Leadership Succession and Transition for Museums and Arts Organizations: A Guide for Boards and Chief Executives

This book will help facilitate successful leadership transition in museums and arts organizations. It is commonly noted that the greatest number of airline accidents happen during takeoff and landing. The same is true for arts organizations; we are at our most vulnerable during times of transition and it is critical that staff and volunteer leadership succeed in this difficult phase. Surprisingly, staff and boards must invent the practice each time as there is currently no ＂how to＂ guide for leadership transition in the arts.

The day that a CEO announces their resignation - whether of their own decision or not - is a milestone moment in an organization’s history. It is a time of high vulnerability for the institution due to the challenges of appointing an effective interim director and high staff, board, and community anxiety about the future. Search committees are formed and more often than not include patrons and community representatives who are key stakeholders but may lack experience in effective hiring. Once the new executive is appointed, it is critical for the board members and the new director to begin with an intentional and strategic onboarding plan.

The book features three main sections, covering the period from departure announcement to the final farewell; the search and interview process; and onboarding and succession planning. It was written for the boards of arts organizations, search committees, and for staff leadership.

Kaywin Feldman is director of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. She was appointed in 2019, the first woman to lead the nation’s art museum. As director, Feldman is committed to connecting people to art in a globalized world through the power of wonder and accessibility. Before joining the National Gallery, she served as Nivin and Duncan MacMillan Director and President at the Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) from 2008 to 2019 and led the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art from 1999 to 2007.

Feldman is member of the board of directors of the Terra Foundation for American Art and a trustee of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the White House Historical Association. She is past president of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) and past chair of the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). Feldman received an MA in Art History from the Courtauld Institute of Art, University of London, an MA in Museum Studies from the Institute of Archaeology at the University of London, and a BA, summa cum laude, in Classical Archaeology from the University of Michigan.She lectures and publishes widely on museums in the twenty-first century.