Job Opportunity – Chief Operating Officer (don’t we sound posh!)

Written by Louise

Thought it might be worthwhile posting this ol’ advertisement on our blog (can’t believe I haven’t done it already – you see, this is why we need a new, efficient person…).

Job Opportunity: Chief Operating Officer of Abubilla Music

Are you obsessed with music?  Are you interested in creating and running a music label?  Do you want to learn how to create music (from lyrics and chords scribbled on paper to CDs and videos)? Do you want to learn how to market and distribute music, expand and run a website?  And are you prepared to do all this working out of two houses in London and Spain, surrounded by teenagers, smelly dogs, an angry cat and musicians from 18 to 55?  Have we lost you yet? 

If you’re still reading, we need you to go to www.abubillamusic.com. Explore the website, read the blogs.  Look at some of the How To Guides… And above all, listen to the music and read ‘Background on our Songs’.  If you get bored, we’re done.  If you think it’s weird, chaotic, but maybe, as one of our supporters said, just maybe Abubilla Music ‘could be some kind of prototype for the future of Indie Music production/distribution’, then keep reading…

So here’s the job:  we are looking for a COO type to support directly two of the founders.  COO is a small word for Chief Operating Officer, which is way too big a word for the job – but it is sort of where we’re heading.  The COO would be responsible for the day-to-day management of the label and in charge of designing and executing our ‘digital strategy’.  Whoa.  We must be talking mega, mega bucks, right?  Nope, go back to the website and read a little more.  We are definitely a DIY affair and what we do is create extraordinary opportunities for people passionate about music and the whole digital space.  We will support your career, give you an amazing couple of paragraphs on your CV (and a big space on the website), we’ll help you to learn a huge amount about all aspects of running a label, and most importantly we will absolutely be cutting edge on digital distribution – how to distribute across all the sites, how to pursue viral marketing, how to create an online community.  We’re pretty cutting edge on this, despite all the animal distractions.

Okay, if you’re still reading, we’ll now get specific.  Back to that grand COO job, two big things:

• Day-to-day management:  you run things.  You make sure the band knows the recording schedule on Saturdays, you get us to and from Spain 3 times a year, you make sure videos are done on time, you support our Africa project (we’ll explain if you get to interviews but it is awesome!), you keep track of the business end (income statements, balance sheets, working with lawyers, accountants), you help order instruments and recording kit, you manage the ‘assistants’ (a group of amazing 16-17 year olds all working on the website and videos), etc… You build a label and a website.
• The Digital Bit:  This is huge. We are trying to be absolutely cutting edge on how to use our website, Facebook, MySpace, Last FM, YouTube, etc… We want to lead here – not by throwing money at it (too corporate, too stupid), but rather by being as smart and creative as it gets on digital distribution.  We want someone passionate about this – more to learn than to claim they know anything.  Because you won’t.  No one knows what is going on, so this is bleeding edge stuff and we want to get all red!

That’s it.  Yeah, we’ll pay you – it will be an hourly thing, but you can work a lot of hours with this!  And you’ll start to pursue your passions rather than talk about it with friends (and, to be honest, you’re probably a bit more talk than action right now).  We’re looking for folks ready to play on the field, not chatter in the stands.  You need to believe in this thing.  If you have doubts, I wouldn’t bother. Genuinely.  No offence, it’s just we’re pretty excited about what we’re going to do and don’t want to spend time trying to sell it to others.  You either like it or don’t!  Finally, only apply if you’re good, smart, driven, fun and prepared to be part of something really, really special.

If you’re interested, please contact Louise at info@abubillamusic.com, with ‘Job Opportunity’ as the subject. Perhaps attach a CV if it is relevant, or just outline why you think you’d be the right person for the job. And please leave a contact telephone number, as we may call for a chat in the week.

The closing date for applications is Sunday 21st March, with interviews and meetings taking place the following weekend, the 27th and 28th March.