Description

This basic strategic and holistic assessment helps a museum look at its operations primarily from the perspective of how well activities, resources, and mission align with each other, and with professional ethics, practices, and standards.

To help a museum have a solid foundation to build on for long-term health and impact, this assessment places significant emphasis on thinking, acting, and planning strategically; organizational alignment, capacity; leadership and organizational structure; risk management; and organizational culture. This assessment assists museums define key areas of operations or functions that need to be strengthened.

Purpose

This assessment may improve ability to:

• Develop a mission statement or refine the existing mission statement
• Develop an institutional plan
• Prioritize goals and use of resources
• Understand roles and responsibilities of governing authority and staff
• Assess facilities management needs
• Manage risk
• Manage renovation, expansion or the construction of a new facility
• Improve financial sustainability
• Care for collections
• Engage the community
• Strengthen interpretation and exhibits
• Prepare for core document verification, accreditation or reaccreditation

Scope

This assessment will examine:

• Mission
• Strategic planning
• Organizational life cycle
• Financial resource allocation, development
• Legal compliance, public disclosure, accountability
• Ethics, transparency and openness
• Governance (structure, composition, function, role)
• Staff (roles, capacity)
• Security, Safety, and Emergency Planning
• Operational ecosystem (community make-up and needs)
• Facilities
• DEAI issues: board/staff diversity, compensation equity

Like all MAP assessments, this one:

• Is grounded in the Core Standards
• Includes Diversity, Equity, Access, and Inclusion (DEAI) issues as they relate to the assessment focus
• Helps museums look at both functional and strategic aspects of their operations
• Uses an online platform to move through modules with narrated presentations, resources, and required activities throughout the entire year
• Requires an internal MAP team to lead the museum and be responsible for the bulk of the online work, required activities, site visit organization and action plans

An important component of each assessment is the MAP Workbook, which contains data gathering questions, team discussion questions, team activities, articles and more.  The museum’s MAP Team works on the workbook throughout the year. Review the Sample Organizational MAP Workbook Outline to learn more.

Before Applying

• Review the main MAP Eligibility Requirements.
• Ensure that your institution and key stakeholders are committed to a year-long process of assessment and taking action.