The five MCN 2007 scholarship recipients were asked to reflect on what they got out of attending last year’s annual conference. Today we hear from Chris Alexander, Manager of Interactive Technology at the San Jose Museum of Art.
Bear with me while I go through a mid-life crisis of sorts…
I just turned 40, two days after the MCN conference ended. One can’t turn 40 without some reflection on their life; and mine, like many I’m sure, has been a twisting turning path with many unexpected events. Up until recently, I’ve always felt that I never quite fit in regarding my career. I always thought I would be an artist and strived for many years to make it happen. Unfortunately, living in the San Francisco Bay Area, I came to the realization that with things being so expensive, something had to give. After working at my Museum in various unfulfilling capacities, Membership and Registration, I knew I had to make a change for myself and for my family.
In early 2000 I found my 1st marriage coming to an amicable end. It was the most difficult thing that I ever had to go through, compounded by the fact that my ex-wife and I had a 1 ½ year old son. It took many years to recover. I found love again, bought a new house, got married again (to the love of my life), merged our families, and now we have a 7 month old baby, one of the greatest gifts in my life. Soon after my marriage in 2004 I consciously set out to change my career direction; whether the new career direction still involved the museum or not, I needed to, both financially and mentally. While still working in Registration, I re-enrolled in school to work on my certification in web design. During this time I also volunteered to help the museum with its first iPod tour. Coincidentally, the completion of my certification coincided with the departure of a web administrator in our Marketing department. Seeing an opportunity with my new training and the work I did on the iPod tour I proposed my current position of Manager of Interactive Technology to our director, who thankfully thought it was a good idea! Now, here I am, fulfilled and happy!
The MCN just turned 35, six days before my birthday. From my observations it looks as though it might be going through a sort of mid-life crisis of its own, or at least some of its constituents. I was fortunate enough to attend the MCN conference for the first time thanks to a scholarship that I was awarded. There are many creative and engaging people working IT in museums, however, it seems that their place within their institution is being challenged — by the institution itself! One of the most compelling sessions I attended was presented by Nik Honeysett, Head of Administration at J. Paul Getty Museum (http://musematic.net/?p=279). It was centered on the idea of museum directors and their relationship with their IT professionals; however it quickly evolved into a conversation about how the IT professional fits into the museum as a whole. Like me not fitting in with my career path, it seems that a lot of my colleagues are having a hard time fitting in to their organizations.
The just of the session was that some IT professionals are accepted by their staff. They have great relations with their Directors and other departments, myself included. Others say that there is a gap between their IT department and the rest of the institution (75% of respondents to a survey). Based on comments from the audience, in the second half of the session, they are looked at as secondary players whose opinions are not valid. They tend to find themselves misunderstood and not trusted. Opinions and comments from the audience ranged from better educating your staff about your motives to completely quitting your job to avoid the conflict.
I might be overly optimistic here (a first for me), but I’m partial to the approach that I took with my own mid-life crisis. Grab the bull by the horns and cause a “sea change” in your organization. I never fashioned myself as a self promoter. In fact that might have been the problem with my art career. However, I have found in my current job that I have had to do a lot of self promotion. People just don’t get what it is that I do without a lot of explaining. But, because I enjoy my job so much, I enjoy teaching people about technology and how it can be used to help extend the museum visitor experience. It seems to be working very well.
I agree with one of the members of the audience at the session, it’s a generational thing. Somebody 10 years older than me needs a lot more convincing than someone who is 10 years younger. We are definitely in a transitional stage within museums. As Clive Izard said during the session, “We are at a point where content is king and technology is the way we will all have to go.” With technology moving so rapidly, it is hard to keep those in your institution up to speed on everything, let alone yourself. Some of your colleagues would just as soon tune you out, than listen to you explain something, but we must remain patient. We must break everything down into its simplest terms for easy digestion by those brick wall skeptics. In my opinion, analogies are king! By comparing a technologically complicated idea to something that everyone can understand, the sell becomes a lot easier.
Sometimes, when things are difficult we need to turn them on their head and shake out the confusion. Often this can leave a large mess, but once the mess is straightened out and organized, everything looks a lot clearer and all is put in its proper place. I’m fortunate enough to have a supportive staff. My Executive Director, Marketing Director, and department head are my strongest allies. I do have my challenges, but as long as I have the patience to explain technological concepts, I’m sure it will paint a clearer picture (no pun intended).
I do want to thank the Museum Computer Network, the scholarship committee especially, for the outstanding opportunity that was extended to me. I did more networking and interacting with my colleagues at the 2007 MCN Conference than I have at any other conference. Also, I want to thank all the great, compelling people who I met. I hope to carry on further discussions with you in the future.
