Manager, Tours & Visitor Experiences

About the role

The Manager of Tours & Experiences is responsible for leading the operational management, training strategy, facilitation standards, and continuous improvement of all on-site guided experiences at the Museum of Tolerance. Reporting within the Education department, this role ensures that visitor-facing educational programming is delivered with consistency, professionalism, pedagogical rigor, and operational excellence.

This position provides direct leadership to the Museum’s tour guides, ensuring that every visitor experience reflects the Museum’s core educational principles: inquiry-driven learning, emotional engagement, historical accuracy, and civic relevance.

Responsibilities

• Team Leadership, Supervision & Staff Management
• Provide supervision, leadership, and training to part-time tour guides and visitor-facing facilitators
• Partner closely with Floor Coordinators to support daily operations, staffing continuity, and visitor experience quality
• Establish clear expectations, accountability measures, and performance standards across the guide team
• Conduct regular observations, coaching sessions, evaluations, and performance conversations
• Foster a collaborative, inclusive, and professional team culture centered on continuous growth and learning
• Support employee engagement, communication, and staff development initiatives
• Training, Facilitation Standards & Professional Development
• Create a comprehensive facilitator training and certification program for tour guides and volunteers
• Lead ongoing professional development workshops, calibration sessions, and facilitation refreshers
• Ensure all facilitators are trained in inquiry-based learning practices, visitor engagement strategies, classroom management, and Museum pedagogy
• Develop facilitation rubrics and quality assurance measures to support consistency across all tours and experiences
• Align facilitation practices with institutional educational goals and updated content
• Program Operations & Process Management
• Oversee operational workflows related to guided tours and visitor experiences
• Collaborate with Floor Coordinators on staffing schedules, coverage planning, and daily program logistics
• Support the development of scalable staffing structures that align with tour demand, visitor volume, and budget considerations
• Improve operational efficiencies, communication systems, and internal processes related to tour execution
• Maintain operational readiness for approximately 100 weekly tours and educational experiences
• Visitor Experience & Facilitation Quality
• Establish and uphold high standards for inquiry-driven, emotionally engaging, and historically grounded facilitation
• Ensure all visitor experiences reflect the Museum’s educational philosophy, mission, and institutional values
• Observe tours regularly and provide actionable coaching and developmental feedback
• Monitor visitor feedback and identify opportunities for continuous improvement
• Prepare facilitators to engage thoughtfully with diverse audiences and sensitive historical subject matter
• Cross-Functional Collaboration
• Work collaboratively with the Volunteer Coordinator to support meaningful volunteer engagement within the visitor experience model
• Partner with Education leadership, curriculum teams, and content specialists to ensure guides are equipped with current materials and institutional messaging
• Serve as a key operational and communication partner across departments supporting visitor engagement initiatives

Qualifications

• Experience and Skills:
• 5+ years of experience in museum education, experiential learning, visitor engagement, or public-facing educational programming
• Demonstrated experience managing educators, facilitators, docent programs, or visitor experience teams
• Strong leadership, coaching, and staff development experience
• Experience developing training programs, operational processes, or professional development initiatives
• Excellent organizational, communication, and project management skills
• Ability to balance educational quality with operational execution in a fast-paced environment
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to collaborate across multiple teams and stakeholder groups
• Preferred Qualifications:
• Experience in Holocaust education, social justice education, civic engagement, or dialogue-based programming
• Familiarity with inquiry-based learning, SEL frameworks, experiential education, or facilitation methodology
• Experience managing part-time educator teams, volunteer programs, or distributed facilitation staff
• Background in visitor experience operations or educational program management within museums or nonprofit institutions