Managing Change in Museums and Galleries: A Practical Guide

Managing Change in Museums and Galleries is the first practical book to provide guidance on how to deal with organisational change in museums, galleries or heritage organisations.

Written by two authors who have direct experience of leading change, running change programmes and advising on change in more than 250 museums and galleries, the book identifies the various problems, issues and challenges that any professional in a museum or heritage organisation is likely to encounter and provides advice on how to deal with them. The book’s six parts treat change holistically, and help the reader understand what change entails, prepare for it and lead it, ensure that everyone in the museum is involved, understand what can go wrong and evaluate and learn from it. Each chapter is devoted to a specific challenge that is often encountered during change and is extensively cross-referenced to other relevant chapters. Including a list of helpful resources and suggestions of useful publications for further reading, this book is a unique guide to change in museums.

Managing Change in Museums and Galleries is an essential resource for all museum practitioners - whether they be the people in museums and galleries who are leading change, or those affected by change as a leader, a member of staff or a volunteer.

Piotr Bienkowski has over 35 years of experience in the museum, arts, heritage, and culture sector. As director of the ’Our Museum’ programme, he oversaw one of the most extensive programmes of organisational change in the sector in recent times, working with nine museums across the UK to embed community engagement in their organisation. He has also been Deputy and Acting Director of Manchester Museum, and Professor of Archaeology and Museology at the University of Manchester, and he now advises a wide range of museums, galleries, and heritage organisations as a consultant.

Hilary McGowan has over 40 years of experience in the museum, arts, heritage, and culture sector. As Bristol City Council’s Museums & Heritage Director and Exeter City Council’s Museums & Arts Director, she helped lead several of the councils’ museums through significant change. She has also been Deputy Director of York Castle Museum and Chair of the Professional Development Committee at the Museum Association, and she now advises a wide range of museums, galleries, and heritage organisations as a consultant.