Guest Services Team Lead

uchicago; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 48,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

Smart Museum of Art in Chicago seeks a Guest Services Team Lead to oversee front-line operations, welcome visitors, and protect art objects. You will recruit, train, and supervise staff, partner with Exhibitions, and ensure alignment with visitor protocols and DEIA commitments.

This role reports to the Deputy Director and supports museum programs, events, and customer service excellence.

Qualifications

• Recruits, hires, trains, and manages the Guest Services team.
• Supports and holds Guest Services staff accountable for safety procedures, customer service, and commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.
• Conducts staff orientations and maintains ongoing and supportive relationships with the staff with a focus on mentorship, training, and skill building.
• Oversees scheduling and proactively ensures appropriate Guest Services staffing levels for daily operations as well as off-hours activities and events.
• Leads weekly team meetings for Guest Services staff.
• Ensures compliance with Smart Museum visitor protocols including protection of art objects and files incident reports with the Registration and Exhibitions teams as needed.
• Assists Guest Services staff in responding to patron issues and questions, including calls and emails regarding online reservations.
• In coordination with the Exhibitions team, develops training materials and procedures for each exhibition to ensure that the Guest Services team effectively manages project-specific needs, including turning a/v equipment on and off.
• Collaborates with Feitler Center and Public Practice teams to develop integrated training and community-building opportunities for student gallery attendant staff.
• Implements protocols for managing the visitor reservation system, attendance and visitor information gathering, and other data as directed.
• Manages the day-to-day activities related to publications sales in the museum building, including training staff, managing sales functions, and tracking inventory.

Responsibilities

• Recruits, hires, trains, and manages the Guest Services team.
• Oversees scheduling and staffing levels for daily operations and events.
• Provides coaching, feedback, and performance management to staff.
• Leads weekly team meetings and communicates updates to staff.
• Ensures compliance with visitor protocols and safeguarding of art objects.
• Coordinates with Exhibitions on training for each exhibition, including a/v setup.
• Collaborates with Feitler Center and Public Practice teams for student staff development.
• Manages visitor reservation system, attendance, and data reporting.
• Oversees publications sales and inventory tracking.

Skills

Staff management

Customer service

Coaching

Safety procedures

DEI awareness

Mentorship

Training

Communication

Tools

Audio/visual equipment

Job description

Department

AI Museum Operations

About the Department

As the fine arts museum of the University of Chicago, the Smart Museum of Art is a site for rigorous inquiry and exchange that encourages the examination of complex issues through the lens of art objects and artistic practice. Through strong scholarly and community collaborations and a welcoming approach to its exhibitions, collections, publications, research and teaching, and public programs, the Smart Museum plays a dynamic role in expanding artistic canons, rethinking received histories, introducing new perspectives, and engaging diverse communities - locally, nationally, and internationally.

Job Summary

The Guest Services Team Lead promotes a positive visitor experience and ensures protection of the Smart Museum's art objects by managing the Guest Services team that welcomes Museum guests and ensures compliance with Museum visitor protocols. This role manages the front-line daily operations of the Smart Museum and is responsible for the general management of front-line staff including full-time and part-time staff, as well as University students. The Team Lead also addresses patron issues and questions as well as any facilities and securities issues that arise when they are serving as primary keyholder for the Museum. In addition, when exhibitions are not on view, the Guest Services Team Lead works with colleagues across the Smart Museum to support ongoing operations including support for various administrative, operational and programmatic areas of the Museum. The Guest Services Team Lead reports to the Deputy Director.

Responsibilities

• Recruits, hires, trains, and manages the Guest Services team comprised of full-time and part-time staff and University students. Emphasizes FGLI and work-study-eligible students in hiring. Coordinates with Human Resources on hiring paperwork. Approves staff timesheets.
• Supports and holds Guest Services staff accountable for their areas of responsibility including knowledge of the Museum's mission and current program offerings, safety procedures, customer service, and commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. Provides coaching, feedback, and performance management to staff.
• Conducts staff orientations and maintains ongoing and supportive relationships with the staff with a focus on mentorship, training, and skill building, both within the gallery and for staff welcoming visitors at the Museum's entrance. Works with other museum departments to ensure that overall structure of Guest Services supports institutional goals and needs.
• Oversees scheduling and proactively ensures appropriate Guest Services staffing levels for daily operations as well as off-hours activities and events. On the rare occasions that additional security staff is needed, oversees communication and scheduling with the University's security services contractor (Allied Universal). Primarily staffs front desk and gallery positions as needed to cover staff breaks.
• Leads weekly team meetings for Guest Services staff. Ensures that staff receive regular communications about updates, events, and programs that impact the team's work and participation in all staff meetings and events organized by the Director's Office.
• Ensures compliance with Smart Museum visitor protocols including protection of art objects and files incident reports with the Registration and Exhibitions teams as needed. Implements policies and procedures within the Guest Services team to support museum service standards, enhance the visitor experience, implements assessments as directed, and establishes benchmarking standards of service for the Guest Services team. Maintains and updates training manuals for Guest Services staff.
• Assists Guest Services staff in responding to patron issues and questions, including calls and emails regarding online reservations.
• In coordination with the Exhibitions team, develops training materials and procedures for each exhibition to ensure that the Guest Services team effectively manages project-specific needs, including turning audio/visual (a/v) equipment on and off, checking regularly to ensure that a/v equipment is working properly, etc. Also ensures that collateral materials are properly maintained.
• Collaborates with members of the Feitler Center and Public Practice teams to develop integrated training and community-building opportunities for student gallery attendant staff, with a goal of long-term retention of student staff as gallery attendants or in other roles at the Museum.
• Implements protocols for managing the visitor reservation system, attendance and visitor information gathering, and other data as directed. Maintains necessary documentation, including museum attendance records, and regularly communicates this information to other staff.
• Manages the day-to-day activities related to publications sales in the museum building, including training staff, managing sales functions, and tracking inventory.
• Recommends improvements a