Lead Gallery Attendant

The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery at Harbourfront Centre is Canada’s leading public gallery devoted exclusively to the art of our time and is recognized as an important centre for contemporary art in North America. Since 1987, The Power Plant’s mission has been to create an open culture and community for people to be face-to-face with thought-provoking contemporary art and ideas. We have a culturally diverse workforce and audience whose lives and communities we seek to enrich through encouraging exploration of self and society. More than a gallery, The Power Plant is a community hub that caters to adults, youth, and children through broad and unique programming. To learn more about us, please visit thepowerplant.org.

We are currently looking for a responsible, courteous and enthusiastic Lead Gallery Attendant with strong communication skills to provide great front-line service to visitors, and to encourage meaningful public engagement with contemporary art through daily interaction, tours, and public programs.

 

Position Title: Lead Gallery Attendant

Reporting to: Assistant Manager, Visitor Experience

Direct Reports: Gallery Attendants, Volunteers

Type of Employment: Full time, 35-hours per week. This is a bargaining unit position and a member of OPSEU

Compensation: $20.50 per hour, plus a comprehensive benefits package

Location: Based on site at our gallery on Toronto’s waterfront

 

Duties

• Welcomes and orients patrons and visitors to the gallery, collects admissions (as needed), conducts tours, and provides visitors with information about current and upcoming exhibitions programs, special events, memberships, and other general topics of inquiry.
• Supervises the entrances and all areas of the exhibitions to enhance the visitor experience, encourages conversation and engagement, enforces gallery rules, and maintains proper gallery capacity.  Coordinates the daily rotation of all GAs and, when scheduled, supervises Volunteer Gallery Assistants.
• Coordinates the workflow of Gallery Attendants (GAs) on duty, and acts as the first point of contact for the Gallery Attendant team for problem solving (customer service, resolving CRM issues, etc.).
• Assists the Assistant Manager, Visitor Experience in the management/supervision of the Gallery Attendant team as required, and participates in the hiring and training of the Gallery Attendant team as requested.
• Conducts extensive research on the exhibiting artists and exhibition themes in advance of and during the exhibition period.
• Prepares and leads thoughtful and intelligent tours and maintain a comprehensive knowledge and in-depth understanding of the artist and themes in the exhibition in order to facilitate discussion and meaningful engagement with viewers.
• Performs opening and closing duties including turning on and off works in the exhibition and ensuring all visitors have exited the Gallery upon closing. Counts the float at open and close, reconciles sales, completes the daily deposit, and keeps front of house tidy.
• Performs daily sales transactions for attendance, publication, merchandise, editions, event tickets, and membership using the point of sales software, Tessitura.
• Captures names, addresses, and postal codes from visitors — and strongly encourages other GAs to do likewise — for the gallery’s database to extend engagement, encourage lasting connections, and for future marketing and development needs.
• Examines the exhibitions on a daily basis and, if finding artwork that is malfunctioning or damaged, either performs corrective action or submits incident reports to appropriate staff in a timely manner.
• Performs administrative/clerical tasks including writing reports related to exhibition maintenance, attendance, and audience response. Assists in mailings and during period an annual inventory as needed.
• Replenishes publication and merchandise stock in the shop, as needed, as well as replenishes gallery ephemera, program guides, educational hand-outs, and gallery surveys at the front desk and in other areas.
• Provides staffing assistance for public programs and events as needed, including the annual Power Ball, member events, and revenue generation events, during which duties may also include selling drink tickets, preventing drinks/food from entering specified areas, taking photographs, etc.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Courteous and pleasant mannerism, strong interpersonal skills, and must absolutely enjoy working with the public.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• A strong work ethic and spirit of collaboration.
• Dependable, responsible, prompt and capable of remaining calm and composed to professionally handle possible conflicts or escalations.
• Strong public speaking abilities for leading tours, introducing speakers and making presentations for visitors.
• Excellent and reliable judgment.
• An in-depth understanding of contemporary art.
• Experience supervising others performing similar duties.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule which may include daytime, weekend and evening shifts.
• Ability to operate audio/visual and other exhibition equipment as well as computer, cash drawer, receipt printer, photocopier, and other office equipment.
• An understanding of, and commitment to The Power Plant’s mission and values.
• Knowledge of language(s) other than English is desirable.
• Must be legally eligible to work in Canada. All international applicants must have a valid employment Visa authorizing their ability to work in Canada on an ongoing basis for the duration of active employment.

Apply

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Our Values

Open
We’re friendly, welcoming and inclusive, with an experimental attitude that thrives on collaboration.

Brave
To achieve our bold ambition we empower and support imaginative risk and we always try to learn from our mistakes.

Rigorous
We are committed to excellence in all we do, ensuring every visitor encounter is safe, memorable and enriching.

Kind
We value and respect each other and all our visitors, celebrating difference and striving to realise potential.

How To Apply

The Power Plant is committed to diversity and inclusiveness. We encourage qualified applicants of all backgrounds to apply. Applications must include a current resume and a cover letter indicating why you wish to join the team, and how you would meet the position criteria.

To apply, please submit your candidacy to jobs@harbourfrontcentre.com by no later than May 24, 2024. Please quote Lead Gallery Attendant in the subject line of your application.

We thank all applicants for their interest, however, only those being considered for an interview will be contacted. Suitable accommodations will be available upon request during the hiring process.