Current Opportunities

Position Profile
Chief Operations Officer
North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation

OVERVIEW

The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) serves the people of North Carolina and all visitors as a premier destination for compelling encounters with art. The NCMA lives this mission through exemplary scholarship and innovative educational enrichment, interactions among diverse communities, the fostering of collaborative partnerships, and activating the creative potential in everyone. 

The NCMA houses the art collections of the State of North Carolina. These collections began in 1947 when the North Carolina General Assembly appropriated $1 million for the purchase of works of art, making North Carolina the first state in the nation to use public funds to buy art. The initial $1 million appropriation was used to purchase 139 European and American paintings and sculptures. The Samuel H. Kress Foundation matched the appropriation with the gift of 75 works of art in 1960, adding the Museum to its program of endowing regional museums throughout the United States with works from the Kress Collection. The Kress gift to the Museum became the largest and most important of any except that given to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

The Museum opened in April 1956 in a renovated state office building in downtown Raleigh, the state capital. On April 5, 1983, the Museum moved to West Raleigh off Blue Ridge Road, where it opened an 181,000-square-foot-building designed by Edward Durell Stone. On April 24, 2010, the Museum celebrated the grand opening of a new 127,000-square-foot, light-filled gallery building designed to showcase the permanent collection. The single-story structure surrounded by landscaped sculpture gardens, reflecting pools, and courtyards was designed by New York architects Thomas Phifer and Partners.

In addition to the indoor collection and exhibitions, the NCMA is home to the Ann and Jim Goodnight Museum Park: Encompassing 164 acres of gardens, fields, and woodlands, the Museum Park is a unique setting to explore the intersection of art and nature. Major works of sculpture and artist-conceived environmental projects are sited throughout this landscape, which also includes the Joseph M. Bryan, Jr., Theater; picnic areas; trails for walking and biking; and a terraced pond that is at once beautiful and a key element of an innovative storm-water management system.

From its original facility to its current location and exhibition space, to the development of the Museum Park, the story of the NCMA continues to evolve and expand.  With the recent hiring of Valerie Hillings as the new NCMA Director / CEO of the North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, excitement is building to see what next steps the NCMA will take toward its vision of enriching lives through the power and wonder of art.  In building out the leadership team for the NCMA, the North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation is seeking to hire a Chief Operating Officer who will partner with the NCMA Director / NCMA Foundation CEO in strengthening this public/private partnership in support of the state’s leading visual arts center.

The North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation is a separate 501c3 nonprofit organization whose purpose is supporting the mission and goals of the NCMA. With a 20-member Board of Directors, an approximately $15 million-dollar annual operating budget, and assets of approximately $62 million the Foundation serves as a close, collaborative partner with the NCMA’s Director, Board of Trustees, and the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources in carrying out its strategic vision and plans.   

The Leadership Opportunity

NCMA Foundation COO must be a dedicated operational leader with outstanding financial skills who brings enthusiasm for the Foundation’s mission, philosophy, and programs.  The successful COO will possess an entrepreneurial spirit as well as excellent strategic and tactical skills to manage a complex organization with numerous revenue streams and an overall budget of approximately $20 million. The COO will demonstrate the interpersonal and communication skills necessary to unite multiple internal and external constituencies, ensuring accountability for a healthy, sustainable operating environment. 

The COO is responsible for the effective operational, administrative and financial management of the NCMA Foundation and its approximately 160 staff and outside contractors. Serving as a member of the Museum’s Executive Management Team (Museum Director/Foundation CEO, Foundation COO, and Museum Associate Director), the COO will work in close cooperation with the board and staff leadership from both the Museum and Foundation entities to enhance the organization’s infrastructure through thoughtful planning and the execution of sound, sustainable business practices. The COO will also serve as a strategic advisor to the Director/CEO on Foundation opportunities to support the Museum and coordinate operational and financial matters between the Foundation, Board of Trustees and Museum.

While providing strategic and daily operational leadership to the Foundation in areas of Finance, Operations & Information Technology, Human Resources, and Earned Income revenue generation, the COO will be expected to interface and build trusting relationships within the organization, including staff and volunteers, as well as with external entities such as auditors, information technology vendors, local and state officials, and other key stakeholders.

Financial Management
• In partnership with the CEO, the COO will oversee the day-to-day responsibilities for planning and managing all finance-related activities of the Foundation, including institutional assurance/audit, risk management, and budgeting/forecasting.
• Direct the annual budgeting process and the development of business policies and internal controls for the Foundation’s fiscal operations.
• Ensure appropriate accounting control over the Foundation’s restricted endowment and other investment funds.  Monitor the investment portfolio and act as direct liaison with Investment Advisors as directed by the Finance and Investment Committee.
• Construct financial models for proposed Museum activities and programs.

Earned Income Revenue Generation
• Provide leadership to maximize foundation revenues through earned income sources including  event ticket sales, food services, and the retail Museum Shop.
• Develop new business opportunities to enhance earned income for the Foundation.

Operations Management
• Oversee and ensure the successful implementation of risk management, legal, business insurance, property management, human resources, and information technology activities, policies and procedures.
• Recommend and oversee the implementation of information systems to improve Foundation operations and to provide for successful integration of Museum wide activities.
• Participate in ongoing strategic and tactical planning efforts that strengthen the organization’s infrastructure, sustainability, and impact in the communities it serves.
• Act as chief compliance officer for the Foundation with overall responsibility for internal control, records retention, contract administration and ethics/conflict of interest policies under the oversight of the CEO and Foundation’s Audit Committee.
• Oversee contract management and legal compliance matters for the Foundation, coordinating as necessary with external legal counsel.
• Understand and apply applicable laws, policies and procedures quickly and succinctly to assure timely, consistent and accurate implementation.

Human Resources Management
• Oversee HR management of NCMA Foundation employees, including recruitment, hiring, termination, compensation, benefits administration, and professional training and development.
• In consultation with the CEO, oversee the performance of Foundation senior management staff including hiring, appraisal, and dismissal and provide day-to-day operational support to the Foundation’s Development team.
• Oversee the Foundation’s employee benefit programs and act as Administrator and Trustee of Foundation’s 401(k) plan.

Staff Supervision & Workforce Development
• Lead, prepare, empower, delegate and evaluate the performance of a diverse team of professional and technical personnel, ensuring staff receives effective orientation, training, and performance management guidance.
• Direct and oversee the activities of multiple contract service providers.

Communication
• Interface effectively with internal departments, external vendors, Board of Directors, Board committees, and the Executive and Senior Leadership Teams.
• Consult with the Foundation’s Lobbyist as needed and support the CEO, Lobbyist and other Museum leaders in their representation of the Museum to State Legislature and other public officials.
• Model transparent and open communication as called upon to do so.

Board Relations
• Serve as primary liaison to the Finance and Investment, Audit and Personnel committees of the Foundation Board of Directors.
• Attend all Foundation Board and Board committee meetings, as appropriate, reporting on operational, advocacy and financial issues.
• Serve as Assistant Treasurer, an officer role of the Foundation and direct the Foundation treasury activities to maintain appropriate cash levels. 
• Co-lead presentation of the agency’s financials to the Finance Committee and Foundation Board of Directors.
• Interface with the NCMA Board of Trustees as part of the overall management team of the Museum.

Qualifications & Attributes

The ideal candidate will possess the following: 
• A Bachelor’s degree, with an MBA, MPA, or CPA credentials strongly preferred. Alternately, commensurate experience that demonstrates exemplary strategic financial acumen will be considered.
• A minimum of ten years of financial and operational management experience; at least five years of experience at a senior managerial level (C-level).
• Strong knowledge of corporate and/or non-profit governance with significant experience interfacing with governing boards.
• Strong leadership and management skills that have influenced business culture through the development and implementation of strategic initiatives.
• Non-profit experience is strongly preferred.
• Retail and restaurant knowledge needed is strongly preferred.
• Excellent leadership, supervisory, planning and organization skills.
• Effective communication, presentation, negotiation and problem-solving skills.
• Team building skills with a collaborative management style.
• Creative, conceptual and analytical thinker, with sensitivity to both the artistic and business worlds.
• Ability to forge and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of representatives of public and private organizations, Board members, volunteers, vendors, museum staff and the general public.
• Willingness to attend after-hour and weekend functions as necessary.
• Flexibility and sense of humor.

Application Process

To apply, upload a cover letter, resume, and references to armstrongmcguire.com/apply. Email bert@armstrongmcguire.com in case of technical problems. No phone calls please.

The North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer.