Head of Visual Resources

Job Summary

What It's Like to Work Here

At IWM, we're driven by a shared purpose: helping people understand conflict and how it shapes the world we live in. Our collections- physical, digital and multimedia- are central to that mission. As part of Collections Care, you'll join a team of highly skilled specialists who are committed to innovation, collaboration and high quality service delivery.

Visual Resources sits at the heart of this work. Whether capturing new photography for displays and publications, digitising fragile and unique collection items, or producing film and imagery for public events, your team plays a key role in ensuring IWM's stories reach global audiences in ways that are accurate, engaging and enduring.

If you thrive in a dynamic environment, enjoy leading experts, and want to shape the future of digital access and preservation at one of the world's leading museums of conflict, you will feel at home here.

Why This Role Matters

The Head of Visual Resources leads one of IWM's most impactful, customer facing departments. Your work directly supports museum wide:

• Public programming
• Commercial and marketing activity
• Collections access and preservation
• Learning and engagement
• Digital futures and long term sustainability

You will shape and deliver the Digital Futures Strategy, manage complex multiyear programmes, and guide the museum's approach to digital asset standards, collections digitisation and multimedia production. Your leadership will help ensure that IWM's collections, from photographs and film to time based media, remain accessible and preserved for generations to come.

What You'll Be Doing

In this role, you'll provide strategic leadership across Visual Resources and ensure high quality delivery of multimedia, digitisation and imaging services across the museum. You'll lead the development and implementation of the Digital Futures Strategy, guide complex multiyear programmes, and advise senior colleagues on decisions that impact digital access and preservation.

You'll oversee budgets, manage procurement and external suppliers, and ensure that work is delivered efficiently, safely and in line with IWM standards. Working closely with specialist managers and team leaders, you'll build capability within the department, support professional development, and maintain the equipment and systems needed for high quality production.

Day to day, you'll be responsible for delivering museum wide services including marketing and event photography, collections photography, digitisation of still and time based media, and the creation of facsimiles where required. You'll also produce reports, KPIs and business cases, and help embed a culture of continuous improvement across the team

What We're Looking For

We'd love to hear from you if you have:

• A degree in a relevant discipline.
• Experience managing cost, time and quality for a specialist, customer facing team, including contracts, fee paid staff and external partners (budgets typically around £250k).
• Experience managing and motivating a specialist team.
• Experience delivering best practice in digitisation or related access/preservation programmes.
• A Project or Programme Management qualification with evidence of practical use.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex issues to senior stakeholders.
• Strong analytical and creative problem solving skills.
• Demonstrable leadership skills, including strategic planning and managing managers.
• Experience using Collections Management Systems (e.g., Axiell) and integrated DAMS.

How You'll Work

You'll work closely with colleagues across Collections Care, Curatorial, Digital, Public Engagement and Commercial teams. You'll influence the museum's strategic direction on digital access, preservation and multimedia standards, and ensure your team provides a consistent, responsive, high quality service across all IWM sites.

What Success Looks Like

In your first 6-12 months, success will look like:

• A clear, confident leadership presence across departments.
• Delivery of key milestones in the Digital Futures Strategy.
• Strong working relationships with senior leaders, specialists and external…