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  • 1.  Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 11-01-2022 10:52 PM
    Howdy all! I'm curious to get a glimpse at how other folks in the field plan out their museum's timelines for an exhibition. I feel that I need something a bit more than a Word document or something similar. 

    Thanks in advance!

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    Connor Sheehan
    Arts Assistant
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  • 2.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 11-02-2022 10:07 AM
    We use a removable dry erase board and sticky notes, and keep it in our lunch room. We plan out about 3 years in advance.

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    Markie Striegel
    Curator of Collections and Exhibitions
    Geneva History Museum
    Geneva IL
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 11-02-2022 12:57 PM

    Currently I use a Word document with a table that includes due dates, a description of the task, and who is involved in that task. I send meeting invitations on Outlook far in advance for milestones, and we have regular check-in meetings to assess timeline progress. When preparing for installation weeks, I also put to-do items in a calendar format for our team to print since our team members appreciate a printed visual. So, nothing fancy - but it keeps us organized! 

    If you are looking for online project management, I have had luck on other projects in the past using Asana, Trello, or Monday.com. Maybe check some of those out and see if they would fit your needs. The issue I had using these tools with team members is that, in our case, folks were less likely to sign in and check/note progress if they weren't already using one of those project management systems, so we stuck with the timeline document. 

    Hope you find a method you like!



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    Sara Jacobmeyer Pinkham
    Exhibition and Engagement Coordinator
    University of Iowa Libraries - Main Library Gallery
    Iowa City IA
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 11-03-2022 11:13 AM
    I use a combination of Word and Monday.com. Our institution started using Monday and its really greats for our collections/exhibition team as it functions as a co-workspace for multiple users to be assigned tasks. Its been really great to help us figure out just how large our workload is and keep track of things that would otherwise be on a mental checklist. That way other staff can jump in if they have something to contribute to a project. It also has timeline and gantt graphing capabilities.
    We also have utilize sharepoint to co-work on documents and excel sheets.

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    Chloe Willett
    Exhibition Coordinator
    American Jazz Museum
    Kansas City MO
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 11-04-2022 10:48 AM
    I second dry-erase and stickies for macro level planning. KISS principle. I also like having a large, full-year dry-erase calendar, or a big desk pad calendar. Or you can project a calendar if it's a big group, but you need to see months at a time. 

    Once I get past the initial drafting stage, I turn to project management software, preferably gantt chart focused. This will expose the hidden issues in your schedule as you work through assignments and dependencies. I prefer gantt-centric software that lets me visualize as I go, but this isn't ideal for extremely complex projects. There are many good choices depending on the level of detail you need and the expertise of the project manager. I like Smartsheet.com, but there are many others.

    Sharing the project management software in real-time is not particularly helpful. It's too complex a process. Develop and solicit feedback periodically. I Iike to share the gantt chart and a calendar. Many project management tools will also lay out the timelime as a traditional calendar which is more accessible. For most reviewers, only the milestones will be meaningful.

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    Tod Hopkins
    Technical Director
    Hillmann & Carr Inc.
    Washington DC
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    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 11-07-2022 04:10 PM
    What gantt software do you use? any free options that you know of?

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    Brandi Hamilton
    Assistant Curator
    Dishman Art Museum - Lamar University
    Beaumont TX
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    Original Message


  • 7.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 11-07-2022 05:15 PM
    I just noticed that Airtable has a free tier and Gantt functions. I've never used it but it looks like the free tier might work for basic project planning. I seem to remember that you can do quite a bit with Smartsheet's trial version as well. I haven't used it in a while.

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    Tod Hopkins
    Technical Director
    Hillmann & Carr Inc.
    Washington DC
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    Original Message


  • 8.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 11-08-2022 11:18 AM
    I have been using Ganttic to plan our exhibition/installation schedule by galleries. I specifically wanted a tool that's main purpose was building a gantt chart (not a gantt chart within a project management software) and that was easy to drag/drop so I could work out the "puzzle" of coordinating gallery closures and openings. I think most users use it for project-level planning (something I haven't experimented with yet), but I have been able to make it work for my purpose. They give you 10 rows free, and after that you pay according to the number of rows you need. They do give a non-profit/education discount. Overall I've been really happy with it especially because they are really good about answering questions and will even do one-on-one Zoom sessions to help you set-up and build the software to meet your needs.

    I also tested out Tom's Planner which has a free tier that lets you build as big of a chart as you need, but doesn't let you export or print or collaborate with other users unless you get the paid version. It's a good alternative if you're okay with taking screenshots, but I did find it a little clunkier to use than Ganttic.

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    Holly Mutascio
    Exhibition Coordinator and Designer
    Phoenix Art Museum
    Phoenix AZ
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    Original Message


  • 9.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 12-13-2022 05:59 PM
    Edited by Susan Hawksworth 12-13-2022 06:00 PM
      |   view attached
    Sorry, I'm a little late to this thread. While to-do lists in word or excel and calendaring due dates is necessary, I had people who had trouble envisioning the whole process and where they fell into it. We also had a lot of trouble with a staff member holding up the whole project because they were always late. So we started using flowcharts to show how each step affects another. I just do them in word, but I'm sure there is an app for doing this somewhere. I've attached the flowchart from our most recent exhibit.

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    Susan Hawksworth
    Museum Director
    Smoky Hill Museum
    Salina KS
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    Attachment(s)

    docx
    Flowchart Updated - Fire.docx   172 KB 1 version
    Original Message


  • 10.  RE: Exhibition Timeline Planning

    Posted 12-14-2022 06:20 AM
    Hi Conor,

    I've used a lot of things, but for initial planning and layout, we just started using Smartsheets, specifically for it's robust Gant chart capabilities. It's basically a Excel backend with a very intuitive graphic interface that makes it easy to see all your tasks and move them around. It also has a full project management suite, but we are only using it for planning since we had another software for PM when I started, Jira. There is a long trial for Ssmartsheets, and then it's $9 a month. When we first got it we just used the trial month to build all our calendars and exported our reports in case we decided not to invest, but once we saw all the additional capabilities we signed up. 

    One of the neat things with smartsheet is you can publish them as live weblinks to share with people, even outside your organisation, that update, as well as calendar links that they can add to their personal or work calendar. This is especially useful with contractors and outside collaborators, I can send them the link to the Gaan chart for Project Plan and when they add it to their Gcal or iCal all of the dates show up for them.

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    Aaron Billheimer
    Director of Exhibitions
    National Liberty Museum
    Philadelphia PA
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    Original Message


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