director

sales associate

project manager

specialist

intern

The Art Institute of Chicago

Knowledge of all events in the museum and communication is key when you work in the Membership department at the AIC. I have 6 employees that field Member Relations emails and phone calls. A typical day at work starts at 9am sharp. We open one line for incoming calls, use another line to check voice mails and log into the Member Relations email system to return emails. During the first part of the day I manage the team and membership outreach and the second part of my day is spent on pulling data for writing reports on trends and errors.
In fiscal year 2012, Member Relations communicated with approximately 65,000 members from a 100k membership base. My position is unique as I support the staff with helping answer emails and phone calls while keeping them looped into whats happening in the museum and writing reports for senior management. I also manage the Member Lounge, which consists of scheduling of Member Relations staff, working with Volunteer Services for additional staffing, working with catering to ensure coffee service and working with housekeeping to make sure the Lounge stays clean. I'm also the in-between manager that supports the On Site Sales Team; regularly communicating relevant membership/museum information to guarantee world class customer service to our members.

I've learned to be more precise and clear when communicating and have a heightened sense for attention to detail.

My co-worker's are the most amazing people I have had the opportunity to work with. They are kind and always willing to help out; which is very important in an environment that has few resources.

The hardest part of the job is moving up within the organization. Positions are few and people just don't leave. It seems like the trend is to leave the institution to gain experience and then come back to a higher position.

The most enjoyable part of my job is working with people who love the AIC and what the institution stands for. I also love the ability to walk through the galleries and look at art before the museum opens to the public.

I had really high expectations coming to work here. I thought it would be a great place to work, learn a lot and expected peers to be professional. Co-workers are very petty and the way to be liked is by kissing up to management. Management gave no help or direction. Didn't talk to me only on occasion in the few months I was there. Talked to me when mistakes were made. Some of the hardest working employees were overlooked and treated poorly. Management definitely had favorites. I've had a lot of managers in my career, this was by far the worst I've experienced. I've had some micromanaging bosses that were better than the management here. A lot of people seem lost when it comes to tasks. When things went wrong, people looked to blame others. Some don't take ownership of their job duties and others do it for them. Communication within departments are lacking. Emails are very condescending from some coworkers. A lot of inflated egos and god forbid you say something they don't like. Save the trouble and don't apply. I heard the school is nicer to work for than the Museum. I guess just stay clear from the Museum.

Good benefits. Enjoyed working with most co-workers. Position is VERY hard work for VERY LITTLE pay or incentive. Each sales associate is given an individual monthly sales goal. The goals will differ depending on the time of year and if you are using any paid time off. I was able to make my goals, but not without conflict arising between co-workers. 
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Management struggles to create a team-work atmosphere. Sales associates compete against each other. Mangement not supportive in preventing co-worker conflicts. Will allow anyone who consistently makes their monthly goal get away with bad behavior towards others. Pollyanna excuses were given by the manager. It is very common knowledge that other departments look down on employees from the museum shops. Turn-over is always high.

I did a lot of duties at the Institute. I washed dishes, setup and broke down equipment for special events. I learned a lot of customer service skills because I also worked in the restaurant at the Art Institute and you come across a lot of people. I had no problem with management while there. Work place culture was to me exciting and fast pace at times,but fun because you had to work on a time frame for certain events. The hardest part of the job to me, was customer service cause when you work for the public, it can at times be hectic. The most enjoyable was the people that I interacted with that is what I remember the most people coming and going through the doors of the Institute.

Working in the museum shop has been treacherous in multiple ways:

Coworkers are competitive and petty when it comes to making sales goals. 

PTO exists but good luck trying to use it  - every day I've tried to take off was denied with no real explanation. 

Pay is TERRIBLE. 

Most of your lunch and break time is eaten up by traveling to your locker and time clock to punch out. So realistically, your breaks are half of what they're supposed to be. 

Managers are totally absent. They're forgetful, unaware of employee needs and concerns, never on the salesfloor and overall not very kind or understanding people. 

Interviewing process was unnecessarily vigorous for what the position actually is. 

High turnover position. Always hiring. People always leaving.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The staff and customers were very friendly. I was always chatting with different people from across the world

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The sheer volume of customers may be a challenge if you don't have that experience. But it is fun at the same time to meet new people.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Very nice, must be accurate quick attentive versatile, and able to assume and learn different job roles to be efficient at your position. Everyone is helpful and a team player with a great work ethic.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
The morning meeting then setting up your station lots of walking.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The team and the partner working together nicely. The environment was calm and everyone was nice to work with 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
I experienced no stress working here

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment is positive and professional, fostering both personal and professional growth. The company culture is inclusive and collaborative, where every team member is valued and supported. Leadership is approachable, and there’s a genuine emphasis on employee well-being and development. It’s a place where people work hard, celebrate success together, and truly enjoy being part of the team.

The pay is most likely low, depending on what role you play. Management doesn't care as they claim they do and are very passive-aggressive. There is a hierarchy system where you cannot send email or phone calls to anyone above you without being approved by your management. Not a diverse workplace for minorities. The hardest part of the job was how there was no structure, and management will throw anything at you... most things not under your job description. Making underlings grab their items from the mailroom/cleaning. I did enjoy the benefits! 

The Art Institute of Chicago is a fine place work, and I feel I learned a lot while there. Processes were a bit outdated and manual, for example offer letter were sent via postal mail. The HR department was also very lean which meant we did a lot outside of what might typically be expected. Foe expample, Talent Acquisition was also responsible for new employee orientation. The benefit of this was having an opportunity to gain experience in parts of HR you may not have otherwise. 
However this may have changed since I was there. Overall, I would recommend the Art Institute of Chicago to others. 

Worked at AIC for four years and never received any professional advancement. Pay is low but good benefits and paid time off. Lack of diversity on executive and senior level. Stressful at times and can be toxic due the competition for limited resources. Hire incompetent managers who pretend to have expertise but rely on low level staff to complete their tasks. To be fair the museum has been working on initiatives to improve the diversity of the staff, but slow moving and conservative leadership prevents the museum from improving in this area.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Director 4 salaries reported	$80,500 per year
Sales associate 4 salaries reported	$15.75 per hour
Project manager 1 salary reported	$90,000 per year
Specialist 3 salaries reported	$28.15 per hour
Intern 3 salaries reported	$16.33 per hour

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