Director Search
Director and Chief Executive Officer
Background
Founded in 1913 “for the benefit of all the people forever,” The Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) houses one of the world’s greatest comprehensive art collections and has a long tradition of leadership among elite art museums. Its superb but concise collection of 40,000 objects representing many civilizations and media and spanning 5,000 years of world history, has been called “an executive summary of the Metropolitan Museum.” As one of the most important civic assets in Cleveland, CMA’s role as an international destination and significant cultural resource is a centerpiece for Cleveland’s municipal reputation and economic growth.
CMA sits in the center of University Circle, a unique, park-like setting that is home to more than 50 of the region’s finest institutions. Among CMA’s neighbors are The Cleveland Orchestra, one of the world’s finest symphony orchestras, and the world-famous Cleveland Clinic. Other adjacent University Circle institutions include: Case Western Reserve University, the Cleveland Institute of Art, the Cleveland Institute of Music, MOCA Cleveland, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, the Cleveland Botanical Garden and University Hospitals of Cleveland. CMA is also a short distance from the vibrant Playhouse Square District of Cleveland which is home to the country’s largest performing arts center outside of New York.
CMA has an enviable record of financial stability. Admission to the permanent collection is, and always has been, free. The annual operating budget is consistently balanced, with nearly 65 percent of its costs covered by revenue from the Museum’s endowment of approximately $600 million. CMA enjoys one of the largest annual acquisition budgets of any art museum in the country with roughly half of the endowment available for operating support and the balance restricted for art purchase. CMA’s 400,000-volume library ranks in the top three art libraries in the U.S. The significant acquisitions budget, the opportunities for scholarship and the Museum’s central role in the community have enabled CMA to attract and retain exceptional staff.
CMA is in the midst of a $350 million expansion and renovation, scheduled for completion in 2013. This project has provided CMA with an unprecedented opportunity to reinterpret and reinstall its entire collection. The newly-installed galleries that have opened to date have met with widespread acclaim, with more than half of the 125,000 square feet of new and fully renovated galleries remaining to be completed. The new director will be expected to have a substantive impact on this process as well as to re-imagine the programs and operating activities of CMA following completion of the project. As CMA prepares for its new role inside one of the finest museum facilities in the world, it seeks inspiring and innovative ways to utilize the treasures it has acquired on the public’s behalf.
Hand-in-hand with the growth of the collection and scholarship is CMA’s historic and significant commitment to art education. Some 120,000 school children are touched by the museum annually, and more than 400,000 participate in some form of lifelong learning either within the museum or via CMA’s renowned distance learning program. The CMA looks to enhance its public programs, outreach and profile in the years ahead.
CMA has recently approved a long range plan that affirms its commitment to civic engagement, activating its collection, enriching the visitor experience and developing new resources. CMA is governed by a Board of Trustees. There are currently 30 voting Trustees filling a possible 35 seats. In addition, there are 14 Life Trustees, 13 Trustees Emeriti and 21 Honorary Trustees. The director is a voting Trustee.
The Expansion/Renovation Project and Related Capital Campaign
In June 2009, CMA opened Phase One of its renovation and expansion project designed by Rafael Viñoly. Phase One has received rave reviews and includes the renovation of the iconic 1916 Beaux-Arts building and substantial renovation of the 1971 Breuer building; construction of a new central utility plant; construction of a new east wing with galleries for the display of the Museum’s permanent collection; expanded special exhibitions space; a state-of-the-art conservation center, art storage and a collections study room; as well as the expansion of the Museum’s parking garage which includes covered access to the Museum and landscape improvements to the north and east sides of the Museum. Phase One, budgeted at $160 million, was completed, essentially on time, for $170 million.
The Board will vote at its December 2009 meeting on how to move forward with the next stage of Phase Two of the project, budgeted at $180 million. The decision of the probate court which permits, if necessary, supplemental funding from the income from CMA’s art purchase endowment will be a very positive factor in the Board’s deliberations to approve moving forward on Phase Two without having a negative impact on the long-term strength and integrity of CMA and its collection. This phase includes construction of new north and west wings that will add galleries for the permanent collection; a spacious new café and restaurant; a new loading dock and receiving area; workrooms and offices for the CMA staff; an interactive Lifelong Learning Center; renovation of Gartner Auditorium; and construction of a 39,000 square-foot, glass-enclosed atrium that will unite the entire museum complex and serve as the visual and spatial heart of the institution. The Gartner Auditorium renovation will allow CMA to strengthen its already impressive art education, music, film and dance programs.
Approximately $213 million of the $350 million goal has been secured, a little over half of which has been given by the Board alone. The robust campaign on behalf of a celebrated institution that previously did not have a tradition of fundraising underlines the commitment and enthusiasm Cleveland has for its museum.
Pending completion of the campaign and receipt of the donated funds, CMA has issued $90 million in tax-exempt bonds to finance construction of the project to date. CMA is one of only two private art museums the bonds of which have been rated AAA by Standard & Poor’s. CMA anticipates the need to issue additional bonds to complete Phase Two of the project. Recently, in order to facilitate this financing, the Probate Court of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, authorized CMA to apply roughly half of the income from four restricted endowment funds to the project, up to a maximum of $75 million. It is anticipated, however, that the amount of income from these funds that will be devoted to the project will not exceed half of the income from CMA’s restricted acquisition funds.
The Position
The new Director & CEO will provide the vision, strategic leadership and management expertise for this museum of 300 staff (280FT and 70PT) and a $34.5M operating budget. He or she will exert considerable influence over and continue to shape the curatorial vision for the museum moving forward, the acquisitions program and exhibition schedule, the various grand openings as portions of the building are completed, and subsequent program enhancements that will be made possible by the new spaces. Through these activities, along with expansive local and regional marketing and public relations strategies, the director will take advantage of the groundswell of interest in the new building and make a compelling case for the museum as a not-to-be-missed destination.
Near term, the new director will supervise (i) the completion of the expansion/renovation project and the related capital campaign, (ii) the planning for the reinstallation and interpretation of those parts of CMA’s incomparable collections that will be housed in the galleries that are part of Phase Two of the project, and (iii) the development of the vision for the programs that will enable CMA to use its incomparable collections and new facility to differentiate itself from other museums and become the paradigm of the “21st Century art museum”. Long term, he or she will implement that vision and take his/her position as an exceptional leader among directors of elite art museums internationally. He or she will be regarded as one of Cleveland’s important civic leaders and will become an active participant in the City’s plans for thriving growth.
It is expected that the director will be an inspiring leader and able administrator who will:
General Management
+ Know thoroughly CMA, its collections, history, culture, operations and constituents;
+ Oversee and manage the major rehabilitation and construction of the CMA’s physical plant on schedule, on budget and with the requisite standards of quality;
+ Promote a culture of excellence and flawless execution in all CMA activities and at all levels within the institution;
+ Mentor and manage a talented staff; promote a culture that rewards initiative, accountability and collaboration;
+ Provide outstanding stewardship for the advancement of CMA’s renowned collections; continue to raise the bar for exhibitions and educational programs;
+ Oversee the organization’s budgeting and financial controls, taking into consideration the financial implications of developing new programming and enhanced operations; operate within a balanced budget and ensure that forecasting is based on sound assumptions;
+ Lead all current fund- and friendraising activities; determine short-term and long-term development needs in the context of the museum’s strategic goals; proactively cultivate individual and institutional supporters.
Program
+ Develop strategies for reinstalling and interpreting the Museum’s outstanding collection, in close collaboration with the Museum’s staff;
+ Oversee the development and implementation of an ambitious and extensive exhibition and program schedule;
+ Serve as a thought leader and advocate for the arts, CMA and Cleveland at home and abroad;
+ Embrace technology to aid the CMA in capturing local audiences and the international art world;
+ Evaluate the Museum’s public programs and ensure the integration of exhibition and education objectives; introduce new ideas, host traveling exhibitions and partner with peer museums to program new ones;
Board Relations and Governance
+ Forge a strong working relationship with the Board and its leadership; understand its members’ strengths and bring forth their best ideas, efforts, resources and contacts;
+ Foster a relationship with all Board members marked by open communication and responsiveness to issues affecting the strategic direction and operating health of the museum;
+ Encourage all Board members to participate actively; work to ensure an effective committee structure and find ways to appropriately engage board members; help to identify and cultivate new trustees whose talents, interests and commitment will further the museum’s mission and expand support;
Communications and Marketing
+ Develop compelling ways to promote the museum’s activities to its member base and increase the appeal of the museum to new members;
+ Aggressively advance and broaden CMA’s educational and community outreach; continue to encourage technological advances and innovative initiatives that will appeal to new audiences;
+ Provide inspirational community leadership to enhance the visibility of the CMA as an extraordinary cultural, economic and civic resource and to bring the pleasure and meaning of great art to the widest possible audience; explore opportunities to establish and enhance partnerships;
+ Enhance and amplify the museum’s national and international stature as one of the world’s great art museums;
+ Improve communications and transparency among staff and leadership to foster greater collaboration; practice an inclusive approach to outreach that values and engages key stakeholders and volunteers.
The Individual
The ideal Director & CEO will have or be the following:
Qualifications & Experience
+ The new director must relate to the Museum’s artistic heritage and be respected as a credible steward by staff and scholars given his/her significant responsibility for one of the world’s finest collections.
+ The new director must have an enthusiasm for art and an energetic ability to convey excitement about its value to all, from scholars to the indifferent. He/she must be as comfortable with people as with great objects and be energized by the introduction of one to the other.
+ The director must demonstrate an ability and a passion for energizing the community in support of the building project and its attendant capital campaign. He/she should enjoy entertaining and the public demands made on a leader of stature in the community.
+ With an annual operating budget of more than $30 million and a staff of over 300, the museum seeks a seasoned and gifted manager with a track record of executing projects of scale while successfully directing ongoing operations.
+ The new director should be able to combine marketing instincts with aesthetic and intellectual integrity in helping to build the reputation of the Museum locally, nationally and internationally.
+ The new director must have an appreciation for the benefits which technology can impart to the Museum’s audience and its educational and cultural goals.
Personal Characteristics
+ A leader others wish to follow; authoritative and self-confident without arrogance;
+ A diplomat who can build consensus, generate enthusiasm and manage change; a persuasive advocate on behalf of the visual arts who is able to connect with a broad spectrum of people in a meaningful way;
+ A strategist who is able to collaborate successfully; open-minded and consultative, one who listens well, can bend when necessary, and yet be firm and decisive;
+ A problem solver with an understanding of the subtleties of motivating, directing and working with a group of diverse personalities, as well as the abilities to delegate, handle and prioritize multiple activities and responsibilities;
+ An individual who acts from a belief in, or first-hand experience with, the importance of diversity and broad accessibility to the success of a public institution;
+ Accessible, good company and gracious; someone who shares information easily, has a good sense of humor and of people and can get the best from both;
+ An individual who will become a devoted citizen of greater Cleveland and an important part of the community and who will consider it his/her home.
Applications and nominations should be sent to the attention of Sarah James and Becky Klein at Cleveland@PhillipsOppenheim.com