Hello, MCNers!
I hope everyone has had the opportunity to Look Back at a great MCN 2017 and 50 years of MCN history in the amazing MCN50 Voices series of interviews, Take Action at their institutions and in their communities, and … Think Ahead about MCN 2018.
The past year has been such an amazing experience as one of the Program Co-Chairs, along with Jennifer Foley and Trish Oxford. With Jennifer and Trish stepping down after their two-year terms have concluded, MCN is looking for two people to take their place and, with me, help plan our annual conference in 2018, then taking the lead for 2019.
It’s a lot of work, but you’ll be part of a sizable leadership and management team of MCN colleagues, as well as a field full of people who want to speak at, attend, and contribute to MCN 2018.
Here are 10 highlights of my first year as Co-Chair:
- Finding out just how much I already knew about the museum field—and how much there still is to learn.
- Working with the committee of local museum technology professionals in our host city and finding out the amazing work being done there.
- Crafting the theme, which starts pretty much right away and gets the Program Committee off to a rollicking start.
- Developing Keynote speaker(s) ideas, also with the Program Committee. This year we had some innovative ideas and it was great to see them realized.
- Calling for proposals in the spring—watching them trickle and then pour in, sending them out to the Program Committee for review, and then working together, with the help of a few hundred sticky notes, to turn them into a program.
- The weekly Co-Chair conference call.
- The conference itself, of course, which is a very different experience when you see it come together rather than just presenting.
- And yet presenting was still a joy.
- Developing the “other format” idea and receiving over two dozen proposals beyond the usual case studies, panels, and presentations.
- My favorite—being able to say to people, “You should really propose that as a session!”
The official call for Co-Chair applications is below. Applications are due to [email protected] by December 22 January 7 (now extended!); I’m happy to answer any and all questions. Thanks,
Rob Weisberg
MCN 2018 Conference Program Chair
Trish Oxford, MCN2017 Program Co-Chair
MCN Program Co-Chair 2018 & 2019
Position Title: Conference Program Co-Chair
Period: 2 years
Start: late January 2018
Commitment: 3-5 hours/week throughout the year, increasing as the conference nears, with milestones in May and September, available full-time during the conference. Available one weekend in late March or early April for a site visit to that year’s conference location (paid for by MCN).
Compensation: the Conference Program Co-Chair is a volunteer role and is therefore not compensated; however, MCN does offer complimentary registration to the annual conference during the year(s) you serve.
Location: MCN’s Annual Conference is a North American based-conference that supports global involvement and has an emerging international following. The successful candidate is required to attend the Conference in person, as well as participate in regular phone or online meetings.
MCN2018 will take place in Denver, November 13–16, 2018, when the location of MCN2019 will be announced.
Deadline for applying: Extended until end of day, January 7!
Description: MCN is looking for two thoughtful, motivated, and dynamic museum professionals to serve as MCN Conference Program Co-Chairs for a two-year term starting in January 2018. This is an opportunity to help shape a major museum technology conference now and in future years, immerse yourself in cutting edge developments in the sector, broaden your networks on a national level, and to gain experience and professional development in event programming.
The Conference Program Co-Chairs provide leadership for the annual MCN Conference, creating the program through the conception and organization of workshops, panels and presentations in many different formats, experimental programs, keynotes, special events, and innovations not yet imagined. With current Conference Program Chair Rob Weisberg, the newly appointed Conference Program Co-Chairs will work as a team to develop an experiential conference program that serves the evolving needs of the MCN community and then serve as lead Conference Program Co-Chairs for the 2019 conference.
The ideal candidate will be passionate about the intersection of museums and technology and interested in developing an innovative conference program featuring proposals from participants from a wide range of institutions, backgrounds, and perspectives. They will be knowledgeable about MCN and the conference, having attended MCN several times in the previous five years. They will have existing networks within the sector, a strong understanding of the issues confronting museums with regards to technology and the practice of digital, and appreciate the challenges facing their colleagues from many different kinds of institutions and departments in the field. They will be active in the museum or cultural technology community and knowledgeable of trusted sources of information, and will be a proactive self-starter and a calm problem-solver with excellent oral and written communication skills. They will be a creative thinker both about big issues and small details, diplomatic under pressure, and ready to learn and adapt over the course of planning this conference.
About MCN: MCN is a nonprofit organization whose core purpose is to foster innovation and excellence by supporting professionals who seek to transform the way their cultural organizations reach, engage, and educate their audiences using digital technologies. We do this by building a community that attracts, nurtures, inspires and sustains exceptional professionals. Learn more.
For further information and a full overview of responsibilities, email [email protected].
To apply, please send an email articulating why you think you’d be a good fit for this position, and noting any relevant experience to: [email protected]. Please include a CV or link to your LinkedIn profile.
