Dear Supporters of the Worcester Art Museum,
This is an exciting time for the Museum, and if you follow our news you will already know about the tremendous progress we have made on our Bold Step Forward campaign (over $80 million of our $125 million goal), on the capital improvements on our campus—including new elevators, gallery reinstallations, and many behind the scenes improvements to our historic buildings—and that we will soon be announcing the opening date for our new Arms and Armor Galleries.
Less visible to most, however, are the continued investments we have made over the last 18 months in our people, our culture, and in strengthening our human resources practices.
We have also hired Julie Quinne as WAM’s Interim Director of HR and Culture. A highly regarded HR and Culture Strategist—who has served at several large organizations (including global media company International Data Group and the non-profit National Fire Protection Association), is an MIT Mentor in HR Practices, and is a faculty member for the Northeast HR Association’s executive leadership program—Julie is working with Museum leadership to implement the processes needed to better support our team in their work.
This includes:
- Aligning HR, management, and internal culture practices with the Museum’s stated mission, vision and values via a monthly learning program for Leadership Team and Managers that prioritizes inclusion and equity across the organization
- Creating a learning program for all staff focused on diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion, to build individual awareness and impact organizational decision-making and culture
- Developing and implementing manager training to promote professional development in the following areas: equitable evaluation of employee performance, coaching, and staff development
- Engaging HR and employment law professionals with specialty in DEAI practices to improve the Museum’s employee handbook, review practices, plan training, and assist in responding to complaints or concerns from our community
- Completing both a salary analysis and a benefits analysis, and begin working closely with the Museum’s Finance office to address gaps in pay and benefits
Organizations today are also challenged with rapid change, both internally and externally. To this end, Julie is also working with us to build out our team, so that we have a robust and fully staffed group of HR professionals supporting WAM’s people and our culture.
As a result of these initiatives, we have made—and will continue to make—great strides to ensure that the Museum’s employees feel empowered and safe to speak up if there are conflicts with other members of our community. While personnel issues can sometimes take time to resolve, ensuring that we have clear policies and established and effective processes in place is essential.
We remain committed to this work—for ourselves, and for you.
Sincerely,
Matthias Waschek