Primary Purpose of Position:
The Director of Evaluation and Project Management is a key member of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences (NCMNS) management team, responsible for analyzing museum operations to identify and implement areas of process enhancement. This position develops and implements internal systems for evaluation across the institution. The Director of Evaluation and Project Management creates data-driven reports that integrate impact evaluation and illuminate key findings to power organizational learning and development.

This position provides project planning that ensures alignment with short-term and long-term objectives and provides capacity to the Museum’s key strategic initiatives. Responsible for leading a team of professionals (internal or contractual) in completing projects by a set deadline to uphold business initiatives. Duties include administering the budget for different project aspects and advocating for additional funding when necessary, hiring freelance professionals or selecting project team members from existing departments and setting or adjusting project schedules to adhere to deadlines.

This position is deemed eligible for hybrid telework under DNCR’s Telework Policy.

Key Responsibilities:
Duties include but are not limited to:

• Planning for projects to follow a regular development process that contains all or some of the following phases of work: 1) Concept; 2) Workflow; 3) Detail (including contracts where necessary); 4) Production; 5) Quality control and review.
• Coordinating operations across the institution, ensuring time and resources are appropriately allocated to meet business objectives within capacity and budgetary constraints.
• Supporting large-scale strategic initiatives by providing leadership to project management, coordination and optimized effort, scheduling, and tracking. Managing the project development process in close communication with the NCMNS Deputy Director and responsible units.
• Ensuring major initiatives are delivered on time, within budget and in good order, whether driven internally or by external contractors.
• Creating long- and short-term plans, including setting targets for milestones and adhering to deadlines
• Making effective decisions when presented with multiple options for how to progress with the project; delegating tasks on projects to employees best positioned to complete them
• Performing quality control on the project throughout development to maintain the standards expected
• Helping define project scope, goals, dependencies, and deliverables.
• Leading cross functional communications between project teams and external vendors
• Interfacing and coordinating with outside vendors and drive resolutions to issues as required
• Developing and implementing internal systems for evaluation across all Museum sections.
• Designing evaluation questions and data collection tools as well as researching evaluation trends that align with Museum needs
• Developing evaluation partnerships with external evaluators and research institutions.

Division Description:
The state’s museum devoted to science and nature, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in central Raleigh, is the largest institution of its kind in the Southeastern United States and, with over a million visitors a year, the state’s most visited museum. Its 300,000 square foot downtown campus is augmented by Prairie Ridge Ecostation and satellite facilities in Whiteville, Greenville, and Contentnea Creek. Together, they provide a variety of curriculum-focused classes onsite, offsite, outdoors, and online for pre-kindergarten through graduate students across the state.

As a museum of nature, we integrate the dual concepts of illumination and inspiration with the work we do and the many stories we tell. In a time of unprecedented environmental challenges, nothing could be more critical. This nexus of ideas makes us unique. Across three vibrant floors of laboratories and exhibitions, our Nature Research Center provides an unparalleled opportunity to see science in action by watching museum researchers studying the natural world in real time. In the Nature Exploration Center, exhibits and live animal displays reveal North Carolina’s rich natural habitats, wildlife, and geology from the Appalachian Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean.

Department Information:
The North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) takes care of the things that people love about North Carolina, literally from A to Z. The Arts to the Zoo, and so much else – parks, aquariums, historic sites, archaeology, African American Heritage Commission, science and history museums, the state Symphony, Library and Archives, historic preservation, land and water stewardship, and more. These places, and the ideas they represent, create a shared identity in North Carolina. They provide common ground. Everyone is welcome. The Department’s vision is to be the leader in using the state's natural and cultural resources to build the social, cultural, educational, and economic future of North Carolina. Our goal is to promote equity and inclusion among our employees and our programming to reflect and celebrate our state's diverse population, culture, and history. We encourage you to apply to become a part of our team.

Check out this amazing video about our Department.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities / Competencies

To receive credit for your work history and credentials, you must provide the information on the application form. Any information omitted from the application form, listed as general statements, listed under the text resume section, or on an attachment will not be considered for qualifying credit.

Qualified candidates must have or be able to:

• 
  Working knowledge of data analysis best practices
• Demonstrated experience with project management and/or evaluation
• Experience with project management tools like Agile
• Demonstrated experience with budget management
• Basic understanding of architectural renderings
• Basic understanding of construction terminology
• Proven success working with all levels of management

Management Prefers:

• At least 5 years of relevant experience in project management and/or evaluation
• Excellent negotiation skills
• Experience with State construction
• Strong decision-making, problem-solving, and conflict management skills
• Considerable business acumen
• Excellent interpersonal and team building skills
• Strategic thinking skills
• Excellent organizational and time management skills
• Ability to navigate ambiguity and drive decision making

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor's degree from an appropriately accredited institution and three (3) years progressively responsible experience related to the area of assignment

• 
  An equivalent combination of training and experience.