OMCA CORE COMMITMENT
All staff embrace and advance the OMCA mission, values, and vision, and uphold OMCA core principles in their work,
public interactions, working relationships, and efforts on behalf of the Museum and the people OMCA serves. This
shared commitment helps build a relevant and sustainable future for OMCA. The core principles are:
• Open optimism… communicating, learning, experimenting, and working in new ways while upholding mutual
respect, trust, transparency, and quality in our work
• Mission minded… embracing collective leadership for institutional success in the visitor experience, public
engagement, financial sustainability, and relevancy for the future
• Courageous collaborations…integrating multiple viewpoints and talents through cross-disciplinary, crossfunctional, and cooperative processes within the Museum and with our public and communities
• Adaptive accountability…demonstrating capacity to fulfill expectations while remaining responsive to the
issues of our community and the ever changing environment in which we work

ROLE OF THE OMCA LAB
The OMCA Lab provides specialized expertise in California art, history, and natural sciences while ensuring crossfertilization between and among contemporary issues and historic trends. Staff in the Lab facilitate and integrate
content and visitor advocacy into diverse platforms of delivery such as exhibitions, publications, and online activities.

SUMMARY OF POSITION DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The Director, OMCA Lab provides administrative leadership in the development and implementation of visitor-centered
curatorial content, ensuring that the Museum’s multidisciplinary collections, exhibitions, and public programs balance
the highest quality of scholarship and innovation while providing an outstanding visitor experience and meeting the
interests of a diverse audience. The Director facilitates a dynamic exchange among curators, visitor advocates, and
other staff for program development in multiple platforms including exhibitions, collection presentations, and on-line
activities, and works collaboratively with all Center Directors to ensure achievement of the Museum’s mission and
financial sustainability goals.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The following reflects OMCA’s definition of essential functions for this position, but does not restrict the tasks that may
be assigned. OMCA may assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this position at any time due to reasonable
accommodation or other reasons.
Institutional Leadership
• Provide leadership to the overall institution as a member of the Executive Team, ensuring the Museum’s
vitality and success through active communication, problem-solving, and decision-making;
• Contribute as a member of the Executive Team to the policy-making for and management of the Museum
including supporting the Museum’s mission, values, vision, and core commitment to the visitor experience,
community engagement, and institutional relevancy for the future;
• Provide leadership for institutional planning, annual priorities, and institutional initiatives such as advancing
diversity;
• Contribute to the prudent and ongoing monitoring of OMCA annual budget and financial demands to ensure a
sustainable future;
• Foster a culture of ongoing learning, collaboration, innovation, creativity, and community engagement;
• Nurture and encourage leadership throughout OMCA including within specific Centers, the Leadership
Advisory Team, and project teams;
• Foster ongoing education about contemporary curatorial practices, cultural and natural heritage issues specific
to California, trend monitoring, and interpretation, evaluation, and visitor experience approaches for museums

2.1 DIRECTOR, OMCA LAB
OMCA Lab
REPORTS TO: Director and CEO
SUPERVISES: Curatorial and Administrative staff
STATUS: Full Time, Exempt 2.1 03/21/13 PAGE 2
for all staff and volunteers;
• Represent OMCA internally and externally with a broad range of stakeholders locally, statewide and nationally;
• Keep apprised of trends and developments in the Museum, fundraising, and earned revenue fields and ensure
that OMCA maintains leadership as a model for a 21st century museum in service to the public;
• Work with specific Board committees as staff liaison as assigned; and,
• Serve as Acting Director in the absence of the Executive Director, as requested.
Collection, Exhibition, and Program Development
• With the Director and in close consultation with the Museum’s senior management team, oversee the balance
of programming in exhibitions, collection presentations, public programs, digital activities, and publications that
reflect California’s diversity and complexities, both historical and contemporary;
• Ensure that the range of Museum programming is relevant to and meet the needs of the Museum’s target
audiences;
• Facilitate a continuing dialogue among the Museum’s curatorial staff to ensure that OMCA programs are
timely, topical, and address the most important issues of California’s past, present, and future;
• Oversee the processes for acquisition, documentation, and collection planning in California art, history, and
natural sciences to ensure that these activities adhere to the Museum’s mission and strategic goals;
• Ensure a range of innovative approaches to developing and utilizing collections, ideas, and relevant research
to support diverse types of visitor experiences;
• Lead the collaboration between Centers for engaging the public in creative and critical exploration of the
California experience;
• Facilitate the development and implementation of exhibitions and other public interactive platforms working
with project teams; and,
• Collaborate with other Center staff, community partners, visitors, and other co-creators in the development of
content that is participatory, engaging, and accessible to diverse audiences.
Interpretation and Visitor Advocacy
• Review and assess curatorial content based on its educational value, audience development potential, and
topical relevance to California historical and contemporary trends;
• Act as ambassador for institution and its role in service to the public both internally and externally;
• Facilitate the integration of content and interpretation in the development of exhibitions, collection
presentations, digital activities, and publications;
• Oversee an active evaluation initiative so that visitor feedback, audience interests, and 21st century learning
approaches are fully incorporated into program and exhibition development; and
• Plan, organize, coordinate, and direct staff in collaborative project development of exhibitions, collection
presentations, public programs, and media initiatives.
Management and Administration
• Ensure the effective management of the Museum’s curatorial program activities. Supervise the senior
curators, senior experience developer, evaluator and administrative staff in developing and executing the
Museum’s strategic programming vision;
• Provide oversight for OMCA Lab and institutional processes, including exhibition development and
implementation, collection planning, and loans;
• Select, support, and evaluate staff and provide for their training and professional development to advance
practices of innovation, collaboration, and new approaches to content delivery.
• Collaborate with other Center Directors in the development of project and grant budgets, and the development
of the Museum’s institution-wide budget;
• Participate in institutional short and long-range planning;
• Develop, negotiate, and monitor professional services contracts; and,
• Supervise the work of consultants.2.1 03/21/13 PAGE 3
QUALIFICATIONS
Knowledge of:
• Principles and practices of museum administration, including budgetary procedures and financial oversight;
• Management principles and methods, including goal setting, program development and implementation, and
employee supervision, particularly within a team-based, collaborative setting;
• Planning, development, and implementation practices for museum content-delivery platforms, including
exhibitions, collection presentations, public programs, media initiatives, and publications;
• Exhibition and program planning; interpretive approaches; and visitor evaluation practices;
• Principles and practices of museum collection development, care, access and management;
• Fundraising techniques, grant application procedures, and funding sources;
• Knowledge of computer systems and applications;
• English, fluent in both spoken and written form; and,
• A secondary language, such as Spanish or Chinese, is desired.
Ability to:
• Communicate effectively orally and in writing appropriate for a range of uses, audiences, and diverse content
platforms;
• Organize and manage diverse, complex projects;
• Analyze, synthesize, and interpret effectively multidisciplinary materials and new research integrating multiple
perspectives, visitor viewpoints, and timely and relevant content related to California;
• Facilitate and motivate others in experimenting with new practices and ways of working to support a culture of
innovation and collaboration;
• Consider and balance a range of competing needs and objectives to develop strategies and solutions that
ensure overall institutional success;
• Serve as an institutional spokesperson with a wide range of constituencies, including media;
• Bridge curatorial content and interpretive approaches with other museum functions including marketing,
fundraising, and collection management;
• Operate a motor vehicle in the performance of assigned duties.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
A combination of experience and education that demonstrates possession of the necessary knowledge and abilities for
this position is required as noted:
• Ten years of responsible museum administration at a supervisor level, including management of staff,
budgetary oversight, and collaboration with departments or project teams;
• Seven years experience in developing exhibitions, publications, programs, and other content platforms
supported by research and collections;
• Bachelor’s degree required; Masters degree in Museum Studies, Non-profit Administration or relevant field
including a content area related to California art, history, or natural sciences preferred;
• Demonstrated commitment to ongoing professional development in the museum field.

PHYSICAL & MENTAL REQUIREMENTS
While performing the duties of this position, the employee is frequently required to do the following:
• Stand, sit, and walk for extended periods of time;
• Coordinate multiple tasks simultaneously;
• Collect, interpret, and/or analyze complex data and information;
• Utilize visual acuity to operate equipment, read technical information, and/or use a keyboard; and,
• Utilize hand and finger dexterity.

WORK ENVIRONMENT
While performing the duties of this position, the employee is frequently exposed to the following:
• Typical office environment including frequent interruption.
• Frequent evening and weekend hours required.
• Minimal travel required.