Dear friends:

 For years I and a few others at our mid-sized art museum have acted as
informal technicians, setting up computers, administering networks,
instructing, and troubleshooting for our less-inclined fellow staff members.
We also have occasional technical issues around our voicemail and telephone
systems.

 Our institution, though, has now reached such a level of computerization that
for some of us it is getting very difficult to get our nominal jobs done, and
the inevitable crises have cost us a lot of time and money. We are now on the
brink of creating a staff position to manage the computers, networks,
telephones, and so forth, and also to provide training and general staff
assistance. We're wondering how best to fit such a position into our structure
and institutional culture.

 I'd welcome comments from people at institutions that have such staff
positions, specifically about these questions:

 To whom does the technical support person report?

 What level of education/experience did you require when screening candidates?

 What salary range did you define for the position, and have you had reason to
adjust it?

 Have you had any reason for concern about security (financial, development, or
collection database)?

 Have you found that the position tends to be a stepping stone, or have you
been able to attract long-term staffers for it?

 Thanks in advance!

 David A. Penney
 Exhibitions Manager
 The Baltimore Museum of Art
 Baltimore, Maryland, USA
 E-mail from:
 David A. Penney in Baltimore, Maryland
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 26-Oct-1995