Description

Founded in 1953, the Catalina Island Museum (www.catalinamuseum.org) is located in the quaint city of Avalon on beautiful Catalina Island. Just 23 miles from the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, the Catalina Island Museum is dedicated to collecting, preserving and sharing the remarkable cultural and historical heritage of Catalina as well as enriching the experiences of residents and visitors through an offering of unique and compelling rotating exhibits, musical concerts, and other educational programs. Catalina Island Museum serves three primary markets – the City of Avalon (pop. 3,600), the greater Southern California region (Los Angeles County, Orange County, and San Diego County (population 10.33 million), and the thousands of national and international tourists visiting Catalina Island each year.

 

The current, 3,000 square foot museum is located within the historic Catalina Casino; however, a new 18,000 square foot, purpose-built museum is under construction and will open in Avalon in Fall 2016. The new building will allow us to better serve our mission statement through expanded programs and offerings to enhance all facets of our Museum. Catalina Island Museum will now be able to break from its physical constraints and address the increased demand by both locals and visitors for creative and thought-provoking exhibitions and event venues. Catalina Island Museum will become a new and exciting venue for wedding parties and other special events. The new museum will also have larger storage facilities, office space, and an expansion of its popular museum store. An exciting schedule of exhibitions is on the books to continue a string of gallery successes in recent years. The primary challenges ahead are to increase the museum’s prominence within the local community and visitor community, continue the creative sourcing of new exhibits, maximize the usage of these new facilities, raise sponsorships and major gifts, and operate the new museum as a sustainable nonprofit.

 

Building on the momentum that comes with the opening of a new and much larger facility, the next Executive Director will have the opportunity and challenge of working with the Board to continue creating vision, setting direction, raising funds, and managing the full range of responsibilities and tasks associated with the Museum. The Executive Director is responsible to the Board of Trustees for the overall operation of all facets of the Museum. S/He supervises a Controller, Director of Development and Membership, Director of Marketing and Public Relations, an Assistant Curator and Store Manager, and numerous volunteers.

 

Catalina is located 23 miles off the coast of Southern California and is part of Los Angeles County. Catalina Island is part of an eight island archipelago – the Channel Islands of California. The population of Catalina is approximately 4,000 people, 90 percent of which live in the island’s only incorporated city of Avalon. Catalina’s popularity as a tourist destination began in the 1920s under the stewardship of William Wrigley, Jr. Catalina’s history is forever linked to Native Americans, the Spanish Empire, Mexico, connection to Hollywood and movie stars, pottery industry, tourism, natural beauty, and recreation.

 

This is a wonderful opportunity for the right person. Prospective candidates must ask themselves whether they will be fulfilled for the long-term in this role and in this special location. This is an exciting opportunity for the intellectually curious – someone who can become fascinated by the history, community, and natural wonders of Catalina Island. This is an opportunity for a builder – someone who wants to play a major part in putting their personal stamp on this Museum, on the continued development of Museum staff and Museum Board, on attracting new and exciting exhibits which appeal to locals and visitors alike (and will help drive visitors to Avalon), and on being a key relationship-builder and coalition-builder in the Avalon community. This is a big role for someone who believes in the mission, can evangelize about it, has the DNA of a curator, and enjoys and is an effective fund raiser. The Executive Director is supported by a fine staff, an engaged and dedicated Board with exceptional talent, and an excited community. Equally important is a person who is energized by living and working in a very small, tight, eclectic and nominally remote community. We are not an island that is time zones away from major metropolitan areas; we are just about an hour boat ride away from “over town”. Rather we are an island with good healthcare, schools, and entertainment plus exceptional recreational offerings. For this special candidate we offer a dream opportunity as Executive Director of the Catalina Island Museum.

 

When one of our trustees was asked why he chose to live on Catalina Island, he said: “Best climate in the world…never too hot, never freezes, and Avalon is the sunniest coastal city in the western United States. A safe, small town community where everybody knows your name, yet because it is a tourist destination, it has the amenities of a much larger city. Avalon has 35 different places to eat, lots of retail shops, and a wide selection of year round activities. We have a 42,000 acre wilderness park as our backyard, and the spectacular Pacific Ocean as our front yard. It’s a 15 minute helicopter shuttle, or an hour boat ride away from one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world with everything one could possibly imagine or want. It’s easy to get to and easy to get back…but you actually live a world away from it all. And unlike Hawaii and the Caribbean, there are no mosquitoes!”

Thank you for reviewing this opportunity brief and thank you in advance for your possible interest. For a confidential inquiry and a copy of the full Position Specification, please contact: Dennis M. Boyer, Member of the Search Committee, PrestonClarke and Company, Laguna Niguel, CA; dmboyer@prestonclarkeco.com. At a time you deem appropriate, we would also like to see a cover letter and resume from you. Thanks!

Requirements
  • Experience/Industry Knowledge and Functional Know-How – Possesses seasoned, hands-on, successful experience and knowledge managing the key business functions required to be a museum executive director. A minimum of five years prior experience as a senior member of an executive team. A CV of sustained senior leadership positions at multiple museums of similar size. Career route up the curatorial function. Our preference is for an experienced museum executive director. This preference lies in the fact that the new executive director needs to mentor and develop Board and staff and needs to source new exhibitions. A national network of museum contacts will be helpful. However, we are open to a director level candidate who is more than ready for that next career step to executive director.
  • Business Savvy and Financial Savvy – Understands a broad array of business functions, how they interrelate to drive growth and profit. Understands and manages the financial dynamics of the organization.
  • Operational Management – Continually stays focused on business operations in order to maximize ongoing performance.
  • Creativity – Thinks creatively and encourages innovation throughout the organization.
  • Stakeholder Relationship Building – Champions the interests of all stakeholders in a balanced manner – Board, employees, community, members, and other stakeholders. A collaborator.
  • Strategic and Organizational Influence – Influences others inside and outside the organization in a planned, intentional, and well informed way. Influences people toward specific values, objectives, and standards.
  • Curiosity and Information Seeking – Constantly initiates and broadly ensures relevant information gathering.
  • Leadership Motivation – Consistently leads and accomplishes things primarily through others.
  • Vision Communication – Dramatically and effectively communicates an overall vision of the enterprise to all stakeholders. A capability of postulating, building consensus, and executing a vision for the Museum.
  • Persuasive Communication – Presents own ideas to others in a manner that achieves clarity, buy-in, and commitment.
  • Team Leadership and Developing Others – Gets direct reports to work together effectively toward common goals. Actively develops employees toward independent responsibility and decision making.
  • Mature Confidence and Integrity – Approaches others assertively, responsibly, and supportively. Demonstrates honesty and strong values through consistent action.

 

The successful candidate will have a demonstrated leadership history of creating unique exhibitions and special events that inspire and attract museum attendees. S/He should have a great sense of what exhibitions will appeal to our target audiences.

 

The successful candidate will also be able to point to experiential components of their career illustrating:

 

  • Excellence in written and oral communications. Inspirational public speaker.
  • Solid achievement in museum oversight and fiscal management. Sound financial acumen.
  • Strong and successful fund raising record to include major gifts and sponsorships.
  • Ability to work well with local city officials and administrators.
  • Proven record of and enjoyment in local community engagement.
  • History of strong board governance and board development.
  • Demonstrated ability and success in developing and mentoring staff.
  • Curatorial experience.
Job Information
  • Avalon, California, 90704, United States
  • 26535932
  • January 21, 2016
  • Executive Director
  • Catalina Island Museum
  • Directors/Administrators
  • No
  • Full-Time
  • Indefinite
  • Master’s Degree
  • 5-7 Years
  • 0-10%