Executive Director 287 views0 applications

Cape Town Holocaust and Genocide Centre

POSITION: Executive Director

Closing Date for applications: 17 February 2023

GENERAL

• Location: Cape Town
• Reporting to:  Chair of the Board of Cape Town Holocaust and Genocide Centre
• Hours of work: full-time
• Nature of contract:  permanent
• Salary range: Market-related (Commensurate with skill and experience)
• Benefits: Contribution towards Retirement Annuity, disability insurance, all Jewish holidays off

MISSION AND VISION:

The Cape Town Holocaust & Genocide Centre (CTHGC) works towards creating a more caring and just
society in which human rights and diversity are respected and valued.

ABOUT THE ORGANISATION AND THE ROLE

The CTHGC is the first Holocaust centre in Africa and works in association with the Holocaust and Genocide Centres in Johannesburg and Durban. It houses a permanent exhibition and archive, hosts temporary exhibitions, organizes a rich array of public programmes and conducts educational visits and workshops for schools, educators and diverse adult groups.

The Centre seeks to encourage an awareness of, and appreciation for, the value of diversity in a pluralistic society. The Centre is governed by a Board of experienced lay members and comprises a permanent staff complement of 11 people, with 50 – 60 volunteers. Its annual operating budget is approximately R6.5 million.

The CTHGC Board is looking to recruit an Executive Director to oversee the educational, public and outreach programmes of the Centre as well as its day to-day operations. This includes the management of its professional staff, fundraising and oversight over the Centre’s finances.

The Executive Director is further responsible for the coordination and implementation of citywide, national and international strategies and partnerships.

MAIN DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES 

1. Educational Programming
2.   To work with the Education director to develop and implement creative, thoughtful and robust educational programming, activities and events for greater Cape Town and beyond. These initiatives must reflect the latest research on the Holocaust and be sensitive to the experiences of Holocaust survivors / the needs of second and third generation survivors and have an understanding of the context of Holocaust education and remembrance in South Africa.
3.  Ensure that the CTHGC adds relevance to Holocaust and Genocide studies and provides an approach to addressing prejudice and enhancing individual and group relations, in line with the latest research in Holocaust studies and education.
4.  Develop budgets and funding sources to support the creation, distribution, promotion and evaluation of projects, activities and events.
5.  Ensure that the CTHGC provides resources and programming for schools, that align with the national school curriculum in terms of the teaching of the unit on the Holocaust and Human Rights in Grade 9 and Social Darwinism and Eugenics in Grade 11.
6.  In conjunction with the other Centres, maintain oversight of the educational and classroom support materials being developed in support of the national curriculum and other programmes.

2. Exhibitions

1. Provide leadership and vision to guide the development of appropriate travelling exhibitions, and maintenance and relevance of the permanent exhibition, as well as assemble and assist production team where necessary.
2. Maintain oversight and be involved in the development of public programmes for travelling exhibitions.
3. Oversee the production, distribution and viewing schedule for travelling exhibitions.
4. Research and source existing exhibits for use at the CTHGC.
5. Source necessary funding to enable the development of new exhibitions and the funding of travelling exhibitions. 

3. Archive
4.     Have oversight of the CTHGC archive
5.   Work closely with the archivist in both the ongoing development of the archive and its public manifestation.

4. Outreach, Communication and PR
5.    Drive and implement outreach, communication and PR strategies.
6.  Create and maintain effective working relationships with a wide range of stakeholders including other NPO’s in the field of human rights; human rights museums; departments of education; university faculties; United Nations agencies, UNHRC (United Nations Human Rights Council); the Rwandan community in Cape Town; the diplomatic community; the structures of the Cape Town Jewish community and the two other Holocaust & Genocide Centres in South Africa.
7.    Oversee all organisational communication in the form of articles, newsletters, annual reports, etc.

1.    Oversee the social media and online presence of the Centre including the Centre’s website.

1.  As the public “face” of the Centre, build and maintain productive relationships with politicians, members of the diplomatic corps, media and academics and visiting speakers and scholars.

5. Fundraising:

1. Proactively increase revenue from grants, sponsorships, memberships, major gifts, planned giving, naming opportunities and general funding sourced by CTHGC’s endowment fund.
2. Prepare and oversee the compilation of fundraising proposals.
3. Build and maintain productive relationships with funders and donors including international foundations and trusts.

6. Operational Management

1. Relationship with the Durban and Johannesburg Centres:

• Provide effective liaison between CTHGC and the JHGC and DHGC
• Collaborate on travelling exhibitions, national events, visiting speakers and dignitaries.
• Attend National meetings and prepare relevant reports as and when required.
• Facilitate support for the national teacher training programme.

1. Professional Staff and volunteer management:

1. • Lead, co-ordinate and develop the Professional staff to ensure that the CTHGC’s objectives and performance targets are met.
   • Oversee and develop the volunteer programme and maintain positive relations with the volunteer guides.

1. Facilities Maintenance:

• Ensure that the building and offices are adequately maintained.
• Oversee any new construction or renovation to the permanent exhibit.
• Maintain good working relationships with other tenants in the Gardens Community Centre.
• Oversee the hiring of CTHGC’s facilities to third parties.

1. Finance and administration:

•   Supervise the financial management of the organisation, ensuring financial wellbeing, viability and sustainability.
•      Draft, maintain and control the budget.
•      Prepare fundraising and grant proposals as and when required.
•      Oversee general day-to-day operations of the Centre as and when required.
•      Arrangement and coordination of Board Meetings as well as related material and reports.

REQUIRED SKILL AND EXPERIENCE

1. Education and qualification

•      A relevant post-graduate degree or diploma in history, education, museology or peacebuilding / human rights is essential.
•      Demonstrated experience in Holocaust education and museology, and the history of the Holocaust is a distinct advantage.

2. Work experience and industry exposure

• Management-level experience in an educational, museum or NGO environment.
• Experience with financial management (budgets, costing and finance) and fundraising.
• Demonstrated experience in building and motivating a team.

3. Communication skills

•      Excellent command of English is essential with the ability to drive organisational communication and correspondence
•      A good listener with the ability to communicate in a responsible way with different stakeholders
•      Clear, concise and efficient communication style with the ability to effectively liaise with people from all ages and stages of life.
•     A natural networker, able to serve as an effective and inspiring organisational ambassador.
•      Able to manage difficult situations and personalities in a calm and rational manner
•      The ability to build productive relationships with the Jewish as well as broader community
•       Able to serve as an effective steward to donors.

4. Administration Skills

•       Excellent attention to detail, with the ability to manage budgets, project invoices etc.
•     A confident team collaborator who is self-driven and has an organised and systematic approach to their work.
•      A flexible individual who is able to work autonomously while maintaining open channels of communication with a team
•     Able to deal with the complexity of managing a diverse and multi-focussed team

5. Specific requirements

•      A good understanding of Holocaust and Genocide history and education and a sensitivity to the educational, political and social context in which the CTHGC operates.
•      A clear passion for Holocaust education and the potential impact that it can have on future generations.