Associate Director of Museum Finance and Administration

Job Description Department : Museum Administration and External Affairs Pay Rate Type : Salary Employee Type : Job Summary : The Associate Director of Museum Finance and Administration at the Colby Museum serves as a key member of the Director’s Office team. The Associate Director oversees the business operations of the museum, ensuring that financial and administrative processes run efficiently throughout the fiscal and academic year, and provides ongoing data management, analysis, and reporting that supports multi-year budget planning, institutional evaluation, and strategic initiatives. This position manages museum financial transactions, budget and expense tracking, and hiring processes in Workday, vendor contracts, and institutional surveys, working collaboratively with college financial services, human resources, institutional research, and other Colby College offices, as well as with museum staff, and as appropriate, external stakeholders.

THE MUSEUM AND ITS MISSION

Located in Waterville, Maine, the Colby Museum opens access to art and artists for the Colby community, for Maine residents and visitors, and for audiences beyond, creating a forum for experimentation, research, dialogue, and connection. We grow and use our stellar collection in ways that activate the power of art to expand imagination and forge new connections, fostering a more open, creative, and compassionate society. We teach to inspire and open possibilities, so that students at Colby and other visitors can become more curious, nimble, and able to contribute within a changing world, in keeping with Colby’s dynamic liberal arts mission. We incubate art scholarship and practice in ways that explore and expand how the idea of America is understood and how art is made, interpreted, and shared. We do so by supporting new research, providing mentorship, and convening a diversity of people and perspectives. The Lunder Institute for American Art and our exhibitions, programs, and publications facilitate field-wide impact. We are committed to our audiences, including the Colby College community, residents of Waterville and the broader Maine region, national and international visitors, and the artists, scholars, and partners with whom we collaborate.

Essential Functions

To perform successfully in this position, an individual must be able to perform essential duties satisfactorily as well as possess education / experience, employ the knowledge, skills, and abilities as listed in representative fashion. Colby College actively supports the Americans with Disabilities Act and will consider reasonable accommodations to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position. This listing of essential duties is not all-inclusive, but representative; other duties may be assigned.

Financial and Budget Management :

Serve as lead manager of museum budget processes, tracking, and reporting.

Facilitate annual budget planning, mid-year budget review, and end-of-year reconciliation by working closely with the Director of Administration and External Affairs, with the Director’s office, and with area budget managers.

Work with the Director’s office team to prepare current-year budget reports, generating updates on a monthly basis and as needed, as well as assisting with managing multi-year projections.

Serve as the museum’s business manager in Workday, creating, approving, and / or overseeing day-to-day procurement and expense transactions across all departments and ensuring monthly reconciliations are completed in a timely manner.

Work with the College financial services team and all museum departments to regular monitor expenses and ensure alignment with institutional goals.

Facilitate grant and fundraising activities by providing budget and expense reports for internal gift and grant management and / or as required by external funders, working in collaboration with museum development and College advancement teams.

Administrative Support :

Provide high-level business administrative support to the Director’s office team, preparing business-related briefing materials, presentations, or other business communications on behalf of the Director and senior staff.

Handle confidential and sensitive information with discretion.

Serve as a primary manager of institutional data and survey participation, acting as a primary point of contact for external stakeholders and overseeing internal data-gathering as needed. Support institutional evaluation and planning by gathering and providing key data.

Ensure concise, timely and accurate record keeping, creating and maintaining shared drive navigation and organizational systems in collaboration with the events manager, communications manager, and other museum team leads.

Ensure timely procurement / expense processing in alignment with execution and compliance of agreements, monitoring performance and maintaining documentation in collaboration with the legal office.

Assist the Director of Administration and External Affairs with museum human relations management, including Workday recruiting functions, on / off boarding processes, and administrative training of staff within the Director’s office and key museum departments.

Work with the Mirken Director of Learning and Engagement to facilitate student hiring functions and job postings in Workday, and track museum budget allocations for student employment.

Work with the Museum Director and senior team to ensure ongoing compliance with policies provided by the Office of Human Resources.

Communication and Liaison Duties :

Serve as a liaison between the Director’s office and other departments within the museum and college in relation to budgets and administration, ensuring clear communication and efficient workflow. Work with the Director of Administration and External Affairs to develop and distribute internal communications related to museum administrative operations and strategic initiatives.

Represent the Director’s office in various settings when needed, including meetings with staff, external collaborators, and visitors.

Position Qualifications

Education and / or experience :

Bachelor’s degree or the equivalent in education and experience

Minimum 3-5 years of experience in office business management, administrative, or operations roles. Preferably at an arts organization, non-profit, or educational environment.

Excellent organizational and project management skills, including the ability to anticipate, prioritize, track tasks, organize and communicate information.

Strong financial management skills, interpret and present financial data and track spending in alignment with budget planning and forecasting.

Demonstrated ability to problem-solve and act with initiative.

Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to interact effectively with diverse stakeholders.

Demonstrated ability to analyze and synthesize data.

High level of computer proficiency with Google and Microsoft Office suites (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Google Docs and Sheets) and proficiency with (or high capacity to learn) project management tools (e.g., Workday, Airtable, Asana).

Ability to use excellent judgment and maintain a high level of professionalism and confidentiality.

Strong attention to detail and ability to prioritize multiple tasks in a dynamic, fast-paced environment.

Preferred Qualifications :

Experience in an academic or museum setting

Familiarity with museum operations, fundraising, board management, exhibition management, and cultural programming.

Knowledge of human resources and vendor management best practices.

Physical / Mental Demands

The physical demands and work environment characteristics described herein are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform essential functions of this position and / or may be encountered while performing essential functions. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

To successfully perform the essential functions of this position, an employee must be able to maintain appropriate confidentiality with regard to employee data, documents, issues, etc., and respect privacy needs of employees and past employees with regard to the same.

The ability to comply with highly inflexible deadlines is required to successfully perform the essential functions of this position; there will be multiple occurrences of sudden, urgent task completion required.

There may be occurrences of employees, past employees, members of the general public, and others who express opinions, may exhibit strong emotions, which will require the employee to interact professionally, diplomatically, and appropriately in such situations.

While performing the essential duties of this position, an employee would frequently be required to move around the office space as well as within hallways, meeting rooms, and other parts of the campus facilities.

There may be multiple / daily instances of prolonged personal computer use which would include keyboard and / or mouse usage as well as viewing a computer monitor.

An employee must frequently lift and / or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and / or move up to 35 pounds to perform essential position functions.

Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, and ability to adjust focus.

The overall work environment requires the mental ability to shift focus quickly due to interruptions; an employee must be able to mentally track multiple projects and tasks as well.

The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate; however, there may be unexpected instances of somewhat loud sounds.

To Apply :

Interested candidates should apply electronically by clicking the “Apply Now” button on the Colby College website. Please upload a cover letter and resume to your application.