Sr. Manager, Digital Operations, CHHC Project (Storytelling) Fixed - Term

Position description

The Storytelling team works to expand the organization’s impact through journalism, photography, film/video, web content, mapping, and data visualization. As one of the largest funders to individual storytellers in this work, it also identifies key grantmaking, and fellowship opportunities with creative talent. Much of the team's programmatic activity is focused on identifying and building capacity for the next generation of diverse storytellers.

National Geographic Society’s Special Collections chronicle more than 138 years of Society history through historical documents, maps, oral histories, audio and video recordings, photographs, artifacts, and media assets from our current Explorer-led science, storytelling, and education programs. Special Collections shares the story of National Geographic Society's past and present by expertly managing its unique archival, media, and information resources. We seek to create a more inclusive narrative by inspiring users to engage with and build on these materials. The Center for Human Histories and Cultures will transform the Society’s archives into a living, collaborative platform for research, digitization and global engagement. Through partnerships with descendant communities, scholars and institutions, the Center will ensure that our collections reflect a more inclusive and contextualized record of humanity.

Reporting to the Project Director for the Center for Human Histories and Cultures (CHHC), the Sr. Manager of Digital Operations, CHHC Project will work as part of an embedded project team to develop and execute a digital asset assessment, management, and digitization strategy for multi-format human histories and cultures topical material, ensuring the participation and consent of communities represented in the archives. Working as part of the existing Special Collections team of archivists, digital asset managers, and user services professionals, this role oversees project staff of two–a Digital Asset Manager and Digitization Technician–in conducting surveys and assessments, managing digitization workflows, and cataloging assets in the Enterprise DAMS. A key focus is on applying appropriate legal, ethical, and cultural restrictions and working in close consultation with source communities to achieve project goals.

This is a fixed-term role ending on December 31, 2032.

Your Impact

Responsibilities

Strategy Development (30%)

• With the CHHC Project Director and team, plan a strategy and develop written guidelines for digital asset assessment and management, and the digitization of analog items, that incorporates the participation and consent of communities represented in archives.
• Advise on the design of a digital asset survey instrument or method, collection management and digital asset management system enhancements, and discovery interfaces that enable shared stewardship.
• In collaboration with Special Collections’ Digital Archives, advise on the procurement of digitization equipment and necessary refurbishment of a digitization lab to support onsite digitization workflows.
• With the CHHC Project team, develop an approach for gathering and managing restrictions and access to collections and other community-defined prerogatives for the management of cultural collections.

Project Management and Operations (60%)

• In close Collaboration with Special Collections’ Digital Collections teams, oversee the work of a Digital Asset Manager and Digitization Technician in conducting a survey and assessment of digital assets, and overseeing digitization identified by the CHHC project team according to agreed-upon standards and in close consultation with source communities.
• Create, and oversee the creation of work flows and project plans.
• Catalog assets using Special Collections’ DAM ViewFinder (OrangeDAM), using methods informed by source community wishes.
• Apply appropriate legal, ethical and cultural restrictions to assets.
• Digitize analog items with respect to source community wishes.
• Participate in and facilitate in person and remote collection consultations.
• Track progress on digital asset survey, management, and digitization goals and report on both progress and roadblocks to the CHHC Project Director.

Professional Development and Networking (10%)

• Remain apprised of emerging best practices in shared digital collections stewardship, digital repatriation, cultural knowledge management, and source community engagement.
• Promote the CHHC project internally and externally through communications, conference presentations and other outlets.
• Maintain relationships with professional and peer organizations undertaking similar initiatives.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s Degree preferred

Minimum Years and Types of Experience

3+ years of management experience and 7+ years of progressive responsibility in Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums (GLAM) or related institutions with demonstrated experience working on large scale digital projects.

Necessary Knowledge and Skills

• Experienced digital asset or digital project manager, with demonstrated people management ability
• Experienced with using and designing survey instruments, workflow trackers, digital asset management systems and discovery interfaces. Experience with OrangeDam is a plus.
• Knowledgeable about digitization methods for multiple formats of material, including text-based documents, photographic and AV material.
• Knowledgeable about metadata and taxonomy standards for digital collections derived from various formats
• Ability to identify and apply restrictions and appropriate permissions to institutional records and cultural material
• Highly organized with excellent writing and communication skills
• Adept at respectful communication with source communities with the ability to translate community wishes into technical solutions

Desired Qualifications

• Grasp of best practices while comfortable with innovation and out-of-the-box thinking.
• Strong team leader, able to direct and motivate staff
• Comfortable with managing multiple demands as part of a highly collaborative, informally matrixed team
• Experience implementing concepts from established and emerging literature and best practices for cultural material management and community engagement such as NAGPRA legislation, SAA’s “Protocols for Native American Archival Materials” and “Principles in Indigenous Archival Repatriation;” School for Advanced Research’s “Guidelines for Collaboration,” “Standards for Museums with Native American Collections,” and “Indigenous Collections Care Guides,” CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance, and “United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples”

Supervision

Application instructions

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