Painting a picture of museums
A day in the museum life of Arnoud van Dommele
You can’t have an ego
Carolien from Leisure Link spent a day with Arnoud van Dommele, Business Director of the Mauritshuis in The Hague, to experience how museum operations work. What does his day look like? What tasks are on the plate of this director?
What business is business?
Before the first meeting starts, Arnoud explains to Carolien how the Mauritshuis organization is structured. Fellow board member Martine Gosselink, General Director of the Mauritshuis, is responsible for Collections & Management, Education & Programming, and Communications & Marketing. Arnoud oversees four departments: Facility Management, HR, Business Development, and Retail. Each department has its own team manager. The teams have grown considerably in recent years. This is not surprising: after the 2014 renovation, the Mauritshuis' visitor numbers increased from 250,000 to 450,000 annually! And as Arnoud and Carolien look outside around 9:45 a.m., there is already a sizable group of visitors waiting at the gates.
Mural, maintenance plan and museum security
The first meeting of the day is with the head of Facility Management, where the list of ongoing matters is reviewed. It is impressive to see how much is happening simultaneously: they are working on a mural at the entrance, drafting the multi-year maintenance plan, and busy filling all the vacancies for museum security staff. Facility Management is a department that interacts with nearly all other departments: for the 2024 annual plan, they need to consider possible new exhibitions, evening events (with regard to security staffing), changes to the museum’s routing, and plans for further sustainability efforts.
Holidays and home office
Next is a meeting with HR. The HR team is small, especially given the number of employees at the Mauritshuis. Since some policy matters have been delayed, they are now making a big effort to get everything in order for the entire organization. Carolien notices that many of the topics, such as working from home/hybrid work, travel expenses and reimbursements, and the accrual/sale of vacation days, are not collectively arranged (for example, in a CAO - collective labor agreement). This means the museum can make its own well-considered choices, but it also means they must formulate these policies themselves. There is less standardization than expected, and it involves quite a bit of work.
Numbers and numbers
As they sit down for lunch, Carolien asks Arnoud how he manages and makes decisions about what should or shouldn't be done: “Do you have specific goals or KPIs?” The answer isn't too surprising: just like in an attraction, wellness facility, or theater, Arnoud focuses on ensuring visitors keep coming and giving the museum high ratings. In recent years, much work has been done to create programs for different audiences. When the head of Education & Programming happens to drop by, it turns out there are as many as 70 different programs running. These include the Open Art Studio for children, Museum Night for young adults, and the “Unforgettable Mauritshuis” tour for people with dementia.
Yeah, what do you actually do?
Helping hand
In the afternoon, Arnoud takes Carolien on a tour of the museum, passing reception, marketing, the restaurant, the shop, security, and restoration. Every time Carolien explains that she wants to see what a museum director does in a day, jokes follow, like “Yeah, what do you actually do?” and “Well, not much.” But it quickly becomes clear that Arnoud is actually the driving force in keeping the teams running smoothly. He doesn’t personally work on sustainability policies, the revised routing in the museum, or special events: “You need to ensure that employees can excel in their work by asking the right questions, helping them find solutions, and stepping in to make a decision when absolutely necessary.” This philosophy is clearly visible throughout the day in how collaboration takes place.
From December to Decade
Another important aspect of Arnoud’s work is balancing the present with planning for the museum’s future in 10 years and beyond. Later in the afternoon, there is a meeting with the Government Property Agency about the Binnenhof renovation. Very concrete actions for the coming months are discussed, such as placing a construction fence near the entrance. But at the same time, Arnoud is thinking about how the museum should look in a decade and how to remain relevant.
The culture of culture
A day is short, but Carolien gets a good sense of the company culture. What immediately stands out is that everyone knows each other and is approachable, even the team managers or directors. This becomes apparent during the first cup of coffee, when one of the security guards stops by with stroopwafels for the executive assistant, and Arnoud then discusses the nearly finished prayer room with him. For Arnoud, company culture is also very important: “I want everyone to feel safe, to be seen, and not to push past their limits.” It’s a tricky balance because the quality standard at the Mauritshuis is very high, so a lot is expected of each other. Arnoud sometimes has to step in because “an 8 is also cum laude, so we don’t always need to expect a 10 from each other.”
People person
At the end of the day, Carolien asks Arnoud what he thinks are the most important qualities for a (business) director in a museum. He says you really need to be a people person. You work closely together to not only keep the museum running operationally but also to ensure its development. “And you can’t have an ego,” Arnoud adds. "You need to give everyone’s expertise space, listen to each other, and let others shine." And Carolien got to witness that throughout this one day.
