Director

About the Westfries Museum

The Westfries Museum in Hoorn is on the verge of a major transformation. The large-scale renovation and the updated museum concept, planned for 2025–2027, offer a unique opportunity to make the museum future-proof and enhance its social relevance. The museum is the premier cultural-historical museum in the Netherlands focused on the 17th century, with a unique location in a historic building dating from 1632.

The updated vision focuses on the connection between the past and contemporary global developments. Hoorn’s commercial expansion offers a window into world history, with the museum making innovative perspectives and stories accessible to a broad audience. Inclusivity, historical depth, and heritage innovation are high on the agenda. With an ambitious growth plan (from 45,000 to 70,000 visitors per year) and strong municipal support, the museum is seeking a new Director: a visionary leader with both artistic and strategic qualities.

The Role of Director

As Director of the Westfries Museum, you will be the figurehead and driving force behind the museum’s transformation and efforts to make it future-proof. You will be responsible for strategic positioning, exhibition policy, and cultural entrepreneurship. You are both a content leader and an experienced administrator with a clear vision for cultural entrepreneurship, audience engagement, and heritage innovation, and you know how to position a museum nationally and internationally. You will report to the City of Hoorn, Director of Social Development, and work closely with the business manager, the team of staff, and volunteers. Together, you will ensure that the museum remains a place where history comes to life and where visitors can relate to the stories being told. You will have final responsibility for the renovation, redesign, and operation of the museum.

Your responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Vision

• Developing and implementing an ambitious long-term strategy.
• Positioning the museum as a leading player in the museum and heritage sector.
• Addressing social issues such as decolonization and heritage renewal.

Renovation & Remodeling

• Overseeing the museum's renovation.
• Ensuring a smooth transition between the old and new museum concepts.
• Have knowledge of construction and housing.

Networking & Stakeholder Management

• Maintaining and developing relationships with the municipality, museums, foundations, and community organizations.
• Encourage fundraising and grant applications to support the museum
• Serve as an ambassador for the museum in the national and international heritage sector.

Financial & Operational Management

• Final responsibility for the budget, grants, and museum operations.
• Work with the business manager to ensure sound business operations.
• Indirectly managing a team of 21 employees (14.8 FTE) and 50 volunteers.

Audience Reach & Programming

• Guiding the development of exhibitions and the museum’s content strategy.
• Providing innovative and accessible programming that has a social impact.
• Expanding and diversifying our audience reach and increasing visitor numbers.

Who are we looking for?

• An inspiring and unifying leader with a clear vision for museum innovation.
• Experience in the museum, heritage, or cultural sector and a strong network in these fields.
• An interest in renovation projects and the redesign of museum spaces.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to network.
• Knowledge of fundraising, grants, and cultural entrepreneurship.
• Political and administrative sensitivities in relation to the municipal structure.
• Hands-on approach: strategically strong, yet actively engaged with the team.

Why this position?

This is a unique opportunity to help shape and lead a museum with a rich history and an ambitious future. You will have the freedom to work innovatively, lead public discourse, and further develop a museum of national significance. At the Westfries Museum, you will work with a passionate team that believes in the power of heritage as a means to tell stories that connect, challenge, and inspire.

Practical Information

• Location: Hoorn
• Start date: Preferably June 2025 to ensure a smooth transition
• Employment: Full-time (36 hours per week).
• Salary: Municipal pay scale 14 (€5,892 – €8,123 gross per month), excluding vacation pay, year-end bonus, and flexible spending allowance (FSA = 17.05%).
• Other benefits: Pension contributions through ABP, travel allowance, and health insurance coverage.

Interested?

The Westfries Museum is being assisted in this process by the executive search firm Colourful People. For more information about the position or the Westfries Museum, please contact Henna Seedorf, senior partner at Colourful People (06 24 27 43 68).

Are you interested? Then upload your cover letter and resume by March 31, 2025, via the Colourful People website. The pre-selection interviews will take place between April 2 and April 4, 2025. The first and second round of interviews are scheduled for April 14 and April 17, 2025

Recruitment agencies are asked to refrain from contacting us regarding this job opening.