Authorities and Entity Mgmt Metadata Specialist

Getty is committed to creating a welcoming workplace that reflects the various backgrounds of the communities we serve. We value differences in the pursuit of inquiry and knowledge, mutual understanding, respect, trust, transparency, and cooperation. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship or immigration status, color, disability, ethnicity, familial status, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other protected status.

Job Summary

Getty Research Institute (GRI) invites applications for an Authorities & Entity Management Metadata Specialist (Metadata Specialist III) to join our newly established Digital Stewardship and Metadata Optimization team. Based at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, the GRI is committed to advancing knowledge and understanding of the visual arts and their histories. Serving an international community of scholars, the Research Library is one of the world’s largest art and architecture libraries, with holdings exceeding 1.5 million volumes. Our Special Collections encompass rare books and journals, photographs, prints and drawings from the 15th century to the present, architectural plans and models, art multiples, film, audio and video recordings, born-digital content, and extensive archives and manuscript collections.

As part of a key institutional priority, the GRI is advancing a transformative, program-wide approach to metadata strategy. This initiative includes the development and hiring of multiple metadata-focused positions designed to work collaboratively across domains to transform metadata governance, improve data quality, and prepare for a linked data future at GRI. The Authorities & Entity Management Metadata Specialist will work in close partnership with the open Authority Control and Bibliographic Maintenance Librarian role to ensure alignment between strategic planning and operational workflows for both published and archival materials. Together, these roles will:

• Coordinate cross-domain projects that unify bibliographic and archival metadata practices
• Develop shared governance frameworks for metadata quality, identity management, and interoperability.
• Collaborate on enrichment strategies that leverage external authorities.
• Identify opportunities for linked data integration across systems and collections.

This collaborative model ensures that strategy and execution are tightly connected, fostering innovation and consistency across GRI’s collections.

Reporting to the Head of Metadata Strategy, the Authorities & Entity Management Metadata Specialist will play a pivotal role in shaping and implementing initiatives that bridge departments and foster a holistic view of data across the GRI’s collections. Key responsibilities include providing strategic vision and execution for metadata enrichment, identity management, and data cleanup projects that span archival and bibliographic data. Additional focus areas include enhancing bibliographic linked data, improving data quality in Alma to better align with BIBFRAME, and applying linked data principles to strengthen interoperability, and reuse. The incumbent will work closely with catalogers, archivists, and product managers to apply a data governance approach to metadata quality.

Major Job Responsibilities

• Govern and operationalize external authorities and entity data reconciliation and contributions to ULAN and Wikidata across GRI collections
• Leads metadata governance groups focusing on data quality and data sharing with cross-department dependencies and impacts.
• Design, oversee, and participate in bibliographic and archival data cleanup and enrichment projects in coordination with catalogers, archivists, and product managers
• Analyze opportunities and challenges; recommend metadata requirements for effective linked data implementation
• Participates in committees, task forces, and other collaborative projects
• Maintain and disseminate knowledge of current and emerging issues concerning linked data and BIBFRAME
• Conduct assessments of GRI datasets to articulate opportunities for research data transformation and use in partnership with GRI research and knowledge creation departments
• Maintain a shared knowledge base for projects and documentation around cross-department metadata practices
• Identify opportunities for cross-collection and cross repository linking
• Provide guidance and mentorship to staff on updated workflows, tools, and emergent metadata practices
• May supervise or direct the work of others

Qualifications

• MLIS from an ALA-accredited program; undergraduate and additional graduate degree in an appropriate discipline is preferred
• Minimum of 5 years related professional experience
• Experience working in the visual arts, library, and/or archives domains highly desirable

Please note: This position is not eligible for employer-based immigration sponsorship. Applicants must have authorization to work for Getty in the United States without the need for sponsorship, currently or in the future.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Strong knowledge of current archival and bibliographic metadata standards and authorities including: MARC, RDA, EAD, AAT, ULAN, and Library of Congress authorities and classification
• Knowledge of linked data principles and domain-specific ontologies: BIBFRAME, Records in Contexts-Ontology (RiC-O), Linked Art
• Technical expertise in OpenRefine and other computational methods and tools for data retrieval, analysis, reconciliation, and transformation
• Familiarity with or willingness to learn Python and other relevant scripting languages
• Demonstrated ability to build expertise in emerging approaches as well as established practice standards
• Familiarity with database structures and data management
• Experience in project management and/or supervisory roles
• Excellent communication, analytical, and problem solving skills
• Ability to conceptualize metadata work within broader institutional and strategic goals
• Proven ability to work collaboratively in team-based environments with colleagues across domains
• Adaptability and effectiveness in dynamic and evolving work environments
• Interest in pedagogy, training, and knowledge sharing
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to meet deadlines, apply policies and procedures consistently, conduct research, and present recommendations
• Familiarity with AI-assisted approaches for metadata creation and management in library and archival contexts preferred

Benefits and Perks

Here are just some examples that Getty offers/provides for full-time employees:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance coverage, starting on date of hire. Getty pays 75%-95% of the premium, depending on the plan selected.
• 403(b) Employee Investment retirement plan – with up to 5% Getty Match
• Getty contribution of 6%, on behalf of employee, to 401(a) retirement account
• Educational Assistance and professional development
• Paid Vacation, Sick, and Personal Days
• 12 Paid Holidays
• Many positions have bi-weekly Off-Fridays
• On-Site Fitness Center at Getty Center
• Community service opportunities

To learn more about our comprehensive benefits and long list of perks, go to Getty HR.