Life Cycle Marketing Manager

About the California Academy of Sciences

Founded in 1853, the California Academy of Sciences is a globally renowned, AZA-accredited non-profit scientific and cultural institution located in the heart of 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—our mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration.

Our living collection reflects Earth’s vast biodiversity, consisting of nearly 60,000 animals representing over 800 species. Our research collections are the largest west of the Mississippi,  spanning nearly 46 million plants, animals, fossils, and cultural artifacts from across the globe and throughout history. Our diverse team includes leading biodiversity scientists, educators, storytellers, designers, and communicators who are passionate about advancing knowledge and catalyzing action through science and storytelling.

Whether you're conducting research behind the scenes or engaging the public on the museum floor, your work will help connect people to the natural world and empower them to protect it.

About the Opportunity

The Life Cycle Marketing Manager leads the growth and engagement of membership and revenue-generating programs at the California Academy of Sciences, including attendance, sleepovers, and other public experiences. Reporting to the Associate Director of Brand Marketing, this role supervises the NightLife Marketing Specialist and is responsible for executing integrated marketing campaigns that 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, multi-program environment, and uses data to continuously optimize performance.

Organizational Culture

When you join the California Academy of Sciences, you become part of a mission-driven community that values curiosity, collaboration, and innovation, and celebrates its accomplishments together. Staff share a commitment to executing a new strategic plan that will strengthen the organization's financial foundations, cultivate a vibrant internal culture, and foster smart growth to secure the Academy’s future.

We hope you are inspired by what we do and are motivated to contribute to our mission. The Academy is looking for candidates who do great work, and we know they may come from a number of different backgrounds and experiences. We encourage you to apply even if you do not believe you meet every qualification for the position.

This position is based in San Francisco, California. The specific onsite/hybrid schedule for this position is listed below.

Key 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 for membership and program campaigns
• Support budget tracking and reconciliation for dedicated marketing spend, ensuring campaigns stay on budget and flagging variances as needed
• Write and adapt copy for paid and organic campaigns across digital, email, and direct mail channels, tailoring voice and messaging to distinct audience segments

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 on a regular cadence, translating data into clear, actionable narratives

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

Qualifications: A successful candidate will have the following:

• 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.

Compensation and Benefits:

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, including skills, knowledge, relevant education, certifications and aligned with the internal peer group. We believe in fair and equitable compensation practices and are committed to providing competitive salaries within the industry and market standards. The Academy offers a total compensation package that emphasizes both base salary and comprehensive benefits based on the hours per week worked. Further details regarding compensation and benefits will be discussed during the interview process.

Schedule: Full time, 40 hours per week, hybrid schedule

How to Apply:

Interested candidates should submit a resume and application through our Careers Page portal.

The California Academy of Sciences will give full consideration for employment to all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of theSan Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance (SF Police Code, Article 49).