Vacant position: Head of Asian and African Studies (Library) Part Time

Chinese Studies

Devonshire Arts and Heritage is delighted to be recruiting for av for an internationally renowned library in London. The Library contains over 150 million items including manuscripts, printed books, newspapers, maps, photographs, stamps, sound recordings, prints, drawings and ephemera from all over the World.

The post holder has overall management responsibility for a total of 21 specialist curatorial staff; 6 of which will be direct reports.

The post is permanent and full time. First stage interviews will take place on the first week of March, so you must be fully available then, and if successful be available to start within a reasonable amount of time after that.

The Post Holder Will:

• Motivate, build trust, inspire and ultimately lead a team of Asian and African specialists
• Have the ability to identify what is important and achievable for the curatorial team to conserve the collection, in order for it to continue being the best of its kind
• Support and mentor team members through regular one to one and group meetings
• Continue to build and strengthen relationships with other internal departments
• Develop service propositions to exploit the collections across a range of formats, seeking and brokering partnerships with other libraries, research institutions and technology partners as appropriate
• Act as an effective advocate for the Library and communicate with stakeholders nationally and internationally
• Leading negotiations re: major acquisitions of heritage and archival material, liaising with the Development Office, Communications etc., as appropriate
• Be able to make strategic decisions, implement and oversee the completion of plans accordingly
• Develop and implement innovative and creative approaches to strengthen the Library’s user experience

Essential Requirements Include:

• First degree level qualification or above in a relevant discipline or subject
• Exemplary collection management experience
• You must have a proven area of academic and practical expertise relevant to the collection
• Previous employment experience in a library, museum, academic institution or in the fine art/antiquities sector
• Experience in leading and overseeing the development of corporate plans, strategies and programmes
• Knowledge of new developments in digitisation and emerging research trends and methodologies
• Experience of budgetary and financial management
• Oral and written fluency in the English language
• Information technology skills, including web-based skills
• Ability to travel for work purposes as and when required

Salary: £47,246-£54,871 depending on experience + wonderful benefits.

In order to apply, please send your covering letter and CV to Ana with “Head of Asian and African Studies” in the subject line of your e-mail or call for a confidential conversation.

Only suitable applicants will be contacted.