John Soanes
Case Study
Written in collaboration with Chiara Ascari, Chiara Pasquali and Erica Rompani.
Introduction
The aim of this paper is to provide the reader with an overview of Sir John Soane’s Museum, London. Both internal aspects and outreach will be analyzed. This will be done by considering not only the institution’s organization but equally focusing on economic aspects and what forms of reporting it produces and provides.
The paper will commence with a brief historic outline of the Museum in order to provide an unfamiliar reader with a background of the institution and will then consider more technical aspects.
Sir John Soane’s Museum is located in the heart of London and occupies three houses, No. 12, 13, and 14 of Lincoln’s Inn Fields. It was created by the will of Sir John Soane, who in 1833 negotiated an Act of Parliament (3° Gul.IV, Cap.iv) in order to preserve the house, the collection and personal effects acquired between 1780’s and his death in 1837, upon his passing. On his death in 1837 the Act came into force, vesting the Museum in a board of Trustees. John Soane was a renowned architect and professor of Architecture at the Royal Academy who in 1806 ‘began to arrange the Books, casts and models in order that the students might have the benefit of easy access to them’[1]. In the pursuit of this visionary mission Soane assembled and arranged in his house a collection of “30,000 drawings; paintings including Canalettos, Hogarths and Turners; architectural models; Greek and Roman sculpture and Egyptian Antiquities; 10,000 rare books, including first editions of Milton and Shakespeare” which today represent the core of the Museum’s collections[2]. At present day, the mission and vision remain extremely close to those set in place when the institution was created. The main aims of the mission include sustaining and improving the conservation and maintenance of the buildings and works of art so as to make them accessible to present and future generations. To allow public free access to the Museum and encourage its appreciation by providing
opportunities for education. In line with this, its vision sets out to “inspire curiosity and creativity by means of an imaginative program of events so that the Soane remains a ‘living’ Museum”[3]. Currently, Sir John Soane’s Museum is registered within the Charity Commission for England and Wales under the number 313609 and is a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB) whose sponsor is the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport through a three year funding agreement[4]
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Strategic Aspects
The core of the Museum’s success and absolutely unique value were intrinsically created in the moment in which the Act of Parliament was stipulated. Through this agreement, the fact that the house and collection would be preserved exactly as they were in that time was ensured. This allows visitors to catch a rare glimpse into a middle class home of the period which otherwise would have been lost.
The institution was established by its founder in order that everyone, including amateurs and experts, could enjoy and be inspired by the design, architecture, and collection of his house. In line with this the Museum has long been a free resource for everyone, thus non imposing limitations due to pricing. Furthermore, among the main goals put forward by the Board of Trustees there is to maintain its accessibility and engagement with all types of public.
In 2015-2016 the institution started publishing Annual Reviews in which their activities and decisions are clearly explained[5]. Through this tool they attest their strategic coherence in the functioning of the Museum and demonstrate how the actions taken are responsive to the competitive environment and meant to cater their customers. An example is their intention to target millennials and the digitally native generation[6]. The most successful initiatives to support this goal were Evening Opening and Sensational Lates, having a presence on social media platforms, and engaging with contemporary artists and designers inviting them to create their own “inspired by Soane” artefacts and products[7]. A broader step was also taken in 2015 when the website was relaunched. This was understood as a necessary step through which the organization made its collection accessible online and gave emphasis to the Museum’s programming[8].
In order to provide the best possible in-house cultural experience to visitors, the Museum offers guided tours that visit main highlights and that ventures into the Private Apartments[9]. Particular attention is placed on the learning initiatives, offering five different programs targeting a variety of audiences. The specifically designed tours are meant to cater to the needs of Schools, Families, Young people, Communities, and Universities and Colleges[10].
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These proposals are particularly valuable because they outreach into the community. Respectively, the aim of the School program is to implement students’ curricula with direct awareness of architecture. The Family program aims to offer workshops and activities during holidays or weekends in order to provide a direct connection to the Museum and to culture in general. The Youth program offers a panel in which young adults are invited to help the Museum shape itself into the future and/or architectural drawing courses. The Community program provides an outreach service which takes the institution outside of its walls into the community for those unable to reach it. Lastly, the Universities and Colleges program is that which most aligns itself to the founding mission. Through it, groups are able to follow teaching sessions and/or access the Museums Research Library and Archive.
Furthermore, to ensure continuous engagement even with the accustomed visitors and simultaneously attract new ones, the organization sets up a series of temporary exhibitions which also prompt outside donations[11].
Source: adaptation from Sir John Soane’s Museum, Annual Reports and Accounts, (2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2019-2020).
As shown in Table 1, the efforts to produce additional offerings in the timeframe between 2020 and 2018 grew substantially. Starting from four temporary exhibitions installed in 2017-2018 to reaching ten temporary exhibitions in 2019-2020. Nonetheless, the quality of what was presented did not decrease as proven by the fact that an important exhibition dedicated to Hogarth was curated in 2019-2020[12]. The standard of the cultural value produced was attested by the outstanding reviews and the surge of interest from the general public[13].
The ability to adapt was proven in 2019-2020. During the pandemic of Covid-19 the staff was capable of transforming their way of working. They implemented rotas to ensure safety as well as creating new operating practices to prepare for reopening[14]. On the other hand, to respond to the issues raised from the social unrest connected to the Black Live Matter movement, management set up a working group. The intention with this was to directly address matters of Inclusion
Diversity Equality and Access, by constantly reviewing practices in order to pursue and deliver timely actions[15].
To summarize, Sir John Soane’s Museum’s value proposition is that of being a broad educational tool as well as offering a rare glimpse into the past by presenting its permanent collection as it was left by its founder. A series of initiatives have been highlighted in this chapter, all of which show how the Museum is not only focusing on their specific targeted niche but also attempting to attract soon-to-be customers and even the unexplored ones.
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3. Organizational and People Aspects
After having considered the Museum’s mission and its programming, the authors will now consider the museum’slegal status, internal organization, and its human resources. As many other establishmentsin the cultural sector the institution’s administration is complex due to the fact that it is a dual-nature organization aiming to produce both cultural and economic value.
Before unpacking internal aspects, such as governance, it is crucial to better understand the legal environment in which the Museum functions. Sir John Soane’s Museum is standardly registered in the charity database for England and Wales[16]. Within it, it is recognized by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for its gift aid and for owing a leased land property.
Policies were then implemented to handle all matters of internal management. These include guidelines to deal with customer complaints, conflicting interests, investment approaches, staff wages, maintaining volunteers, managing risks, and safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries. All these aspects result in a mix of responsibilities that are in practice controlled by the Trustees on behalf of its Beneficiaries. The Trustees duties are stated within the Sir John Soane’s Museum Order (1969). Trustees are elected every five years and their Body is formed by 13 members including the Chair, appointed by the Board, three Representative Trustees, and a Life Trustee.
The Board is directed by the Accounting Officer. This responsibility has been delegated to the Museum’s general administration, and whose duty is also to create Governmental reporting. Trustees also own and control the associated company, a commercial organization, Soane Museum Enterprises’. This is a commercial organization that supportsthe Museum’s mission and contributes financially to it[17]. Additionally, the Enterprise supervises both the onsite and online shop, the brand licensing program of reproductions, items inspired by the Museum collections, picture library sales, venue hire, commercial tours, and peculiar events. Fundamental to record is that all profits raised by this collateral organization are then reinvested within the Museum.
We will now consider the internal structure of Sir John Soane’s Museum. Upper management is composed of the Director, the Deputy Director and Inspectress, the Director of Commercial and Operation, the Director of Development and Communications, and the Finance Director. Of interest is that, currently, the team has a large female staff component with formal power. The Senior Management team is composed by individuals whose professional profiles are highly specialized in their field of activity. They have a diverse background ranging from humanities, restoration, and architecture but also in project management and accounting[18]. Together, they form a team which is capable of evaluating day-to-day activities, understanding the relations between inputs and outputs, but also favoring the Museum’s mission. Additionally to the Trustees and the Directors there are 74 employees, among which there are Cataloguers, Trainee Cataloguers, Visitor Assistants, and a variety of other support positions[19]. The institution counts 85 volunteers[20]. Among the volunteers duties there is that of supporting the learning team, research library, exhibitions and facilities. As clearly stated within the Annual Reviews, the Museum is clearly still driven by Soane’s ambitions and relies on the element of conversation as the most effective way of interpretation. It encourages proactive engagement in conversation between the visitors and the assistants or volunteers. It is also important to note how direct recognition is given to their Visitor Assistants, volunteers and other members of staff in the Annual Reviews. Specific chapters are dedicate to “Volunteering Spirit”, “The View from the Visitor Assistants”, and “An Inside View”[21].
Overall, what may be considered as the people capital of the organization is composed by highly trained and experienced individuals, this is especially evident and accounted for when concerning the upper management of the institution[22].
4. Economic Aspects
In this section the authors will consider the internal economy of Sir John Soane’s Museum over three financial years spanning from 2017-2018 till 2019-2020. The information has been sourced from the Annual Reports which are presented “to Parliament pursuant to Article 3(3) of the government resources and accounts Act 2000 (audit of public bodies) order 2003 (SI2003/1326)”[23]. Sir John Soane’s Museum provides an extremely detailed and complete report with balance sheets, specific incomes, costs, statements by different stakeholders which is redacted in order to be submitted to Governmental agencies.
The establishment presents different incomes, the principal funding sources are the DCMS grant-in-aid, commercial income through the trading subsidiary, grants and donations. Incomes can be classified as Unrestricted funds, Restricted funds, and Endowment funds. As visible in Table 2, the Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities shows that there was a surplus of £312,423 in Unrestricted Funds in 2019-20, compared with a deficit of £45,858 in 2018-19 which in turn followed the surplus of £33,953 in 2017-18. On a Consolidated Funds basis, taking into account both Restricted and Endowment Funds, Total Funds, after all expenditures, increased by £312,314; in 2018-19 they decreased by £248,340. Instead, Restricted Funds are being gradually reduced by the regular depreciation of capitalized assets held.
However, in 2019-20 this recurrent decline was countered by the DCMS Infrastructure Fund award of £165k to fund urgent capital works. Overall, Consolidated Income before Expenditure increased in 2019-20. Receipts from Donations and Legacies were higher, income from Charitable Activities increased, mainly in Restricted Funds, as a result of significant awards to support specific projects. In 2019-2020 income from trading activities saw a slight drop if compared to the prior year. This appears as a fair result given the uncertain economic situation during 2019-20 and the Museum’s closure from mid-March 2020.
Overall, incomes are mainly composed of donations and legacies, charitable activities, trading activities, investments, grants, funds and awards. It is interesting to note that the Museum also tries to slightly differentiate its incomes. This is seen by the fact that among its internalized productions there are ones such as jewelry and home decor that can be purchased on site or from their website. This has proven to be a success: in 2020 the online shop performed strongly as did commercial hires and popular late evenings. It also provided a solid income in 2018-2019, when the shop was revamped with a resulting increase in revenue of 28%, year on year. Furthermore, the Museum allows private clients to rent rooms and spaces, therefore making its space profitable.
If instead we consider Total Expenditure, there was an increase by £125,805. This can be explained as being driven by increased activity levels across the Museum that, of course, also lead to income generation. The Consolidated Statement of Financial Activities shows the allocation of expenditure on raising funds and on charitable activities. The variations registered between the years are mainly due to changes in the Museum’s priorities and activity levels. They organized an increasing number of temporary exhibitions throughout the years, expanded educational programs and those dedicated to children such as Building Explorers, an after-school club. The institution also continuously finds innovative and stimulating ways to engage with adults such as The Soane Salon talks. Nonetheless, the Museum continues to focus on operational cost efficiencies and the control of overheads. Its main costs are represented by developing and fundraising, trading and communication, charitable activities (includes direct expenditure such as the staff).
As the Trustees themselves stated in the Report, it is necessary to keep in mind that the profile of the Museum, even if successful and capable, presents risks and complexities as any other organization. One, for example, is Liquidity Risk. Over 44% of the Museum’s unrestricted income is provided as Grant-in-aid from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport while the other income, self-generated, comes from more volatile sources. Others, such as Foreign Currency Risk, are perfectly managed: the organization receives income in foreign currencies, especially US dollars but this is managed by using a separate US dollar bank account for receipt and then timely conversion to the GB pounds sterling bank account[24].
In conclusion, the Museum has a very stable, sufficient and well managed economic situation. Indeed, the fact that last year, during the pandemic of Covid-19, the institution was able to keep visitors engaged through social media and obtain a surplus is remarkable. In order to prevent and confront similar situations, the Museum has sought since 2009, subject to regular review, established a prudent level of unrestricted reserves (General Fund) to meet the financial implications of risks and unforeseen events. No organization is risk free and John Soane’s Museum recognizes that and understands that museums, in order to thrive in this sector, need to become more entrepreneurial.
5. Accountability Issues
Sir John Soane’s Museum provides an integrative reporting system which considers both matters of internal control and external accountability addressing various stakeholders. Being a Non-Departmental Public Body implies that funding, grants and donations become crucial for its success. Coherently in times in which the market is becoming more competitive, in which donors want to be aware of what organizations do and how they invest their funds, the Museum actively addressed these needs. Accountability is therefore mainly directed to financial stakeholders but not only. Effectiveness is indirectly reported to the public by providing a complete and detailed list of the initiatives the organization brings forward to stay true to its mission and be a fruitful learning tool for different parties. Financial efficiency and social reporting are instead communicated through the Museum’s Annual Reports. These accounts are created respecting the ruling stated within the “Sir John Soane’s Museum Management Agreement 2016-2020” an agreement which is redacted with the Department of Culture, Media, and Sport[25].
Due to the fact that the authors of this paper covered what is to be considered as the mission reporting is chapter 2, Economic reporting in chapter 3, this chapter will mainly focus on the Social dimension.
Table 3 compresses Key Performance Indicators collected by the Museum concerning the previously considered three year span. Overall, most indicators seem to have registered a positive increase, others slightly fluctuated throughout the years. Charitable giving, which is calculated combining the total of donations, legacies and grants, showed a substantial positive increase, almost doubling from 2017-2018 to 2019-2020 (49,84%). It is also significant to note that there was a
decrease in the Number of visits to the Museum in 2019-20 if compared to previous years. This factor can be explained with the slowdown connected to the pandemic of Covid-19 that affected the last month of the year 2019-2020.A decrease was seen in the Number of visits by children under 16 and the Percentage of visitors who would recommend a visit.
Another interesting indicator which is collected by the Museum and which concerns an internal social aspect is employees sickness absence. Two different measurements are set in place. The first concerns the average staff sickness leave while the second is the same but excludes long-term cases which are considered as being more than five consecutive days26. This data becomes relevant because it proves the Museum’s attentiveness towards their staff but also proves it is monitoring their efficiency.
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Lastly, other matters that are addressed within the Report are the “Company Directorships and Other Significant Interests” for which no conflicts were reported in the three year period; “Public Expenditure System”; “Data Loss and Information Management” for which the museum has never suffered protected personal data incidents; and “Whistleblowing”. On this last point it is important to note that the Museum follows the outside values detailed within the Code of Professional Ethics of the Museums Association, and actively promotes their implementation[27].
As shown above, Sir John Soane’s Museum provides various levels of accountability reporting. These kinds of reporting are all made publicly available on their website and intend to interact with different stakeholders. Because the nature of the receivers of these reports vary, the language and depth with which they are transmitted is also variable. Because matters concerning the mission report and the learning program are intended for the broader public they are delivered in a straightforward and universally comprehensible language. While the accounts on the financial and social dimensions are intended mostly for specialized readers they are written using the specific jargon.
6. Conclusion
This paper has shown how as a whole Sir John Soane’s Museum is a carefully and well managed establishment. The value proposition was established in the moment of its creation when the Act of Parliament went into force in 1837. Its main mission, which has remained unchanged from its founding, is of being an educational tool for all kinds of visitors. This legacy was implemented by creating various initiatives such as learning programs catered for targeted audiences. Furthermore, in order to attract millennials and digital natives which can be considered soon-to-be customers, the Museum focused of an intense project of digitalization.
Through the initiatives which were already put in place, new ones that were promptly implemented, and extraordinary management, the Museum was able to make front to the Black Swan event represented by the pandemic of Covid-19. Prompt actions were taken in order to maintain the safety of both staff and visitors. Furthermore, the institution was also financially able to make front to this difficult time. This was achieved by having a very good understanding of the
businesses’ financial status. Proof of this are the Reports that are published on a yearly basis and submitted to the Department for DCMS. For the purpose of this paper the Reports of three financial years were considered (2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2019-202028). Overall, even if some datapoints fluctuate, the Museum demonstrated having a clear and realistic view of the situation. Very precise reporting is also done on the matters of accountability. Sir John Soane’s Museum
includes both quantitative and qualitative analysis in order to provide stakeholder and investors with all the necessary information to feel comfortable in investing in this unique organization but which also proves that they are very well aware of their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats and take necessary measures to confront them.
Lastly, to conclude, the authors would like include in brief suggestions of actions that might be taken in the future. Through this paper, what has been acknowledged is how Sir John Soane’s Museum has been capable throughout the years of being contemporary while still staying true to itself. It must be noted though that because the Museum’s visitor base is still mostly composed by middle-age/middle-class individuals, to broaden their reach the Museum could place even more attention on social media engagement29. By doing so on platforms such as Facebook and Instagram Millennials could be reached and attracted. Further use of Tik Tok and the creation of Instagram Reels could aid the Museum in reaching Gen-Z individuals. Nonetheless, the authors believe that Sir John Soane’s Museum produces and publishes Reviews and Reports which engage with all interested stakeholders.
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