Limited physical space and visitor capacity.

Few paid staff, often relying on volunteers.

Low budget with modest funding or grants.

Focus on niche audiences, local communities, or specific themes.

Examples:

Sculpture Park: A small public garden with several sculptures, often managed by a small team or volunteers.

Art Gallery: A small, local gallery focusing on contemporary art with rotating exhibitions and a limited audience.

Historic House: A privately owned historic house open to the public on weekends, maintained by a small group of volunteers.

Moderate physical space with multiple rooms or outdoor areas.

A mix of paid staff and volunteers.

Moderate budget with some public and private funding.

Diverse programming aimed at wider audiences.

Examples:

Museum: A regional museum with permanent and temporary exhibits, offering educational workshops and local history tours.

Festival: A regional festival held annually, supported by a mix of staff, volunteers, and sponsors.

Historic Garden: A larger, publicly accessible historic garden that offers seasonal events and has a few full-time staff alongside volunteers.

Expansive physical space with multiple buildings, galleries, or outdoor areas.

A large, diverse team of both paid staff and volunteers.

Significant budget with multiple funding sources, including government or major philanthropic grants.

Wide-ranging programming with national or international audiences.

Examples:

Art Gallery: A national art gallery with multiple exhibition spaces and high-profile touring exhibitions.

Historic House: A large, publicly owned historic house or palace, offering extensive educational programs and events.

Sculpture Park: A large-scale sculpture park with permanent installations, workshops, and special exhibitions attracting international visitors.

Simple operational needs with minimal administration.

Limited programming and low-cost events.

Straightforward visitor experiences with little need for advanced interpretation.

Small or manageable visitor numbers, with little need for crowd control.

Examples:

Art Gallery: A small gallery showcasing local artists with simple exhibition rotations and minimal educational programs.

Sculpture Park: A park with a small number of outdoor sculptures, offering casual visits with minimal events or educational content.

Volunteer-run Historic House: A historic house open to the public on a limited basis, with volunteers providing basic guided tours.

Operational needs include managing multiple types of programming, staff, and volunteers.

Requires some coordination between different teams (e.g., educational, curatorial, visitor services).

Moderate level of visitor engagement through events, exhibitions, and programs.

Requires ongoing monitoring and adaptation of resources to meet changing needs.

Examples:

Festival: An annual event involving multiple venues, performances, and educational components with coordination between different teams.

Museum: A regional museum with rotating exhibits, educational programs, and events, requiring coordination between curatorial, education, and visitor service teams.

Historic Garden: A historic garden offering seasonal tours, events, and workshops, with a mix of paid staff and volunteers involved in managing the visitor experience.

Large, multifaceted operations with a variety of departments and specialised staff.

Requires strong coordination across a range of activities, including programming, marketing, collections management, and stakeholder engagement.

High levels of visitor interaction, often with personalised experiences or advanced digital engagement.

Complex funding models and diverse sources of revenue, often involving partnerships and collaborations.

Examples:

National Museum or Gallery: A museum with a large collection, international exhibitions, advanced educational programming, and significant public and private funding sources.

Large Historic House: A heritage site with complex restoration needs, ongoing programming, and extensive visitor services such as cafes, gift shops, and events.

Sculpture Park and Garden: A large-scale destination with extensive outdoor exhibits, workshops, festivals, and seasonal events, attracting a wide variety of visitors and requiring complex logistics and planning.

The organisation is facing immediate financial and operational instability, at risk of closure or failure without urgent action.

Limited or no sustainable funding sources, often relying on last-minute grants, emergency fundraising, or temporary support.

Audience engagement is minimal, and there may be little or no programming to attract visitors.

No clear strategy for the future, with essential services barely maintained and staffing often at a minimum or entirely reliant on volunteers.

Examples:

Community Museum: A local museum with outdated exhibits and declining attendance, struggling to cover basic operating costs, and at risk of closure if funding isn't secured.

Small Historic House: A heritage site with deteriorating infrastructure, minimal visitors, and dwindling support from local authorities or donors.

Local Garden: A garden that has been underfunded for years, with inadequate staffing and a lack of maintenance, relying on the goodwill of a few volunteers to stay open.

The organisation is financially stable but operating at a level where significant improvement or expansion is needed for future sustainability.

Growing audience engagement and programming, but resources are still stretched. The organisation is moving beyond survival but is not yet thriving.

The focus is on improving marketing, partnerships, and diversifying revenue streams to reduce reliance on any one source of funding.

Operational capacity is being built, but more investments in infrastructure, staff, or strategic planning are needed to ensure future growth.

Examples:

Mid-Sized Art Gallery: A gallery with a strong but limited visitor base, now seeking to raise capital for expansion and develop new audiences through better programming or digital engagement.

Regional Festival: A successful local event with a loyal following, but seeking ways to grow attendance, attract larger sponsors, and expand into new locations or events.

Historic Garden: A well-maintained garden with a steady flow of local visitors, now seeking to grow its operations, add events, and raise capital for renovations or expansion projects.

The organisation is financially sustainable, with diverse revenue streams and a clear vision for future growth.

Significant audience engagement, high visitation numbers, and strong relationships with the community, stakeholders, and partners.

A strong foundation for innovation and transformation, with resources allocated for long-term planning, including digital strategies, sustainability, and capital investment.

The organisation is a leader in its sector, innovating and adapting to meet the evolving needs of its audience and responding to cultural, environmental, and societal trends.

Examples:

National Museum: A well-established institution with a large visitor base, expanding its outreach programs, embracing digital engagement, and innovating in exhibitions and educational offerings.

Large Sculpture Park: A thriving park with a wide range of visitors, offering multiple programs, educational initiatives, and community collaborations, now seeking to develop a significant new infrastructure project or capital investment.

Historic House with Diverse Programming: A heritage site that has transformed into a cultural venue, hosting a variety of events, exhibitions, and community programs, and leading in sustainable practices and audience engagement.