager
What You Will Bring To The Team
Minimum 5 year’s work experience preferably with a background in auction or an equivalent field
Demonstrated proactive, collaborate approach
Supervisory experience preferred
Ability to remain calm in stressful situations and maintain confidentiality
Ability to work with colleagues of all seniority levels in a confident and clear manner
Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists
Knowledge of Outlook, Excel, Word Processing, and Presentation software.
Ability to create and analyze Excel spreadsheets, bar graphs, reports and business correspondence.
Ability to effectively present information, think critically and respond to questions from colleagues and clients in an informed and thoughtful manner.
What’s great about working for us
Comprehensive Medical, Dental and Vision care plans for employees and dependents (On average, Christie’s pays 80% of total premiums)
401(k) Savings Plan – Christie’s provides a matching contribution up to 5% (subject to IRS limits)
Life Insurance - 3x base salary (100% paid by Christie’s)
Disability Insurance (100% paid by Christie’s)
Generous time-off and leave policies; including 100% Paid Family Leave up to 16 weeks.
Fitness Reimbursement Program: reimbursement of eligible fitness fees and memberships up to $600 per year
Annual Discretionary Performance Bonus Plan
Commuter Benefits - Pre-tax money towards your daily commute with a Christie’s contribution of $21 per month
Back Up Child & Elder Care – up to 10 days of back-up Child or Elder Care through Bright Horizons
CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Day- Each employee receives one paid day per year to dedicate their time to a charity of their choice.
Perks and Discounts through Zo and Plum Benefits
Christie’s, Inc. is committed to principles of equal employment opportunity, affirmative action, and to compliance with all federal, state, and local laws concerning employment discrimination, including the Americans with Disabilities Act. To this end, Christie’s Inc. ensures equal opportunity to all employees and applicants, regardless of race, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, lawful alien status, physical, mental, and medical disability, veteran status or liability status for service in the United States Armed Forces.
Closing Date: June 2nd, 2026
*Posted salary range does not include discretionary bonus compensation and overtime pay.