Collections Management Performance Indicators

Transcription

1 Collections Management Performance Indicators Nick Poole, CEO, The Collections Trust First issued January Updated February 2015 About this document: This document sets out a framework which a cultural heritage organisation can use to review or develop a culture of performance management alongside their Collections Management Policies. 1. Introduction 1.1 The joint Collections Trust / British Standards Institute Publicly Available Specification 197: Code of Practice for Collections Management 1 defines collections management as the strategies, policies, processes and procedures relating to a collection s development, information, access and care. 1.2 The BSI PAS 197:2009 recommends that cultural organisations develop a Collections Management Framework which provides the foundations and organisational arrangements for designing, implementing, monitoring, reviewing and improving collections management processes throughout the organisation. 1.3 This concept of ongoing improvement lies at the heart of the Code of Practice and of the vision of strategic collections management at the core of delivering exciting, innovative and sustainable experiences for users. 1.4 The purpose of this set of proposed Performance Indicators for Collections Management is to provide cultural organisations with a tool which you can use when developing and reviewing your own performance frameworks. It is designed to complement and extend the recommendations of the BSI PAS 197: Elements of the framework presented in this paper are drawn from the EU-funded SYNTHESIS project, which defines performance indicators for the management of Natural History collections. We have only included those elements from SYNTHESIS that have been agreed to be generally applicable to the broad spectrum of collections types. 1.6 These performance indicators have also been developed with reference to the Guidance on Performance Indicators for Museums and Galleries provided to its sponsored bodies by the Department for Culture Media and Sport Although not formally focussed on performance management, the process of reporting against the requirements of the Museums Accreditation Scheme is likely to provide a significant body of evidence which can inform performance indicators for collections management. 1 BSI PAS 197:

2 2. Why manage performance? 2.1 The Code of Practice for Collections Management promotes an ongoing culture of review, evaluation, strategic development and improvement to ensure that your collections practice continues to meet the strategic needs of your organisation, its collections and its users. 2.2 A culture of performance management will help your museum in a number of key areas: Demonstrating your commitment to delivering public benefit Improving the cost-effectiveness of your operations Extending the impact of your collections-based activities Enhancing your credibility with funders, partners and supporters Enabling you to be more confident, flexible and open to innovation Providing clarity around roles and responsibilities Supporting strategic decision-making around expenditure and investment Building on training and professional development Recognising and building on change and improvement. 2.3 A key aspect of performance management in museums and other cultural organisations is that performance cannot be measured simply in terms of profit. Performance in this context is a function of accountability, efficiency and effectiveness in delivering the public and cultural mission of the organisation. 2.4 The process of determining which areas of collections management should be monitored, and setting standards, encourages discussion of what collections management should be and how it can best serve the goals of your organisation. 2.5 The process of developing targets and the ability to measure performance should clarify the mission and sense of purpose of collections managers, provide evidence of their commitment to excellence in collections management and improve their management systems. 3. What are performance indicators? 3.1 Broadly, a performance indicator is a measurable fact or body of information about a particular activity in your organisation which can be used to identify, demonstrate and manage the quality of that activity over time. 3.2 There is no single definition of what constitutes a performance indicator, and there are many different types including: indicators (such as number of objects catalogued to a particular level) Practical indicators that interface with existing company processes Directional indicators specifying whether an organisation is getting better or not Actionable indicators (things your organisation can control to affect or drive change) Financial indicators (such as cost). 3.3 It is up to each individual organisation to establish its own performance culture, and within this to develop indicators that are specific to its operations, resources, mission and capabilities. 2

3 3.4 All good performance indicators share some features in common 3 : Consistency and comparability: Definitions should be consistent over time and between organisations to enable comparison of like with like Clarity: Indicators are simple, well-defined and easily understood Controllability: Only aspects of performance over which there is control should be measured Limited: The organisation should always concentrate on a limited number of performance indicators that give the most valuable collections management information Feasibility: Can the performance indicators be measured easily? 3.5 Whatever the performance management regime in your organisation, you should ensure that your indicators also have these characteristics. 4. Using this document 4.1 This document is not intended as a body of performance indicators which you can apply wholesale to your organisation. Any performance measures you take that are not implemented in the context of a culture of performance management are unlikely to work, and may result in measuring the wrong things and creating a false impression of your organisation (positive or negative). 4.2 In coming to this document, we anticipate that you will already have in place a culture of performance management, or will have made a strategic decision to implement one. 4.3 The broad performance indicators referenced in this document are included purely for illustrative purposes, and should never simply be adopted as they are. They may be too broad, not providing sufficiently clarity or granularity, or they may be disproportionately specific for your circumstances. 4.4 There are also specific risks attendant on the use of performance indicators: Measurement Where the intention is to compare data from different organisations or departments it is important that data and methodologies for collecting it are comparable: definitions of units of measure and rules must be exactly the same. Behavioural Performance indictors must be kept in perspective to prevent the focus of collections management switching from actual mission accomplishment to the performance indictors system itself! Performance indictors must help enough to be worth the effort. Performance indictors should not focus too much on the managerial control or appraisal aspects, or performance measurement could be regarded by staff with apprehension or hostility. Conceptual Many of the qualities of good museums cannot be measured numerically, and therefore should be used in conjunction with qualitative and narrative indicators. For example numerical performance indictors cannot easily measure importance or quality and should not be read as more than a partial portrait. At best, they can only identify characteristics of efficiency that lend themselves to numerical analysis, and give some indication of whether a collection is well managed. 4.5 We envisage that you will use this document as a reference when reviewing, developing or building your organisation s performance framework as part of a general drive to improve the quality of your service by improving the quality of your collections management. 3 Features set out by the EU-funded SYNTHESIS project. 3

4 5. Overview of Collections Management Performance Indicators 5.1 The framework of Collections Management Performance Indicators set out in this document is structured around the conceptual model of the BSI PAS 197:2009, and should be read in conjunction with this standard. 5.2 The BSI PAS 197:2009 model provides the following groupings: a) Collections access and use b) Collections development c) Collections information d) Collections care and conservation. 5.3 The performance indicators in the following pages are therefore clustered around these groupings, with a 5 th, top-level grouping of generic Collections Management indicators. 4

5 A. General Collections Management Indicators Ref. Performance Indicator What is it an indicator of? How measured? Type 1.1 Number of objects in collection Collection size 1.2 Total expenditure on collections management Collections management, financial resourcing Sampling, inventory, a count of formally accessioned items in the Accessions Register or Collections Management system. Financial reports Financial 1.3 Total expenditure on conservation Conservation, financial resourcing Financial reports Financial 1.4 Number of FTE collections management staff Staff resourcing and activity Personnel reports 1.5 Number of FTE collections management volunteers Volunteer resourcing and activity Personnel reports 1.6 Number of FTE conservation staff Staff resourcing and activity Personnel reports Number of FTE collections management and conservation volunteers Percentage of FTE collections management and conservation staff receiving training Volunteer activity Personnel reports Staff development Personnel reports 5

6 B. Collections Access and Use 2.1 Number of visits to organisation Relevance of collections Annual reporting 2.2 Number of requests to visit collections in store Relevance of collections Internal documentation 2.3 Number of requests for loans Relevance of collections Loans documentation 2.4 Number of organisations to which loans have been made Outreach and promotion of collections Loans documentation 2.5 Average time to process loan requests (working days) Efficiency of loans administration Sampling/recording of time spent Practical 2.6 Number of enquiries received (identifications/collections related) Relevance of collections Internal documentation Number of objects available online via Collections Level Descriptions Number of objects available online via individual object records Number of object records available via API or other open distribution channel Number of unique searches for object records via an online catalogue Number of unique searches as a function of overall web traffic (i.e. what proportion of web visitors search collections data) Number of object records available with at least one high-quality digital image Number of user-generated comments/contributions received to collections records Digital accessibility Web content management system Digital accessibility Web content management system Digital accessibility API documentation Relevance of collection, digital accessibility Web metrics Digital engagement Web metrics Directional Digital accessibility Web content management system Digital engagement Web content management system 6

7 C. Collections Information 3.1 Cumulative total number of records in electronic collections database Collections management activity / databasing Collections Management System Total number of records in manual/ hard copy format without electronic surrogate Cumulative total number of collections items digitally imaged to an acceptable minimum standard Number of individual collections databases in use in the organisation Collections management activity / databasing Inventory Directional Digitisation Collections Management System Database integration Should ideally be minimised. Count. D. Collections Care and Conservation 4.1 Total collections storage area (m 2 ) Storage space Estimated based on plans Proportion of collections storage area surveyed to assess status/condition and identify potential risks in the past year Number of collections items surveyed in the past year identified as damaged or deteriorating and requiring conservation treatment Proportion of the collections storage area in which environmental conditions are actively monitored Collections storage area with environmental conditions controlled within agreed environmental parameters Total number of collections items given conservation treatment Proportion of site infrastructure meeting policy security standards Monitoring of collection condition Reporting Collection condition Collections Management System / condition reports Environmental monitoring Reporting/assessment Environmental control Reporting/assessment Conservation activity Conservation documentation Security control Reporting/assessment 7

8 E. Collections Development Indicators Total number of collections items offered Total number of offers responded to within the time stated in museum s policy Community engagement Reporting Efficiency of administration Reporting 5.3 Total number of collections items acquired Rate of growth of collections Collections documentation / entry documentation 5.4 Total number of collections items accessioned Rate of growth of collections Collections documentation / accessions register 5.5 Number of collections items gifted-in to the collection Rate of growth of collections Collections documentation / accessions register 5.6 Number of items deaccessioned Collections development / rationalisation Collections documentation 8

9 The Collections Trust is the professional association for collections management. Established in 1977, it is a UK-based charity that works with museums, libraries, galleries and archives worldwide to improve the management and use of their collections. It does this by providing know-how, developing and promoting excellence, challenging existing practices, pioneering new ideas and bringing experts together. The Collections Trust +44 (0) WC 209, Natural History Museum office@collectionstrust.org.uk Cromwell Road London, SW7 5BD Company Registration No: Registered Charity No: