Provincial Museum Seeking A New CEO

The New Brunswick Museum in Saint John is looking for a new leader.

Its current chief executive officer Bill Hicks is retiring.

It’s a purely personal decision for Hicks to retire. He said it’s time for someone new to come in and take the museum forward.

He said the successful candidate would benefit from a background in museology, natural science and the arts.

“You also have to have a bit of experience in facility management, some business administration skills. The CEO of the New Brunswick Museum is involved in pretty much every facet of the operation,” Hicks said.

Hicks said the New Brunswick Museum is about more than collections and exhibits — it’s also about research and conservation.

“New Brunswick Museum has been around for 178 years and over those years, it’s gone through certain changes and over those years it’s become world-renowned,” Hicks said.

Hicks describes the museum as a “hugely valuable institution” for New Brunswickers.

As CEO, he split his time between the Exhibition Centre in Market Square and the Collections and Research Centre on Douglas Avenue.

He said learning about the many treasures housed inside the Collections and Research Centre was a rewarding part of the job for him.

“Honestly I can’t single one out because there are just so many amazing things I got to experience up close and have experts in the field tell me all about these artifacts and specimens and have a real discussion about them,” Hicks said.

As for the need to find a new home for the New Brunswick Museum, Hicks said a huge amount of effort has gone into facility renewal in the time he’s been CEO and before.

He thinks government ministers and the premier have a “full understanding” of the scale of the facility issues and the value of the museum.

Hicks feels confident there will be resolution and it will “sooner rather than later.”

Applications for the CEO position at the New Brunswick Museum are being accepted until January 22nd.