Open Forum

Greetings Colleagues, I am developing a session proposal for the 2026 AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo in Philadelphia and am seeking co-presenters who are passionate about the intersection of ethics and business operations in museums and cultural institutions. 

I am especially interested in working with colleagues from institutions of different sizes and scopes from large urban museums to regional organizations, gardens, and historic sites, to ensure the session reflects the full diversity of our field.

Session Title (DRAFT): Ethics at the Gate: Aligning Business Operations with Mission to Build Sustainable and Inclusive Museums

Focus:
This session will explore the ethical dimensions of daily business practices - from ticketing and pricing models to membership and staffing - and how they can (and must) align with institutional mission, vision, and values. We'll share case studies, data, and strategies for balancing financial sustainability with inclusive, community-centered service.

Looking for Co-Presenters Who Can Bring:

• Finance/COO/CFO perspective on aligning revenue strategies with mission.

• Community Engagement/Access perspective on structuring equitable pricing and access programs.

• Visitor Experience/Frontline perspective on how ethics shape guest perceptions, trust, and satisfaction.

• (Optional) External research/consultant voice to share fieldwide data or benchmarks.

If you are leading or have led initiatives at this intersection - pricing ethics, access programming, membership retention, ticketing transparency, or operational decision-making rooted in values - I'd love to collaborate with you.

Timeline: Proposals are due September 26, 2025. I would love to serve as moderator and a co-presenter; I am seeking 2–3 additional voices to ensure we offer multiple institutional perspectives.

Please message me here or at cmorehead@discovernewfields.org if you're interested or know someone else that might be.

Gratefully,
Chris

Hi Chris - I would be happy to join your submission if you think it aligns with your objectives. I am a consultant that provides employee engagement and culture surveys to museums (living and non-living). I have a benchmark survey with employee opinion survey from over 12k employees. The survey measures a dozen workplace topics, such as employee engagement, wellbeing, mission, trust & respect, culture, DEAI, and so forth. The benchmark data can be segmented by type of institution (zoo, aquarium, museum) by demographics (job level, tenure) and so forth. I use the benchmark data with clients to provide context when they are viewing their own survey results but also use the data for the purpose of research and to provide industry leaders with overall trends (such as belonging and wellbeing before and after COVID).  If you think that sort of broad overview might be helpful for your session, message me directly and let me know what questions you might have and/or next steps. 

Kyle 

Greetings Colleagues, I am developing a session proposal for the 2026 AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo in Philadelphia and am seeking co-presenters who are passionate about the intersection of ethics and business operations in museums and cultural institutions. 

I am especially interested in working with colleagues from institutions of different sizes and scopes from large urban museums to regional organizations, gardens, and historic sites, to ensure the session reflects the full diversity of our field.

Session Title (DRAFT): Ethics at the Gate: Aligning Business Operations with Mission to Build Sustainable and Inclusive Museums

Focus:
This session will explore the ethical dimensions of daily business practices - from ticketing and pricing models to membership and staffing - and how they can (and must) align with institutional mission, vision, and values. We'll share case studies, data, and strategies for balancing financial sustainability with inclusive, community-centered service.

Looking for Co-Presenters Who Can Bring:

• Finance/COO/CFO perspective on aligning revenue strategies with mission.

• Community Engagement/Access perspective on structuring equitable pricing and access programs.

• Visitor Experience/Frontline perspective on how ethics shape guest perceptions, trust, and satisfaction.

• (Optional) External research/consultant voice to share fieldwide data or benchmarks.

If you are leading or have led initiatives at this intersection - pricing ethics, access programming, membership retention, ticketing transparency, or operational decision-making rooted in values - I'd love to collaborate with you.

Timeline: Proposals are due September 26, 2025. I would love to serve as moderator and a co-presenter; I am seeking 2–3 additional voices to ensure we offer multiple institutional perspectives.

Please message me here or at cmorehead@discovernewfields.org if you're interested or know someone else that might be.

Gratefully,
Chris

Greetings Kyle,

Thank you so much for reaching out and sharing your interest. At this point, I have a good number of individuals interested in participating on the proposal team. That said, if we see an opportunity where your content aligns with and enhances the session, we will certainly reach out to reconnect.

I truly appreciate your willingness to collaborate and hope we may find another chance to work together in the future.

With Gratitude,

Chris

Hi Chris - I would be happy to join your submission if you think it aligns with your objectives. I am a consultant that provides employee engagement and culture surveys to museums (living and non-living). I have a benchmark survey with employee opinion survey from over 12k employees. The survey measures a dozen workplace topics, such as employee engagement, wellbeing, mission, trust & respect, culture, DEAI, and so forth. The benchmark data can be segmented by type of institution (zoo, aquarium, museum) by demographics (job level, tenure) and so forth. I use the benchmark data with clients to provide context when they are viewing their own survey results but also use the data for the purpose of research and to provide industry leaders with overall trends (such as belonging and wellbeing before and after COVID).  If you think that sort of broad overview might be helpful for your session, message me directly and let me know what questions you might have and/or next steps. 

Kyle 

Greetings Colleagues, I am developing a session proposal for the 2026 AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo in Philadelphia and am seeking co-presenters who are passionate about the intersection of ethics and business operations in museums and cultural institutions. 

I am especially interested in working with colleagues from institutions of different sizes and scopes from large urban museums to regional organizations, gardens, and historic sites, to ensure the session reflects the full diversity of our field.

Session Title (DRAFT): Ethics at the Gate: Aligning Business Operations with Mission to Build Sustainable and Inclusive Museums

Focus:
This session will explore the ethical dimensions of daily business practices - from ticketing and pricing models to membership and staffing - and how they can (and must) align with institutional mission, vision, and values. We'll share case studies, data, and strategies for balancing financial sustainability with inclusive, community-centered service.

Looking for Co-Presenters Who Can Bring:

• Finance/COO/CFO perspective on aligning revenue strategies with mission.

• Community Engagement/Access perspective on structuring equitable pricing and access programs.

• Visitor Experience/Frontline perspective on how ethics shape guest perceptions, trust, and satisfaction.

• (Optional) External research/consultant voice to share fieldwide data or benchmarks.

If you are leading or have led initiatives at this intersection - pricing ethics, access programming, membership retention, ticketing transparency, or operational decision-making rooted in values - I'd love to collaborate with you.

Timeline: Proposals are due September 26, 2025. I would love to serve as moderator and a co-presenter; I am seeking 2–3 additional voices to ensure we offer multiple institutional perspectives.

Please message me here or at cmorehead@discovernewfields.org if you're interested or know someone else that might be.

Gratefully,
Chris