Any
major planning effort, like a strategic plan, master plan, or a
facility plan can feel daunting. Maybe it’s the first major plan for the
museum since opening; perhaps board and staff have changed
significantly since the last major planning effort. Or this could be a
young museum’s very first plan. Whatever the conditions, a critical
first step for any major planning effort is preparation. Preparation for
planning is a bit like the planning process itself: engaging people in
considering what must be accomplished, how best to do it, with whom, and
with what resources. Four steps will prepare a museum for a solid
planning effort.
§ Get people on board and build ownership.
Since the planning process will involve others, start talking with
them: staff, board, partners, and funders. Gathering ideas and drawing
on other perspectives will build ownership from the start. Conversations
can be informal or more formal as “job number one” of a planning task
force. Ask others what they hope the plan will accomplish, issues they
see facing the museum, planning challenges, who should be involved, and
the kind of planning expertise needed. Talk with key supporters early
on. It’s an opportunity to show you’re proactive on behalf of the
organization’s future. You can also explore possible support for the
planning process itself or for some aspect of implementation. Lay the
groundwork for sharing the plan when completed.
§ Learn from experience–yours and others'.
How you approach the next round of planning is influenced by previous
planning. Do a quick assessment of past planning efforts, of what worked
and didn’t work so well. Did you get the plan you wanted? Did staff and
board feel they were included and informed? Did the plan seem too
generic? Too much of a stretch? Did people feel the plan sat on a shelf?
How could implementation have been better?
You
can learn as much from other museums’ planning efforts as from your
own. Ask about the planning work museums comparable to yours have done
recently. Identify museums of comparable size and type in other parts of
the country as well as similar local organizations that have done
recent planning. Consider asking about how long a planning process took,
who participated, whether it was facilitated internally or externally,
what information they gathered, how much it cost, what they wish they’d
done differently, and how pleased they were with the plan. Ask for a
copy of the plan or a table of contents to see what the plan covered.
All of this will help in determining the plan’s scope and can help in
deciding whether to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for planners and
what the RFP might include.
§ Shape the scope.
Figuring out the nature and the scope of the plan starts with placing
your planning needs in a larger organizational and community context.
Has it been five years since your last strategic plan? Is another museum
expanding their services to reach your audience? Are funders asking
tougher questions about the museum’s impact? Is it time to rethink your
exhibits? Every plan is not necessarily a standard strategic plan,
master plan, or exhibit plan. Typically a plan must be focused to
reflect a particular time frame (i.e. five-to-six years or annual); an
organizational focus (capacity building, learning impact, community
engagement, etc.); or a focused area of change on an existing strategic
platform (relocation, sustainability, etc.).
Considering
potential stakeholder involvement helps determine the scope. Is
significant community input important? Should you be reaching across
sectors of the community? Is internal alignment on core activities
critical? Factors such as external deadlines and a compressed timeline
can affect a plan’s scope as can cost. Since a plan can cost anywhere
from $10,000 to $100,000, get a realistic idea of what the type of plan
you want is likely to cost.
§ Match the resources to the plan.
Reviewing all the gathered information will give a clearer idea of the
resources your plan requires. Resources generally include time,
expertise, and funding which are inextricably intertwined. Based on what
you hope the plan will accomplish, think about the skills and expertise
required: planning expertise, facilitation skills, and museum
knowledge.
Local
non-profit strategic planners know strategic planning. They know your
community and bring an objective perspective. Less often do they know
museums, their current issues, and standards. A board member who is a
strategic planner will know the museum, but may lack objectivity.
While
museum expertise can be valuable in strategic planning or financial
planning, it is necessary in developing education plans and exhibit
plans. Specific expertise may, or may not, be available locally so
getting to know the local, regional and national landscape will help in
deciding potential planners and likely travel costs. Sometimes a plan’s
authority is linked with a particular type of expert; sometimes its
credibility comes from expert local knowledge. In every case, skilled
facilitation is critical to engaging participants and moving the
planning process forward and can be provided by someone from inside or
outside the organization with the right skills and enough time.
A
combination of internal and external players can be a good choice. In
the end, the right team always brings together expertise and local
knowledge; is compatible and interested in producing the best plan; and
fits a museum’s price range and schedule.
--> Related Museum Notes • Ready? Set? Plan
• A Pocketful of Planning Notes
• Public Value: From Good Intentions to Public Good
This is an excellent nuts-and-bolts approach to exactly how to start the planning process. Great job, Jeanne.
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