3.1 Introduction: The changing skill sets required of museum professionals to acquire museum jobs involving technology

3.1.1 Related background literature

In her 2006 study, "Convergence in Curriculum? Museum Studies and Information Studies Academic Training,"^{Footnote 1} Jennifer Trant provided a comparative overview and profile of museum work by function, based on the findings of three major studies of museum work (Danilov, 1994; Glaser & Zenetou, 1996; Lord & Lord, 1997). Trant provided a review of museum jobs and training requirements, considering specific job titles, their affiliate division, the qualifications required for the position (degree type BA/MA/PhD and subject area), the relevance of prior experience, the necessary expertise and skills (i.e., in management; administration; finance; technology; education; conservation; etc.) in addition to whether or not a Museum Studies degree was necessary for the position.

Among other things, the study considered the changing contexts of museums, in terms of evolving visitor expectations and practices related to the conservation and care of museum collections, in addition to issues related to the training of museum professionals in museum studies programs. In a section addressing specialist training, Trant observed that "Technology is cast as an aid to interpretation and a tool for engagement; the network a place museums must be to meet their new publics. But Museum Professionals are concerned that they might not have the skills to meet this new challenge (Jones-Garmil and Anderson [introduction] 1997; Museum Computer Network (MCN) 1999)".^{Footnote 2}

While Trant's report did not focus specifically on the impact of technology on museum practices, it is interesting to note that the report explicitly states the ongoing struggle to define competencies for professionals in the museum sector,^{Footnote 3} and positions technology as one of many areas in which museum professionals, depending on their job, must develop skills.

In a chapter devoted to the subject of museum trends affecting employment, Elizabeth Schlatter (2008)^{Footnote 4} observed that "escalating usage and impact of information technology" is one force of several to have impacted upon the museum in a significant way (the others being public demand, visitor demographics, competition with entertainment venues, and federal laws and regulations). Schlatter remarked that the rise in digitization projects that many institutions are engaged in has resulted in a commensurate increase in the need for personnel trained in information technology (IT) and information services (IS), but that "often, these initiatives involve temporary grant-funded positions to conduct the legwork of the project, such as photographing objects, data entry, creating indexes, etc." Yet she further observes that the need for skilled IT and IS staff remains as outreach and programming projects continue their reliance on podcasts, videocasts, RSS feed, and social networking sites. As always, finances are commonly at issue: "...larger museums are where you'll find the bulk of these types of jobs, as smaller institutions usually cannot support the salaries and tech needs without grants and other dedicated sources of income."^{Footnote 5} She concludes by remarking that museum IT and IS staff are not unlike their professional counterparts in graphic design, editing and finance, that is, their skills translate easily out of the museum into other professional sectors.

This observation is significant to our research, as it helps to contextualize the level of consulting and outsourcing that occurs in museums, often in areas involving sophisticated technological skills and needs. Schlatter quoted DC-based museum consultant Carolynne Harris as saying that exhibition design and fabrication constitutes "the biggest, most established sector of outsourced services for museums right now."^{Footnote 6} Far from tangential to this report's focus, such findings reinforce our conclusions that Exhibitions was one division that required a high level of technological skills, notably owing to the need for knowledge of graphic design software.

3.1.2 Definition of the museum knowledge worker

It is worthwhile at this point to address the definition of the museum knowledge worker as understood within the context of this research project. For the purposes of this study, we define a museum knowledge worker as an individual who works in a museum and who has developed both the requisite "shared and functional competencies required by members of the museum field to understand and perform their jobs."^{Footnote 7} This definition is largely inspired by ICTOP (International Committee for the Training of Personnel), which has identified five areas of competencies for museum professionals: General Competencies; Museology Competencies; Public Programming Competencies; Management Competencies; Information & Collections Management and Care Competencies.

A further level of precision has been articulated by the Canadian museum professional Dr. Robert Janes, who reminds us that "museums deal in knowledge."^{Footnote 8} The institution's relationship with its collections, and the associated knowledge embodied by these collections that is further disseminated through the institution's exhibits, exhibitions, publications, websites, and conferences, among other endeavours, are the essence of museum practices. Museums are places for continuous, life-long learning, and museum professionals, as knowledge workers, enable and facilitate this process. Janes' observation that it is necessary to continually "raise the professional standards among museum knowledge workers"^{Footnote 9} is not only appropriate, but necessary. As he remarked, educational standards are rising across North America, and the museum institution is no exception.

We use the definition of a museum knowledge worker as a general framework for our research, one that has informed our approach to classification by function for the report produced for the Museum Knowledge Workers for the 21st Century project. However, the purpose of this study is to assess how this definition has evolved, and/or is evolving, in light of the changing museum environment, particularly with respect to the impact of technology at virtually all levels of museum practices. We will therefore return to our definition of the museum knowledge worker in our conclusion to this report.