Growth Marketing Manager

The California Academy of Sciences, founded in 1853, is a globally renowned, AZA-accredited non-profit scientific and cultural institution located in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Home to a world-class planetarium, aquarium, rainforest, research institute, and natural history museum—all under one living roof—its mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration. The Academy’s living collection includes nearly 60,000 animals representing over 800 species, while its research collections span nearly 46 million specimens. The team comprises biodiversity scientists, educators, storytellers, designers, and communicators dedicated to advancing knowledge and catalyzing action.

About The Opportunity

The Growth Marketing Manager leads the growth and engagement of membership and revenue-generating programs, including attendance, sleepovers, and other public experiences. Reporting to the Associate Director of Brand Marketing, this role supervises the NightLife Marketing Specialist and executes integrated marketing campaigns to drive customer acquisition, deepen engagement, and increase retention across a diverse portfolio of offerings. The ideal candidate brings experience in subscription or membership marketing, thrives in a fast-paced environment, and uses data to optimize performance.

Organizational Culture

The Academy is a mission-driven community valuing curiosity, collaboration, and innovation. Staff are committed to a strategic plan strengthening financial foundations, cultivating internal culture, and fostering smart growth. The organization encourages applicants from diverse backgrounds and experiences, even if they do not meet every qualification. This position is based in San Francisco, California.

Responsibilities

• Customer Acquisition & Revenue Growth
  • Execute multi-channel campaigns to drive ticket sales, program participation, and membership acquisition (paid and organic channels).
  • Support go-to-market strategies for seasonal programming, exhibitions, and special events.
  • Collaborate with internal teams to optimize conversion paths across the website and ticketing platform.
  • Track and report on acquisition metrics, including conversion rates, campaign ROI, and cost per acquisition.
• Membership & Retention (Lifecycle Marketing)
  • Develop and execute lifecycle campaigns to drive membership acquisition, onboarding, engagement, and renewal.
  • Segment audiences (members, lapsed members, program attendees, families, young professionals) to deliver targeted messaging.
  • Support renewal strategies, including reminder campaigns, win-back efforts, and loyalty initiatives.
  • Identify opportunities to increase lifetime value through cross-promotion of programs and experiences.
• Program Marketing
  • Lead marketing execution for key programs, including sleepovers, tours, birthday parties, new programs, and seasonal offerings.
  • Manage campaign calendars across multiple concurrent programs with varying audiences and timelines.
  • Partner with programming teams to translate program content into compelling, audience-focused messaging.
  • Optimize attendance and revenue through targeted promotions and audience insights.
• Campaign & Project Management
  • Manage multiple campaigns simultaneously across membership and program verticals.
  • Coordinate timelines, creative assets, and stakeholder approvals to ensure on-time delivery.
  • Maintain alignment across marketing, digital, and program teams.
  • Coordinate with external agency partners on creative development, campaign execution, and asset delivery.
  • Support budget tracking and reconciliation for dedicated marketing spend.
  • Write and adapt copy for paid and organic campaigns across digital, email, and direct mail channels.
• Analytics & Optimization
  • Monitor and analyze campaign performance across channels.
  • Conduct A/B testing to improve messaging, creative, and audience targeting.
  • Track key metrics such as attendance, membership growth, retention rates, and revenue per visitor.
  • Translate insights into actionable recommendations for continuous improvement.
  • Present campaign performance and insights to program partners and marketing leadership.
• Team Leadership
  • Supervise and mentor one Marketing Specialist, providing day-to-day guidance, feedback, and support for professional development.
  • Foster a collaborative, growth-oriented team environment aligned with the broader marketing department's goals and values.

Requirements

• 3–6+ years of experience in marketing, preferably in membership, subscription, or experiential marketing.
• Experience with customer acquisition and retention strategies.
• Ability to manage multiple programs or campaigns simultaneously.
• Strong understanding of lifecycle marketing and audience segmentation.
• Experience with CRM/email platforms and marketing automation tools.
• Analytical mindset with the ability to translate data into strategy.
• Strong collaboration and project management skills.
• Experience marketing to diverse audience segments (families, adults, donors, tourists).
• Understanding of subscription/membership metrics (LTV, churn, renewal rates).
• Familiarity with managing or tracking marketing budgets across multiple programs or campaigns.
• Strong copywriting skills with experience writing for ads, email, and promotional campaigns across multiple audience types.

Physical Environment

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.

Pay

The salary range for this position is $88,000 to $98,000 annually. Actual compensation will be commensurate with the final candidate's qualifications and experience.

Schedule

Full time, 40 hours per week, hybrid schedule.