MACEDONIA
2007
Consultants: Paul Elicker • Barbara Franco • Christine Miles • Jillian Poole
Ohrid
October 2–5,
2007
“Contemporary Management for Cultural Institutions”
Barbara Franco, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, and Christine Miles, Director of the Albany, NY Institute for History and Art, presented a four-day seminar in Ohrid, Macedonia on “Contemporary Management for Cultural Institutions”. The seminar, The Fund’s first in Macedonia, was hosted by the National Museum of Macedonia with the sponsorship and support of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Macedonia. Sixteen people attended the seminar over the four days, with a core group of 10 who participated for multiple days.
The Republic of Macedonia possesses rich cultural resources that range from some of the earliest Bronze Age archaeological sites, Greek and Roman ruins, and archaeological collections to Byzantine and Ottoman Empire artifacts and architecture. They also have continuing folk traditions of costume, dance, customs, and foodways as well as a vibrant contemporary art community. Making these collections and sites more accessible to both residents of Macedonia and to international tourists presents a challenge to the institutions responsible who are struggling with limited resources, aging facilities, and high staff turnover.
The seminar began with welcoming remarks by the Program Director of the Museum of Macedonia, Pero Josifovski and a representative from the Ministry of Culture. Each of the participants introduced themselves and their institutions and indicated what they hoped to take away from the seminars. Funding for their programs was the major concern. Christine Miles led a discussion on the elements of a mission statement, and participants worked on drafting statements for their institutions. Barbara Franco presented a case study of the State Museum of Pennsylvania as an example of institutional change and then led a discussion about reasons to change, the stages of change, and what a manager can do to encourage and support the process.
The second day was devoted to planning and developing programs. The morning was spent discussing strategic planning. Christine Miles presented the case study of her own institution, the Albany Institute, as an example of changing strategic direction. Seminar participants engaged in a SWOT analysis of Macedonian museums. This resulted in an excellent summary of the issues facing museums in Macedonia and a discussion of action steps among participants. In the afternoon, Ms. Franco led a project planning exercise in which two teams were asked to create a project based on the cultural resources of the participating institutions. Their reports were presented as proposals to a potential funder, in which they made the case for the impact that the project would have on the participating institutions, their communities, the Republic of Macedonia, and the various audiences.
The third day of the seminar was devoted to developing resources to carry out plans and reach audiences. Ms. Miles presented an introduction to the process of fundraising, stressing the importance of cultivating and thanking donors. Ms. Franco provided a brief overview of different types of budgets, and then the two teams worked on creating a more detailed budget to accompany their project proposals to a funder. Each team made their grant presentation, and Ms. Franco and Ms. Miles played the role of a foundation considering their proposals. In the afternoon, Ms. Franco led a discussion about marketing theory and practice, stressing the importance of good communications. Ms. Miles led a discussion of evaluation and survey techniques.
The seminar presentations ended with a discussion of the needs of Macedonian cultural institutions, professional development challenges, and possible next steps that include greater communication among museum professionals, opportunities for mentoring, and additional seminars for both entry level and senior staff. The closing reception and dinner provided an opportunity to continue lively discussion among colleagues.
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