Museum Experience Manager

Chicago, IL
Full Time
Mid Level

ABOUT WNDR

WNDR Museum is an immersive experience located in the vibrant West Loop of Chicago. Our mission is to ignite curiosity, creativity, and wonder within everyone who walks through our doors. We foster a culture of innovation, inclusivity, and endless possibilities, providing a dynamic and interactive environment for exploration.

Title: Experience Manager

Reports To: General Manager

Compensation: $22 - $23 / Hour

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Experience Manager is a cornerstone of WNDR leadership team, charged with owning the complete guest experience and operational performance during assigned shifts. Reporting to the General Manager (GM), this role serves as Manager on Duty (MOD) in the absence of the GM and Assistant General Manager (AGM), representing the highest standards of the WNDR brand and experience.

This is not a desk job. This is floor-first leadership. The Experience Manager is present, active, and accountable—leading by example, solving problems before they escalate, maintaining a pristine environment, and delivering world-class, curiosity-sparking service. They are the first to act, the last to leave, and the gold standard for how service should feel and look inside WNDR.

This role requires confident decision-making, servant leadership, emotional intelligence, and unshakable integrity. The Experience Manager holds the team, and themselves, to a high standard every shift. They coach in real time, engage with Guests personally, and set the tone for excellence.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Operational Leadership

  • Serve as Manager on Duty (MOD), owning the full operation of the WNDR experience across all departments during assigned shifts.
  • Make clear, timely decisions with Guest experience, team wellbeing, and business impact in mind.
  • Ensure all operational zones are running smoothly, cleanly, and efficiently—including exhibit pacing, team coverage, and shift flow.
  • Enforce policies and uphold standards related to punctuality, conduct, safety, and service.
  • Complete and submit detailed MOD reports, flagging wins, risks, guest feedback, and team performance.

Guest Experience & Environment

  • Actively engage with Guests—be visible, proactive, and approachable.
  • Lead the charge on issue resolution, recovery, and creating “wow” moments.
  • Ensure a clean, safe, and sensory-ready environment across all public and operational spaces.
  • Encourage Ambassadors to approach every Guest interaction as an opportunity for impact.
  • Own the Guest flow and pacing, including special events and group visits.

Team Leadership & Accountability

  • Provide real-time coaching, support, and feedback to Ambassadors.
  • Model servant leadership, empathy, and consistency in all interactions.
  • Lead shift huddles and set clear expectations for service and team energy.
  • Deliver disciplinary action when needed in coordination with the GM/AGM.
  • Recognize top performers and coach underperformers with clarity and urgency.
  • Foster a culture of respect, trust, and high standards across all levels of the team.

Problem Solving & Proactive Contribution

  • Identify and resolve issues before they escalate—whether Guest-facing, facility, or team-related.
  • Jump in to support wherever needed—no task is beneath this role.
  • Collaborate with leadership to evolve SOPs, improve service, and optimize operations.
  • Contribute insights and recommendations from the floor to inform leadership decisions.

Duties and responsibilities may be adjusted based on organizational needs, and additional tasks may be assigned as required.

QUALIFICATIONS

  • 2+ years in a leadership role in operations, guest experience, hospitality, or attractions.
  • Proven ability to lead high-performance teams in fast-paced, public-facing environments.
  • A calm, confident problem-solver with excellent judgment and accountability.
  • Strong communicator—clear, direct, empathetic, and solution-oriented.
  • Commitment to the highest standards of cleanliness, service, and professionalism.
  • Passion for interactive experiences, the arts, and guest-centric culture.
  • Ability and willingness to work weekends, evenings, holidays, and flexible shifts.

PHYSICAL & SENSORY REQUIREMENTS (WITH OR WITHOUT ACCOMODATIONS)

  • Must be able to stand/walk for long periods and move between exhibit spaces quickly.
  • Occasional lifting, pushing/pulling, bending, or equipment movement (up to 25 lbs).
  • Comfortable working in a multi-sensory environment with lighting effects, audio, and crowd activity.

WHAT WNDR EXPECTS

As an Experience Manager, you are the embodiment of WNDR’s values. You are disciplined, accountable, and relentlessly guest-focused. You lead with your presence, take pride in the details, and make bold decisions that support our mission. This role is for those who want to own the floor, take charge, and set the tone for what greatness looks like—every single shift.

WNDR Museum warmly welcomes people of all ages, identities, ethnicities, beliefs, religions, and backgrounds to join our team. WNDR Museum is an equal opportunity employer, fully committed to achieving an inclusive and diverse workplace and we strongly encourage nontraditional candidates to apply. We hold ourselves to our commitment and continuously strive to attract, engage, and grow with our talented team.


 
Share

Apply for this position

Required*
We've received your resume. Click here to update it.
Attach resume or Paste resume
Attach resume as .pdf, .doc, .docx, .odt, .txt, or .rtf (limit 5MB) or Paste resume

Paste your resume here or Attach resume file

To comply with government Equal Employment Opportunity and/or Affirmative Action reporting regulations, we are requesting (but NOT requiring) that you enter this personal data. This information will not be used in connection with any employment decisions, and will be used solely as permitted by state and federal law. Your voluntary cooperation would be appreciated. Learn more.
Invitation for Job Applicants to Self-Identify as a U.S. Veteran
  • A “disabled veteran” is one of the following:
    • a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or
    • a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.
  • A “recently separated veteran” means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.
  • An “active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran” means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.
  • An “Armed forces service medal veteran” means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.
Veteran status


Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability
Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability Form CC-305
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026
Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Please check one of the boxes below:

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.

You must enter your name and date
Human Check*