Who Would Ever Want to be a Museum Director - Fall 2024
Clearly dealing with disparate groups in the art world and the museum community in particular makes a museum director’s job ridiculously difficult. Some museums have in the past and now in the present are adopting the strategy of co-directors. Who has done it and is it a good idea seemed like a timely question. There are a number of museum director vacancies around the country. The director of the Dallas Museum of Art, so we are facing this challenge in the midst of a planned expansion and a contracting staff.
Birmingham Museums Trust
In 2020, the Birmingham Museums Trust appointed Sara Wajid and Zak Mensah as joint CEOs. This move represented a bold step into co-leadership, serving as a potential model for other museums and nonprofit institutions.
Design Museum, London
From 2016 to 2020, Deyan Sudjic and Alice Black served as co-directors at the Design Museum in London. This arrangement combined their respective expertise in design curation and business management.
Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna
In 2019, Sabina Sabolovic, Natasa Ilic, and Ivet Curlin were collectively hired to run the Kunsthalle Wien. . This unique arrangement distributed leadership responsibilities among three individuals with complementary skills.
Fort Collins Museum of Discovery
The Fort Collins Museum of Discovery implemented a dual leadership model based on a public/private partnership structure. Cheryl Donaldson and Laura Valdez currently serve as Co-Executive Directors, combining their expertise in different aspects of museum management
Five Oaks Museum
Formerly known as the Washington County Museum, the Five Oaks Museum transitioned from a single director to a co-director model in 2019. Molly Alloy and Nathanael Andreini were promoted to co-director roles, bringing diverse perspectives to the museum's leadership. While not all of these examples explicitly state a division between business and artistic leadership, the trend towards co-leadership in museums often aims to balance these two crucial aspects of museum management. This approach allows institutions to benefit from diverse skill sets and perspectives, potentially leading to more innovative and sustainable museum practices.
There are several potential benefits to having co-directors in museums:
Expanded Expertise and Skills
Co-leadership allows museums to benefit from a broader range of expertise and experience at the highest level of the organization
Each co-director can bring different and complementary skills, knowledge, and perspectives to the leadership role. For example:
At the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, one co-director is a nonprofit expert while the other is a museum expert
Co-directors can combine business acumen with curatorial/artistic leadership
Shared Responsibility and Support
Having co-directors can create a more supportive environment for leaders
It provides a high-level confidant and ally who understands the challenges of the role.
Co-directors can have frank conversations, test ideas, debate issues, and problem-solve together.
Sharing leadership may help decrease burnout.
Enhanced Decision-Making
Multiple perspectives at the top can lead to more balanced and thoughtful decision-making
* Co-directors can bring different viewpoints to strategic choices.
They can hold each other accountable and ensure decisions prioritize the organization's needs.
Modeling Collaborative Culture
Adopting a co-leadership model can help promote a more collaborative organizational culture overall
It can inspire shared leadership practices across other levels of the museum.
Some museums have used co-directorship as a starting point for flattening hierarchies and exploring pay equity.
Practical Advantages
Having two leaders provides more flexibility and coverage for museum operations.
In cases where co-directors are partners, they may spend additional time discussing museum matters outside of work hours.
Enhanced Responsiveness and Flexibility
Co-leadership allows museums to be more responsive and flexible in addressing community needs:
Smaller, community-based museums with collaborative leadership structures can "change focus quickly according to current trends and community needs"
They are often "unconstrained by protocols and hierarchies" that can slow down decision-making in larger institutions
Diverse Perspectives and Skills
Having co-directors brings a broader range of expertise to leadership:
At the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, one co-director is a nonprofit expert while the other is a museum expert, allowing them to combine complementary skills
This diversity of perspectives can lead to more innovative approaches to community engagement.
Alignment with Equity Goals
Co-leadership models can help museums become more inclusive and equitable:
Collaborative leadership aligns better with organizational cultures working to advance equity and anti-racism
It can inspire shared leadership practices across other levels of the museum, potentially leading to more diverse representation
Community-Centered Approach
Co-leadership often facilitates a more community-centered approach:
It can promote "authentic connections" with communities and help museums become more responsive to local needs
Some museums have used co-leadership as a starting point for exploring pay equity and flattening hierarchies, which can make the institution more accessible
Adaptability to Change
The shared responsibility in co-leadership can make museums more adaptable:
It allows for more flexible and distributed staffing, which can help museums respond to changing circumstances
Co-leaders can provide mutual support in navigating complex challenges, potentially leading to more thoughtful decision-making
By embracing co-leadership, museums may be better positioned to evolve alongside their communities, becoming more responsive and relevant institutions. However, the success of such arrangements often depends on clear role definition, organizational culture, and the specific individuals involved.
Flattening of Hierarchies
Co-leadership models often lead to a flattening of organizational hierarchies:
At the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, the co-directors expanded their shared leadership approach to include director-level staff working together as a group rather than overseeing isolated departments.
This can promote more collaborative decision-making across the organization over time.
Enhanced Collaboration and Innovation
Having multiple perspectives at the top can foster a more collaborative culture throughout the museum:
Co-leadership expands the depth and breadth of expertise at the highest level, potentially inspiring more cross-departmental collaboration.
This collaborative approach may lead to more innovative solutions to challenges facing the museum.
Increased Adaptability
Shared leadership can make museums more adaptable to change:
Co-leaders can provide mutual support in navigating complex challenges, potentially leading to more thoughtful and flexible decision-making.
This adaptability can permeate the organizational culture, making the institution more responsive to changing community needs.
Shift in Leadership Development
Co-leadership models can change how leadership is developed within the organization:
It may inspire shared leadership practices across other levels of the museum.
Leadership growth can occur across entire teams rather than focusing solely on grooming individual leaders.
Enhanced Work-Life Balance
Sharing leadership responsibilities can lead to a culture that values work-life balance:
Co-leadership can potentially decrease burnout at the top levels.
This approach may inspire similar flexible arrangements throughout the organization.
While these potential long-term impacts are promising, it's important to note that the success of co-leadership models depends on factors such as clear role definition, organizational culture, and the specific individuals involved. Additionally, as this leadership model is still relatively uncommon in museums, its long-term effects are still being observed and studied. Co-leadership can have several significant impacts on the creative vision and programming of a museum:
Expanded Expertise and Perspectives
Co-leadership brings a broader range of expertise and viewpoints to the decision-making process:
At the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, one co-director is a nonprofit expert while the other is a museum expert, allowing them to combine complementary skills
This diversity of perspectives can lead to more innovative approaches to programming and exhibitions.
Enhanced Innovation and Experimentation
Shared leadership models often foster increased innovation:
"Flow and creativity seem to flourish in a shared leadership environment"
* Co-leadership allows leaders to "think bigger and dream knowing you have a thought partner to dream with"
Community-Centered Approach
Co-leadership often facilitates a more community-centered approach to programming:
It can promote "authentic connections" with communities and help museums become more responsive to local needs.
Some museums have used co-leadership as a starting point for exploring more participatory and inclusive programming approaches
Balanced Decision-Making
Having multiple perspectives at the top can lead to more balanced and thoughtful decision-making:
Co-directors can bring different viewpoints to strategic choices about programming and exhibitions.
While decision-making may take more time, it "brings in more perspectives and ideas and results in doing things better collectively"
Alignment with Equity Goals
Co-leadership models can help advance equity within the organization, which can influence programming:
This approach aligns more strongly with organizational cultures working to advance equity and anti-racism.
It may lead to more diverse and inclusive programming that better reflects the community.
Flattened Hierarchy and Collaborative Culture
Co-leadership often leads to a flattening of organizational hierarchies:
At the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, the co-directors expanded their shared leadership approach to include director-level staff working together as a group
This can promote more collaborative decision-making across the organization, potentially leading to more diverse and innovative programming ideas.
While these impacts can be significant, it's important to note that the success of co-leadership models in shaping creative vision and programming depends on factors such as clear role definition, organizational culture, and the specific individuals involved. When implemented effectively, co-leadership has the potential to make a museum's programming more innovative, inclusive, and responsive to community needs.
References:
https://artmuseumteaching.com/2020/09/14/collaborative-leadership/
https://sr.ithaka.org/publications/organizing-the-work-of-the-art-museum/
https://vault.com/professions/museum-directors-and-curators
https://whitney.org/about/bios
https://godine.com/products/in-the-company-of-art
https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/5044
https://www.inc.com/kevin-daum/this-art-museum-ceo-curates-great-business-lessons.html
https://www.aam-us.org/2019/02/22/when-dual-leadership-works-113/
https://observer.com/list/top-business-leaders-in-art-2023/
