“TALENT AT THE SERVICE OF HERITAGE: THE IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT AT THE CANAL MUSEUM”

By: Denis Russo

Human Resources Manager, Canal Museum.

The Human Resources department is part of the support for the operation of any company, many of which are part of its business strategy. And talking about the Human Resources department as part of the business strategy has not been around since the beginning. Around the 1920s, in the United States, a defined field emerged regarding personnel management, referring to the technical aspects of hiring, evaluating, training and compensating employees. It is only in our times that the definition of Human Resources transcends beyond the operation and is added to the business strategy as Strategic Partners directed to the most valuable: people.

The presence of a trained and established Human Resources department indicates the importance of its staff for the organization, beyond seeing only goals, numbers and processes; The focus on human resources management is on the satisfaction and well-being of people in order to achieve the objectives.

This does not mean that attention to people is more important than attention to processes. What we want to highlight in this article is the relevance of attention to processes and people, without being mutually exclusive, in order to achieve the objectives.

Museums depend on their teams to conserve, research, collect, interpret and share their tangible and intangible heritage and, as they are directly responsible for fulfilling the mission of museums, attention to people management becomes important.

Implementing or updating a Human Resources department in museums will depend on the philosophy and resources that the museum has. However, it is often thought that the adoption of Human Resources processes is imperative only for organizations that have more than 10 people, which is totally incorrect. A Human Resources department is essential for the success of any company. If resources are not sufficient to set up a department, at least management should be considered in terms of attracting staff, training and development, evaluations, conflict resolution, detecting the work environment, remuneration and benefits, promoting values and brand recognition. And although it may seem cumbersome and unnecessary, no matter how small the organization is, it must guarantee its employees/collaborators an honest treatment and a healthy work environment. If we define these last two concepts (honorable treatment and healthy work environment), we can see that it covers everything mentioned above. In reality, the workload in these Human Resources processes is contributed by the number of people that a museum has and the automation of its processes.

But why invest in a department that looks after the people who make up our museums? I can answer this question in a single sentence: To support the return on investment.

However, it is easier to write it than to do it. The implementation or updating of a museum's Human Resources department will depend largely on the resources available. From the talent to carry out the main tasks of the department, to meeting the response times required by the museum to achieve its objectives.

In Panama, there is very little reference on the management and administration of Human Resources in museums that we can rely on, so we must mostly draw on the practices carried out in museums in other countries that do not correspond to the reality and needs in Panama, making the work in Human Resources a constant trial and error that can cost the organization.

However, not everything is as dark as it seems, because the management and administration of Human Resources is so new and emerging in the museum sector that it gives the opportunity to work, like putty, on the objectives and practices of these departments. This gives rise to starting the procedures from a new perspective and a new role for the Human Resources departments, without having to become enslaved to old concepts and practices that do not correspond to the new trends, concepts or needs.

The Canal Museum is an example of an institution that recognizes the importance of talent management and continually works to improve its HR processes. With a Human Resources department that has been in operation for 3 years, this museum demonstrates its commitment to investing in its staff.

Today, we have a workforce of 63 people who make up the synergy of the Canal Museum, where the achievement of results is due to interdepartmental work. At the Canal Museum, it is interesting to see these teams that intertwine every time we have to “move forward” a task and it is particular to see how all the people collaborate from their position so that the task is carried out. That is why our most valuable resource is the people who collaborate with us every day with their time, their talent and their passion to make the Canal Museum one of the best Museums in Panama.

The strength of our Museum lies in the union of our Talent!