Presentation slides for one-day seminar on the work of the Collections Trust, to be held in York on the 13th January

1. Collections Trust Seminar
York, January 2015
Wifi password: holidays
Hashtag: #ctskills

2. Welcome & introductions!

3. I’m Nick Poole
CEO of the Collections Trust
since 2004, involved in the
development of national
standards & funding
programmes for museums.

4. Getting started
• Please do:
• Be an active participant
• Ask questions
• Respect information shared in confidence
• Take the opportunity to network!

5. Resources
• In your delegate pack, you have:
• Copies of these slides
• Information sheets about today’s resources
• Information about further Collections Trust events
• A Feedback & Evaluation Form
• Today’s slides can be downloaded from www.slideshare.net/collectionstrust
• All other resources available from www.collectionstrust.org.uk

6. Objectives for today
• Our objectives are to:
• Introduce you to the work of the Collections Trust
• Explore how collections management supports the needs of audiences
• Introduce the Excellence in Collections Management model
• Highlight our tools, resources and services to support your work
• Please write down 2-3 things that you want to get out of today (we’ll refer
back to these at the end of the day)

7. A brief introduction to the
Collections Trust!

8. The Collections Trust is...
...the professional association
for people who work in
Collections Management

9. Established 1977
• To promote the education of the public by the development of museums
and similar organisations by all appropriate methods;
• To develop, promote, maintain and improve standards of collections and
information management in museums, art galleries, heritage organisations
and other collections institutions;
• To provide services and resources which improve the standards and
methods of collections management and use.

10. Not-for-profit
ACE funding
Self-generatedrevenues
Project funding

11. Our work
• Publish and make available standards, reports and resources
• Run events and training
• Support digital development
• Represent the sector and influence policy makers
• Help you network and share knowledge

12. Our programmes
• We focus on issues that are relevant to Collections Management:
• Documentation
• Digital development
• Systems development (DAMS, CMS, Web, Mobile)
• Governance
• Security
• Insurance
• Pest Management
• Copyright & IPR
• Cultural property
• Participation & engagement

13. Special programmes
• Recently we have developed resources, guidelines, factsheets and interactives
around a series of special programmes:
– Security www.collectionstrust.org.uk/security
– Energy efficiency www.collectionstrust.org.uk/energy-efficiency
– Pests! www.collectionstrust.org.uk/pest-management
– Insurance www.collectionstrust.org.uk/insurance
– Participation www.collectionstrust.org.uk/participation
– Going Digital www.collectionstrust.org.uk/going-digital
– Copyright & licensing www.collectionstrust.org.uk/copyright-and-licensing

14. Going Digital
• New three year ‘back to basics’ programme on IT in museums
• Covering:
– Basic IT audit and planning
– Photography and scanning
– Buying equipment
– Copyright
– Collections Management Systems
– Digital Asset Management Systems
– Sharing collections online

15. Going Digital
• Free tools and resources including:
– IT Audit toolkit
– Digital Strategy interactive
– Beginners Guide to Digitisation
– How-to copyright factsheets
• www.collectionstrust.org.uk/going-digital

16. Copyright and licensing
We provide free resources to help museums with copyright issues and we’re
addressing how recent legal reforms to copyright affect museums.
• Free resources at www.collectionstrust.org.uk/copyright-and-licensing
• A Copyright Seminar with expert Naomi Korn (18 February 2015, London)
www.collectionstrust.org.uk/copyright-seminar
• Copyright: A Practical Guide - updated edition available beginning of 2015
www.collectionstrust.org.uk/shop

17. The Collections Trust website
• Re-launched in July 2014
• Hundreds of practical, free resources
• The latest news from the sector
• Blog posts
• Online shop (forms and registers, publications, eBooks)
• Comprehensive listing of sector events www.collectionstrust.org.uk/upcoming-
events
• Register to receive a fortnightly e-newsletter

19. Practical Guides
• Simple practical guides to key areas of Collections Management:
• Titles:
– Collections Management: A Practical Guide
– Documentation: A Practical Guide
– Copyright: A Practical Guide
– Governance & Collections: A Practical Guide
– Integrated Pest Management: A Practical Guide
• Available from www.collectionstrust.org.uk/shop
(RRP £24.99 and ebook £20.00)

20. Forms and registers
• Leading supplier of museum forms and registers
– Object Entry Forms
– Object Cards
– Exit Forms
– Simple Catalogue Cards
– Object Movement Tickets
– Transfer of Title Forms
– Accession Registers
• Available from www.collectionstrust.org.uk/shop

21. Keep in touch
• We offer several ways of keeping in touch with our work and with each
other
– Collections Management LinkedIn community (8,200 members)
– Fortnightly email newsletter
– www.twitter.com/collectiontrust
– www.facebook.com/collectionstrust
– www.slideshare.net/collectionstrust

22. Update from the Arts Council
England
Sarah Menary, Accreditation
Assessor, Arts Council England

23. INTRODUCTION
Aims and objectives from
today’s seminar

24. What kind of
museum
professional are
you?

25. Objects Experiences
Facts Stories

26. Objects Experiences
Facts Narratives
“Our first duties are to collect,
conserve and display material
culture, to protect the nation’s
treasures and to showcase the
high points of human
creativity”

27. Objects Experiences
Facts Stories
“Our first duty is to create an
open, welcoming environment
in which people can come and
enjoy the experience of
beautiful, inspiring things”

28. Objects Experiences
Facts Stories
“It is not the objects
themselves, but the
connections between them
and the stories they can tell.
Our duty is to weave stories
and objects together to help
people understand the world
around them”

29. Objects Experiences
Facts Narratives
“Our first duty is to provide an
authoritative record of the
development of the natural
and man-made world. We
must collect and preserve
type specimens and objects
based on our authoritative
and scientific knowledge.”

30. Objects Experiences
Facts Stories

31. SESSION ONE
Understanding audiences

32. Aims for this session
• Discuss the relationship between your museum and its audience
• Identify what we know about what people want from collections
• Discuss ways of understanding audience needs and expectations
• Discuss the idea of a ‘visitor centred design’ approach in museums

33. VIDEO: Here come the
millennials...

34. The ‘user journey’...
...describes how people
discover your museum, what
they do while they’re there
and how you maintain the
connection after they leave.

35. Pre-visit
(discovery)
Visit
(engagement)
Post-visit
(relationship)
The key challenge for collections
is to find ways of enhancing and
extending the user journey so
that people are:
• More likely to find your
museum
• More likely to visit
• More likely to develop a
lasting relationship with the
museum afterwards

36. Pre-visit
(discovery)
Visit
(engagement)
Post-visit
(relationship)
‘Snackable’ content – quick, shareable,
interesting, quirky & fun, shared as widely as
possible with as many people as possible

37. Pre-visit
(discovery)
Visit
(engagement)
Post-visit
(relationship)
‘Snackable’ content – quick, shareable,
interesting, quirky & fun, shared as widely as
possible with as many people as possible
Location-specific (iBeacon!) content
that is relevant – enabling people to
explore, discover, socialise and
promote to their networks

38. Pre-visit
(discovery)
Visit
(engagement)
Post-visit
(relationship)
‘Snackable’ content – quick, shareable,
interesting, quirky & fun, shared as widely as
possible with as many people as possible
Location-specific (iBeacon!) content
that is relevant – enabling people to
explore, discover, socialise and
promote to their networks
Deep, relevant, personal and
engaging stories, targeted
events and experiences, fresh
ideas and offers

39. Discussion
• How does your museum capture knowledge about your visitors?
• How can you use this knowledge to inform planning?
• What role can the public play in managing & developing your collection?
• Are most of your visitors ‘lean-back’ (they want to come and enjoy well put-
together, thoughtful displays) or ‘lean-forward’ (they want to be active
participants, get stuck in and be involved in the work of the museum)?

40. SESSION TWO
Learning & change in your
museum

41. We need to keep moving
The financial model for
museums is changing, our role
is changing & peoples
expectations of your museum
(online and off) are changing

42. Three models of change
• Internal bottom-up change – a growing dissatisfaction with the operation
and/or culture of your museum eventually tips over into a will to change
things and the energy to see changes through
• Internal top-down change – a new manager or Board of Trustees set a new
direction and drive change through restructuring and re-defining your mission
• External – an external trigger, such as a loss of funding, change of focus,
merger or other external factor forces the organisation to change
• Museums are not inherently conservative, but most museums are structured
around the idea of managed and purposeful change.

43. Mission
• Mission matters more than people think!
• Two commons types of museum Mission Statement
– “We are going to change the world,” or
– “We will collect and preserve the history and heritage of [insert name
of town] and interpret it for the benefit of the public to support
education”
• It doesn’t really matter what the words are. It matters whether you
believe them, whether they inspire you and whether you are proud to say
it out loud

44. Brand
• Your museum’s ‘brand’ is the expression of who you are, what you care
about, how your museum feels about itself and the relationship you want
to have with your audience
• The brand of your museum is what people identify with, volunteer to be
part of, have in their mind when planning a visit
• Every member of staff should be a champion for the brand – if its
controlled through the marketing team, you’ll never achieve reach and
scale
• What is your museum’s brand proposition?

45. A ‘responsive’ museum...
...is designed around the
needs, expectations,
behaviours and abilities of
your visitors

46. The ‘traditional’ museum...
Museums sometimes operate in silos
Education Management Collections Retail IT

47. The ‘responsive’ museum...
Visitor
experience
Collections
Learning
Retail
Online
Visitor
Services
Facilities
Social
Mobile

48. Culture change
Performance
culture
Create a
climate for
change
Engage
staff
Train &
reward
Keep
track
Create a
‘team’
mentality
Lead by
example

49. Metrics
• How do you measure the value and impact of what you do?
• What kind of ‘value culture’ do you have?
– None
– Count what we can count
– Visitor numbers
– Measure visitor impact
– Measure performance
– Numbers for advocacy
– Planning with data
• Do you use your numbers for internal (planning) use or external advocacy?

50. Discussion
• What are the main changes impacting on your museum?
• What are the drivers for making changes (eg. survival, doing things better)?
• Is the need for change understood across the whole museum?
• What are the barriers that prevent things from moving forward?

51. SESSION THREE
Introducing Excellence in
Collections Management

52. Aims for this session
• Understand the legal & professional context for collections management
• Introduce the Excellence in Collections model

53. Collections Management
• “Collections Management” is defined as:
“The strategies, policies, processes and
procedures relating to a collection’s
development, information, access and care.”
Collections Trust/BSI Code of Practice for
Collections Management (BSI PAS 197:2009)

54. Key elements
• Collections Management is:
• Integrated across all aspects of running a museum (front of house and
behind the scenes)
• About the management of physical, digital and intellectual material
• Never ‘finished’ – an ongoing process not a finite project
• Intended to promote audience engagement and participation
• Designed to achieve public trust and accountability through professional,
transparent practice

55. ‘Strategic Collections Management’
Users Funders Politicians

56. ‘Strategic Collections Management’
Users Funders Politicians
Organisational Mission

57. ‘Strategic Collections Management’
Users Funders Politicians
Organisational Mission
Collecting Policy

58. ‘Strategic Collections Management’
Users Funders Politicians
Organisational Mission
Collecting Policy
UseDevelopLearnCare

59. ‘Strategic Collections Management’
Users Funders Politicians
Organisational Mission
Collecting Policy
UseDevelopLearnCare
InformationProceduresSystemsPeople

60. ‘Strategic Collections Management’
Users Funders Politicians
Organisational Mission
Collecting Policy
UseDevelopLearnCare
InformationProceduresSystemsPeople
Evaluation & improvement

61. ‘Strategic Collections Management’
Users Funders Politicians
Organisational Mission
Collecting Policy
UseDevelopLearnCare
InformationProceduresSystemsPeople
Evaluation & improvement
Rich online and offline experiences for users

62. Key elements
• A Collections Management Framework is:
“A set of components that provide the
foundations and organizational arrangements
for designing, implementing, monitoring,
reviewing and improving collections
management processes throughout the
organization to support the achievement of its
mission.”

63. Key elements
• Collections Management involves a set of technical practices:
• Management
• Communications
• Documentation
• Digitisation
• Copyright
• Risk Management
• Integrated Pest Management
• Security & access control
• Environmental Management (light, UV, temperature, RH)
• Preventive conservation
• Transport & packaging etc.

64. LAW
STATUTE
ETHICAL CODES
PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS
GOVERNANCE
CORPORATE CULTURE
POLICIES & PROCEDURES
DAILY TASKS

65. LAW
STATUTE
ETHICAL CODES
PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS
GOVERNANCE
CORPORATE CULTURE
POLICIES & PROCEDURES
DAILY TASKS
MUSEUM
PROFESSIONAL
LEGAL

66. Museum development
MISSION
FORWARD PLAN
POLICIES
PLANNING
PROCEDURESSYSTEMS
COMPETENCIES
PERFORMANCE
MANAGEMENT
CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT

67. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
Detailed Model

68. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
PLAN
DO
REVIEW

69. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO

70. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO

71. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO

72. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO

73. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

74. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

75. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

76. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

77. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

78. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

79. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

80. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

81. CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT
DO
SKILLS & CPD

82. Key points
• Good collections management is the foundation of great museum
experiences
• Having a well-managed foundation promotes flexibility rather than
constraining it
• Any kind of development – audience participation, income generation, brand
development, outreach or digital – depends on having the basics of good
collections practice in place
• Collections management drives both accountability and creativity

83. SESSION FOUR
Collections Management
Standards

84. Aims for this session
• Introduce professional standards for Collections Management
• Introduce the Collections Management Standards Toolkit

85. LAW
STATUTE
ETHICAL CODES
PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS
GOVERNANCE
CORPORATE CULTURE
POLICIES & PROCEDURES
DAILY TASKS
MUSEUM
PROFESSIONAL
LEGAL

86. LAW
STATUTE
ETHICAL CODES
PROFESSIONAL
STANDARDS
GOVERNANCE
CORPORATE CULTURE
POLICIES & PROCEDURES
DAILY TASKS
MUSEUM
PROFESSIONAL
LEGAL

87. Legal frameworks
• Museums & Libraries Act
• Equalities Act
• Charities Act
• Cultural Property Law
• Copyright Law
• Civil rights & protections

88. Codes of Ethics
• MA Code of Ethics for Museums
• ICOM Code of Ethics
• Ethical principles associated with Charitable Status

89. Professional Standards
• Museums Accreditation Scheme
• SPECTRUM Standard
• BSI Publicly Available Specification 197 Code of Practice for Collections
Management
• BSI Publicly Available Specification 198 Environmental Management
• GIS Guidelines

90. Standards Toolkit
• Produced by Collections Trust with support from Arts Council England
• http://www.collectionstrust.org.uk/standards-toolkit/introduction
• Structured around four sections:
– Collections Development standards
– Collections Information standards
– Collections Access standards
– Collections Care & Conservation standards

92. Introducing SPECTRUM!
International industry
standard for Collections
Management

93. SPECTRUM Facts & Figures
• 25,000 licensed users
• 40 countries
• 8 languages
• 17 SPECTRUM Partner systems
• Adoption as a national quality standard in 4 countries
• Interest from 5 new territories

94. STANDARD
WORLDWIDE COMMUNITY (25,000)
COMPLIANCE
(17)
GUIDANCE
PDF/XML/PRINT
+ SCHEMA
NEW IDEAS

97. http://www.collectionstrust.org.uk/spectrum

98. Uses of SPECTRUM
• Not a mandatory standard
• A ‘recipe book’ for developing or reviewing practices in your museum
• Useful for the development of your Procedural Manual
• Promotes accountability & good practice
• Primary procedures are a requirement of Accreditation

99. SESSION FIVE
Collections Management
Competency Framework

100. Aims for this session
• Introduce the Collections Management Competency Framework
• Discuss skills development and CPD for your work

101. Collections Management
Competency Framework
Defining the skills and
competencies of the
professional & volunteer
collections management
workforce

102. Competency Framework

104. Why a Competency Framework?
• Informing the teaching and training of core collections management skills
and competencies
• Promoting investment in CPD
• Raising awareness of the value and impact of CM skills on the wider
delivery of museum services
• Advocating for investment in CM competencies
• Providing a structure to engage with other industry partners eg. CC Skills,
MA, CILIP

105. Professional development
• Ensuring that museums have access to the Collections Management skills
& competencies they need:
– Teaching on University Museum Studies courses
– Providing a Competency Framework for employers
– Delivering a Collections Management Traineeships programme
– Promoting practical apprenticeships
– Free Collections Trust Seminars across England

106. Traineeships programme
• Runs between October 2014 & September 2015
• Cohort of 20 trainees
• Combination of practical workplace-based training, CPD, mentoring and
peer support
• Aimed at enabling new entrants to the profession to build their collections
management skills and confidence
• www.collectionstrust.org.uk/traineeships

107. Key questions
• How do you develop your skills in Collections Management?
• Where do you get formal training and advice?
• Does your museum develop Collections-related skills across different
areas/departments?
• What structure is in place for CPD or ongoing development?

108. SESSION SIX
Martin Fell, York Museums
Trust

109. SESSION SEVEN
Collections Management and
Museum Accreditation

110. Aims for this session
• Introduce the role of Collections & Collections Management in Museum
Accreditation
• Understand the relationship between SPECTRUM & Accreditation
• Identify sources of support & guidance

112. Guiding principle
Collections are central to the function of a
museum.
The management of the collections within an
Accredited museum is consistent with the
statement of purpose, policies and strategic vision
for the organisation.
To do this effectively, and to allow for regular
review and improvement, a coherent set of policy
statements, plans and procedures should be put in
place – a collections management framework.
This will address collections development,
information, access, care and conservation.

113. Accreditation Requirements
• 2.1 Satisfactory arrangements for ownership of collections
• 2.2 Collections Development
• 2.3 Documentation policy
• 2.4 Care & conservation policy
• 2.5 Documentation plan
• 2.6 Care & conservation plan
• 2.7 Documentation procedures
• 2.7 Expert assessment of security arrangements

114. ‘Primary’ procedures
Requirement 2.7: “The primary SPECTRUM procedures must be in place in the
form of a documentation procedural manual that is available for inspection on
request.”
• Object entry
• Acquisition
• Location and movement control
• Marking and/or labelling
• Cataloguing
• Object exit
• Loans in
• Loans out

115. Accreditation support
We can
• Publish standards and guidelines
• Share case studies
• Work with partner museums in the regions
• Share questions & answers with our networks
• Provide statements of support
We can’t
• Answer questions directly over the phone or by email

116. Online support
www.collectionstrust.org.uk/collections

117. SESSION EIGHT
Developing a ‘Digital Strategy’

118. Aims for this session
• Explore the role of ‘digital’ in engaging audiences with collections
• Identify key trends in ‘going digital’
• Introduce guidance and resources for museums wanting to make better use
of technology

119. Digital Design Principles
• Start with needs*
• Do less
• Design with data
• Do the hard work to make it simple
• Iterate. Then iterate again
• Build for inclusion
• Understand context
• Build digital services, not websites
• Be consistent, not uniform
• Make things open – it makes things better
• www.gov.uk/design-principles
(* Other people’s needs, that is...)

120. Tate Digital Strategy
• Implicitly linked to the Strategic Plan
• ‘Digital as a Dimension of Everything’
• Aligning the development of:
• Content
• IT infrastructure
• Social media
• Publishing & distribution
• Retail & income generation

121. HRP Strategic Planning
• No separate ‘Digital Strategy’
• 4 principles:
• Guardianship
• Discovery
• Showmanship
• Independence
• Digital underpins and supports the achievement of these principles, rather
than acting as a standalone priority

122. HRP Strategic Planning
VISITOR JOURNEY
7 ‘personas’
ANALYTICS & CUSTOMER DATA ASSET MANAGEMENT
IT INFRASTRUCTURE
CHANGE PROGRAMME

123. Digital Benchmarks
• A simple diagnostic tool
• Mapping progress
• Celebrating success
• Planning development
• An integrated approach

125. Digital Benchmark “Range Statements”
Strategy
Level Description
0  The organisation has no strategic plan or statement of mission or purpose *
1  The organisation has a strategic plan or mission which does not reference engagement
through technology
2  The organisation has a strategic plan, which includes projects and programmes, some of
which make use of technology.
 Digital is not fully integrated into the strategy, which is not regularly reviewed.
3  The organisation has a strategic plan, which includes projects and programmes, some of
which make use of technology.
 Digital is integrated into the strategy, which is regularly reviewed.
4  The organisation has a strategic plan/mission in place which references the use of digital
technologies to support core delivery, or it has a separate (but connected) digital strategy
in place.
 There is at least one digital champion within the senior management of the organisation.
 The strategic plan is regularly reviewed and updated.
5  The organisation has a strategic plan/mission in place which integrates the use of digital
technologies to support core delivery.
 The digital elements of the plan are owned and championed at a senior (Board &
management) level and supported by appropriate budgets.
 Digital technologies are embedded across all teams/departments of the organisation.
 Digital delivery and engagement through technology are embedded within the
organisation’s performance framework.
 The strategic plan is regularly reviewed and updated.

126. Mid-sized regional museum
0
1
2
3
4
5
STRATEGY
PEOPLE
SYSTEMS
DIGITISATION
CONTENT DELIVERY
ANALYTICS
ENGAGEMENT
REVENUE

127. Smaller museum
0
1
2
3
4
5
STRATEGY
PEOPLE
SYSTEMS
DIGITISATION
CONTENT DELIVERY
ANALYTICS
ENGAGEMENT
REVENUE

128. Showing progress
0
1
2
3
4
5
STRATEGY
PEOPLE
SYSTEMS
DIGITISATION
CONTENT DELIVERY
ANALYTICS
ENGAGEMENT
REVENUE
2012
2011

129. Content-based marketing
• From ‘sales’ to ‘add value’
• People are drawn to platforms and content which add value
for them in their daily lives
• 3 connected strategies:
– ‘Snackable’ content
– Content-as-a-service (to support visits, education & engagement)
– ‘Vertical’ or niche content

130. Collections online
• Having things online does not automatically lead to access
• It is a significant investment of time and effort
• The 90/8/2 rule:
– 90% of your content acts as marketing for the museum
– 8% might make money if you invested heavily in it
– 2% of most collections will be a solid, bankable revenue stream

131. What people want from online collections…
CONTENT
METADATA
A BIT A LOT

132. CONTENT
METADATA
A BIT A LOT
FUN
What people want from online collections…

133. CONTENT
METADATA
A BIT A LOT
FUN
RESEARCH
What people want from online collections…

134. CONTENT
METADATA
A BIT A LOT
FUN
RESEARCH
LEARNING
OUTREACH
What people want from online collections…

135. 135
CONTENT
METADATA
A BIT A LOT
FUN
RESEARCH
LEARNING
DATA MINING
COLLECTIONS
MANAGEMENT
AGGREGATION
OUTREACH
What people want from online collections…

136. 136
CONTENT
METADATA
A BIT A LOT
FUN
RESEARCH
LEARNING
DATA MINING
COLLECTIONS
MANAGEMENT
AGGREGATION
OUTREACH
Digitize relatively few things & spend your
money on quality and context
What people want from online collections…

137. CONTENT
METADATA
A BIT A LOT
FUN
RESEARCH
LEARNING
DATA MINING
COLLECTIONS
MANAGEMENT
AGGREGATION
OUTREACH
Digitize relatively few things & spend your
money on quality and context
Digitize lots of things, use standards and
don’t worry too much about promotion
What people want from online collections…

138. Defining terms: reuse
• Describes a wide spectrum of activities and applications of digital cultural
content undertaken by 3rd parties

139. Degrees of ‘open’
• Attitudes and approaches to ‘open’ reuse of museum content exist along a
sliding scale:
‘Radically’
open
Fully
commercial

140. Degrees of ‘open’
• Attitudes and approaches to ‘open’ reuse of museum content exist along a
sliding scale:
‘Radically’
open
Fully
commercial
Toe in the
water

141. Degrees of ‘open’
• Attitudes and approaches to ‘open’ reuse of museum content exist along a
sliding scale:
‘Radically’
open
Fully
commercial
Toe in the
water
Mission
driven

142. Degrees of ‘open’
• Attitudes and approaches to ‘open’ reuse of museum content exist along a
sliding scale:
‘Radically’
open
Fully
commercial
Toe in the
water
Mission
driven
Steady
state

143. Degrees of ‘open’
• Attitudes and approaches to ‘open’ reuse of museum content exist along a
sliding scale:
‘Radically’
open
Fully
commercial
Thinking
about it
Toe in the
water
Mission
driven
Steady
state

144. Perceived benefits of open
• Perceived benefits for the museum include:
– Improved public awareness of content (PR, reputation & brand equity)
– Improved discoverability of content (re-use & promotional value)
– Improved opportunities for audience participation (audience development)
– Secondary improvements in quality of content (internal use value)
• The jury’s still out – compelling evidence of significantly higher traffic through
eg. Wikipedia, but we tend to lack the metrics to assess impact of referrals on
core business

145. Perceived benefits of open
• Perceived broader/societal benefits include:
– Stimulating innovation & creativity (economic value)
– Increased educational use (delivering on mission)
– Increased use for research/scholarship (utility & economic value)
– Inter-cultural dialogue and understanding (utility value)
• Quantification of these wider benefits tends to attribute to intermediary/3rd-
party platforms, hence not always acknowledged in calculus of ROI

146. Practical steps to ‘going open’
1. Define your terms/read around the subject
2. Identify a suitable collection or sub-collection
3. Choose an appropriate license for your aims
4. Prepare your data for sharing
5. Write a blog
6. Add your data to an online repository
7. Track and evaluate impact
8. Share good news with colleagues/management
www.p2pu.org/he/groups/open-glam

147. The investment gap
• There is a critical lack of investment in content generation, staff capacity,
infrastructure, enrichment, delivery platforms, marketing and promotion and
organisational development to support income generation
• An increasing number of museums are adopting an ‘open by default’ strategy
because they lack the capacity effectively to monetise the digital content
• Lack of cost-recovery results in declining reinvestment in further activity
• A lack of clear and coherent policy results in a culture of case-by-case decision-
making, inconsistency and a lack of clarity about the business case for
reinvestment

148. The future of Documentation?

149. Learning to COPE
Developing practical steps to
ensure that your collections
and systems are fit-for-
purpose to support your
museum

150. ‘Create Once, Publish Everywhere’
• If collections and collections-based information are to play their part in
enhancing and extending the visitor experience, they need to be discoverable
and usable outside the museum and its website
• ‘COPE’ is the Collections Trust’s strategy for developing collections
information and collections-related content that supports:
• Collections care
• Collections discovery & re-use
• Learning and intepretation
• Visitor engagement

151. COPE in practice, from this...
COLLECTIONS
DOCUMENTATION
DIGITAL ASSET
MANAGEMENT
INFORMATION /
RECORDS
SYSTEMS OF RECORD
SYSTEMS OF
ENGAGEMENT
USER CHANNELS &
PLATFORMSBYOD
Museum
website
Gallery
interactives
Social
media
Aggregators

152. To this...
Collections
Content &
systems
Mobile
Social
Website
OnsiteBYOD
Wearable
Something
new!

153. Additional resources
• Collections Trust Digital Benchmarks Tool
http://www.collectionstrust.org.uk/digital/digital-benchmarks-for-the-culture-sector
• Going Digital resources, toolkits, simple guides and glossary:
http://www.collectionstrust.org.uk/going-digital
• Guidance on developing digital strategies
http://www.collectionstrust.org.uk/digital-strategy
• Free Simple Guide to Digitisation
http://www.collectionstrust.org.uk/digitisation

154. Wrap up & conclusions

155. Wrap up & conclusions
• Great collections management is at the heart of every successful museum
• You can help your museum be more resilient and adapt to the current and
future needs and expectations of visitors
• Collections management can help make your museum more sustainable,
both by finding opportunities to reduce costs and opening up primary
income and secondary revenue through audience engagement
• We need to provide evidence of the value and impact of collections
management to secure reinvestment

156. Keep in touch
• We offer several ways of keeping in touch with our work and with each
other
– Collections Management LinkedIn community (8,200 members)
– Fortnightly email newsletter
– www.twitter.com/collectiontrust
– www.facebook.com/collectionstrust
– www.slideshare.net/collectionstrust

157. Thank you for your time and
participation!