Riverside Art Museum

Executive Director Position

Application Deadline: Feb. 13, 2009

Salary: Open
Employer: Riverside Art Museum
Location: Riverside, CA
Type: Full Time - Experienced

Description

The Riverside Art Museum (RAM) promotes an appreciation of the arts by presenting quality exhibitions and community educational programs for the cultural enrichment of the region.

The Executive Director will:

• Work closely with the Board of Trustees to set the strategic direction, and guide the Board in fulfilling its commitment to the vision set forth - both in terms of fundraising and active Board leadership and participation
• Ensure that RAM's mission is fulfilled and that its strategic objectives are attained
• Track and implement the Museum's strategic plan
• Provide the artistic oversight, strategic leadership and management expertise for RAM
• Manage RAM's operations, including oversight of all curatorial, development, education, external relations, finance, and administrative departments and staff
• Define the scope and direction of exhibition programming, set interpretive goals and articulate objectives for the continued development of programming, educational and outreach initiatives
• Manage the financial and operational condition of RAM
• Drive fundraising, working closely with the Board to secure the resources needed to support RAM's operations and new initiatives.
• Gain a comprehensive knowledge of RAM's history, culture, staff, finances, operations, programming, and base of financial support
• Manage, motivate and inspire the staff
• Serve as a spokesperson for RAM.
• Evaluate RAM's programming and provide direction for exhibitions, programs and educational outreach that will appeal to an increasingly broad audience
• Develop compelling ways to promote the Museum's activities and increase its membership

Requirements

The ideal candidate will have proven ability to be a leader and advocate for the Museum and arts and culture in the city and region with a strong sense of maintaining and expanding the capacity and opportunities for RAM. Critical requirements for the director include:

• Success at building a comparable institution into a leader in its region
• Demonstrated management and leadership responsibility in a museum or associated institution
• Proven success managing people and operations with an ability to attract, motivate, mentor and retain staff; demonstrated ability to forge effective relationships with board members, cultural leaders, and people at all levels; a proven track record as a team builder who can delegate and empower
• Demonstrated ability to raise funds and identify, cultivate, and solicit major donors and other sources of revenue; competence, ease and experience handling multiple revenue streams and budgets; success and creativity in developing earned income opportunities
• Experience in monitoring and strengthening finances and budgeting processes
• Demonstrated ability to plan and operate strategically; demonstrated ability to move from strategic plan to action; able to focus and engage Board and staff in clarifying goals and implementing a plan
• Experience in creating successful exhibitions and programming that further establish the Museum’s reputation for quality programming and scholarship; a commitment to arts education and an enthusiasm for cultivating converts to the ideas and innovations of fine and contemporary art
• Outstanding oral and written communication skills, with the presence and credibility to serve as an effective spokesperson for RAM
• A master’s or a PhD in art history or an appropriate discipline, coupled with a significant level of education or experience in management
• Connections to a regional and national network of artists and arts professionals that can be called upon to enhance programmatic excellence

Salary/Compensation is commensurate with experience.

For additional information on the Museum, please visit www.riversideartmuseum.org.

Please send resume to Francie Johnson at:

fjohnson@riversideartmuseum.org or Francie Johnson, Chair, RAM Executive Director Search Committee, Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside CA 92501.

Employer Information

About the Riverside Art Museum

The core mission of the Riverside Art Museum (RAM) is to promote an appreciation of the arts by presenting quality exhibitions and community education programs for the cultural enrichment of the region.

RAM was instrumental in the City Council’s decision to name Riverside the City of the Arts. The museum was recognized by FOX11 and the IE WEEKLY for being the “top / hot” museum.

The objective of the Museum is to exhibit, educate, collect, and provide scholarship relative to the visual arts. RAM is the largest visual arts museum serving the Inland Empire exhibiting a wide range of work with an emphasis on American, Californian, and prominent Inland Empire artists. RAM offers a diverse range of art exhibitions, educational programs, and community outreach events. It is a distinguished yet accessible, welcoming institution that serves as a cultural, collaborative and educational focal point for the community.

Housed in a National Historic 1929 building (designed by Hearst Castle architect Julia Morgan) RAM is a 50-year-old private, non-profit, cultural arts institution that welcomes nearly 50,000 visitors a year. The Museum’s Spanish Revival two-story building now accommodates six exhibition spaces; a printmaking center; a classroom and adjoining youth gallery; a permanent collection vault (with 900 objects in the collection); an arts library; a conference room; administrative offices, the museum store; an atrium restaurant/catering operation; and a rooftop courtyard.

The Museum, with a 2008-09 annual budget of $800,000, is governed by a volunteer 35-member Board of Trustees with a staff of eight. Operational and programming funds are raised privately through individual and corporate memberships, donations, grants, and community fundraisers. Two volunteer fundraising groups (Art Alliance and ARTery) also contribute to the Museum’s operations with significant fundraising activities. The Museum operates from a strategic plan (developed in spring, 2007) that envisions a significant building restoration and expansion plan/campaign in its next phase of growth. The Museum serves a fast growing and demographically diverse region of over 3.5 million people, including the city of Riverside with a population of 300,000.