Role: Head Of Operations
Company: Ulster American Folk Park
Track Record:
What does your job entail?
As head of operations I am responsible for the management of the Ulster American Folk Park. The most important element of my job is to ensure that our visitors have an enjoyable and memorable experience at the museum whilst learning about 18th and 19th century emigration from Ulster to North America. The Folk Park currently attracts about 150,000 visitors per year.
We have a multi-disciplinary senior team at the Folk Park covering key areas such as curatorial and collections, visitor services, marketing, finance, learning and facilities management.
Our terrific team of visitor guides offer a fabulous living history experience in our exhibit buildings – they bring the buildings to life, giving human interpretation of the exhibit, its history and most importantly, its former inhabitants. This kind of interaction means no two visits to the Folk Park are ever the same!
Our education and learning programme attracts schools and groups from all over Ireland. We have recently introduced a major new programme called Magic of Time that has really captured the imagination of the public.
Is it 9-5?
Normally it is but given the nature of the business it never quite works out that way. There are times when working evening and weekends is essential, such as later this month during the International Bluegrass Music Festival which takes place from August 30 to September 1.
It is a wonderful weekend-long music festival and the largest of its kind outside North America. It is a privilege to be part of such an outstanding festival which attracts some of the top performers in Bluegrass as well as an international audience.
Bluegrass bands perform throughout the outdoor museum during the day with seated concerts in the festival marquee in the evenings.
How did you get into this line of work?
My background is in business consultancy. Before joining National Museums Northern Ireland I had no experience of the museum world specifically but had managed a number of consultancy projects involving tourism based businesses.
In 1995, I saw a job for an administration manager at the Ulster American Folk Park advertised and the job role and responsibility really appealed to me. The position essentially involved management of the business areas of the museum including finance, personnel and administration.
Then in 2007 I was successful in securing the post of head of operations with overall management responsibility for the Ulster American Folk Park.
Outline your career to date?
On leaving university, I got a job with FG Wilson. Following a very enjoyable time there, I worked for four years as a business consultant with an accountancy practice in Omagh.
I joined the Ulster American Folk Park in 1995 and was appointed Head of Operations in 2007. I can honestly say that I haven’t looked back. I’m extremely proud of what the staff at the museum has achieved year after year.
Our special events programme continues to attract visitors in their thousands. Tickets for the Hallowe’en Festival are like gold dust and events including our American Independence Day celebrations and Bluegrass Festival are truly world-class.
Tell us about your qualifications and training.
I have a BA in business studies and an MBA from the University of Ulster. The MBA was an intense and demanding course but certainly worthwhile in terms of developing a much deeper understanding of business and best practice.
What qualities are required for your job – personal and professional?
As head of operations, I work with quite a diverse team including curators, visitor services staff, educationalists and administration staff so the ability to promote an effective team-working environment is important.
It is also essential to have a good understanding of all the key business areas to make it work. Some of this I brought with me through my qualifications and previous experience but mostly I’ve learned from many very talented and enthusiastic colleagues.
What are the biggest challenges and rewards of your work?
Probably the biggest challenge is delivering a world-class museum and visitor experience in the context of difficult economic circumstances. Our challenge is to employ creative solutions to continually develop and improve the museum experience.
However, the most rewarding part of this job never changes: seeing visitors having a great day at the Ulster American Folk Park. No matter what the challenges, we endeavour never to lose our focus of visitor satisfaction.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I love to spend time with my wife, Pauline, and two daughters Caroline and Kate. We always enjoy our holidays, particularly Normandy and Brittany, and the French way of life and climate.
We have also had some very memorable short breaks in beautiful cities such as Tallinn, Budapest and Oslo. However, as the only man in the house, I am known to occasionally sneak off to watch Sky Sports!