Digital Strategy and Content

Confronting internal challenges so the museum can put its best digital face forward

OPPORTUNITY

Analyze existing digital content development workflows to preserve best practices and identify improvements to pursue

A visualization of the current state processes and workflows when planning an exhibition, and themed insights explaining the major pain points

DELIVERABLE

Driving Synergy

From our first research sessions, NMAAHC staff commented about a lack of clarity on the museum’s goals in the digital sphere, and a lack of consensus in how to achieve those goals.

We decided to tackle this problem head on by collecting input from every department through a series of workshops, interviews, focused exercises, and diagramming.

The initial scope we focused on was the process of creating new exhibition content. This being a core competency for the museum, it involves all of the major departments:

Curatorial

Digital

Education

Public Programs

Public Affairs

Part 1

To ensure capturing each participant’s responsibilities and concerns accurately, we facilitated a combination of separate conversations along with collective working sessions.

We then coalesced this information into a multi-phased flowchart that delineates the end-to-end process and identifies the steps, decisions, and actors involved.

Themed Insights

After assessing the current state, five high-level issues were identified and categorized based on their complexity and level of impact.

The Current Process

Strategic & Tactical

Tactical

Lacks well-defined milestones or approvals of accumulating or lasting consequence
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Makes erratic demands on participants’ time and attention
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Proceeds without consistent or purposeful centralized management or review.

Requires shifts in strategy, focus, and intended audience from beginning to end
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Limits both the expertise that participants can exercise and their ability to collaborate with each other

Next Steps

This is only the first step in a larger effort. In the months to come, and with our findings in hand, leadership and content teams will work with Accenture to ideate ways to eliminate many of the individual pain points we've discovered.
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And where that's not possible, or where innovation can be introduced, we'll also be looking to redesign the process to avoid those pain points and connect with new audiences in surprising and inspiring ways.

Resources

For more information on each theme, their mockups, and our design process, click here for a PDF.

New Exhibit exec

New Exhibit full

NEXT PROJECT

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