Associate Director of Visitor and Gallery

The Walker Art Center empowers people to experience the transformative possibilities of the art and ideas of our time and to imagine the world in new ways. Throughout our more than 125-year history, the Walker has become one of the most celebrated art museums in the country, recognized for innovative presentations and acclaimed collections of contemporary visual, performing, and media arts.

The Associate Director, Visitor and Gallery Experience provides strategic and operational leadership for the Walker’s visitor-facing experience, gallery operations, tours, and institutional events.

This position directly supervises four roles. Working through this management and professional team, the Associate Director establishes departmental strategy, service standards, staffing frameworks, performance expectations, and operating practices that support an exceptional, accessible, and welcoming experience for Walker visitors.

The Associate Director leads through managers, develops department leaders, and ensures that public-facing teams have the direction, training, resources, and support needed to succeed.

Reporting to the Head of Operations, the Associate Director serves as a strong advocate for the visitor perspective and uses audience feedback, operational data, and frontline insights to influence institutional planning and decision-making.

• Lead Visitor and Gallery Experience
  • Develop and lead a comprehensive visitor and gallery experience strategy aligned with the Walker’s mission, audience goals, and commitment to accessibility and inclusion.
  • Provide leadership, direction, coaching, and accountability to four direct reports.
  • Establish consistent service standards, operating expectations, and departmental priorities.
  • Create alignment across Visitor Experience, Gallery Experience, tours, and event operations.
  • Maintain overall accountability for admissions, ticketing, membership sales, gallery operations, visitor assistance, tours, and front-of-house event support.
  • Advocate for visitor needs and public-facing operational realities in institutional planning and decision-making.
  • Maintain an informed and visible presence in public areas while empowering managers to lead daily operations.

• Develop Managers and Teams
  • Strengthen managers’ skills in supervision, communication, employee development, conflict resolution, performance management, and operational planning.
  • Hold managers accountable for effective scheduling, supervision, training, communication, and performance.
  • Oversee the development and continuous improvement of public-facing training programs.
  • Ensure training addresses customer service, accessibility, cultural competency, gallery practices, ticketing systems, emergency procedures, and conflict de-escalation.
  • Partner with Human Resources on employee relations, labor relations, accommodations, investigations, performance management, and workforce planning.
  • Support consistent administration of applicable collective bargaining agreements and constructive labor-management relationships.

• Workforce planning and Operational Readiness
  • Ensure staffing plans and service levels appropriately support exhibitions, tours, performances, events, and changing attendance patterns.
  • Review staffing models, labor utilization, and operational readiness to balance service, employee wellbeing, contractual obligations, and financial resources.
  • Provide senior-level guidance for complex visitor concerns, employee matters, operational disruptions, and service recovery.
  • Ensure event plans address visitor flow, staffing, communication, and operational readiness.
  • Oversee gallery and tour scheduling, including processes for resolving scheduling conflicts and competing institutional priorities.
  • Partner across Security, Facilities, Curatorial Affairs, Performing Arts, Public Engagement, Membership, Development, Retail, and other departments to coordinate visitor-facing operations.

• Use Data to Improve Experience
  • Establish departmental key performance indicators related to visitor satisfaction, accessibility, participation, revenue, staffing, and operational effectiveness.
  • Partner with the Marketing team to analyse, interpret,…