0.8 Chapter six: attempting a turnaround, 1988-1992  (Page 4/19)

A descriptive example of part of the plan best illustrates the point. Work on the collections, one of the three elements of the plan, included a listing of twenty-three separate action items. Each of these items represented substantial invest­ments in staff time, capital improvements, or both. The twenty-three items were broken down into three sections: conservation, cataloging, and collections re­finement. Listed here are the nine items associated with conservation of the col­lections:

• Complete a conservation survey of major object collections.
• Proceed with the priority conservation program of paintings and works onpaper (include rehousing).
• Complete funding and construction of a painting study/storage area.
• Develop a plan for a study/storage center for works on paper.
• Devise a conservation housing access plan for architectural materials, prints,photographs, and maps.
• Review off-site storage needs for all collections.
• Develop an overall preservation plan for library collections.
• Proceed with conservation, rehousing, and reproduction of library materials.
• Expand the paper and book conservation capability to accommodate the needsof the material.

The ambitious nature of the goals was not limited to conservation; listings showed similar objectives for cataloging and collections management. For exam­ple, in cataloging, it was deemed important to "develop a single data base for all collections; data base to be able to receive visual information." Other objectives in­cluded completing an inventory of object collections, cataloging the library col­lections, restructuring and strengthening the museum department, and reviewing and adopting a space plan for new study/storage locations. Goals for refining the collections included a review of "all collections in light of mission statement" and development of a plan for reshaping the collections through deaccessioning and selective acquisitions.

These goals represented only one-third of the plan. The objectives for im­proving the Society's programs and financial reporting systems were similarly exhaustive and comprehensive. The point of recounting this plan in such detail is not to debate the merits of specific items but rather to show the magnitude of the task the Society was setting for itself. Any one of the components of the plan would have been challenging; to pursue them all simultaneously was a monumental undertaking.

Of course, the important question was, how was the Society going to pay for these initiatives? Table 6.1 shows the projected operating expenses and rev­enues for 1989-1992, the period of the bridge plan. The total operating budget was to begin at $6.5 million and increase at a rate of 5 percent per year. Given the challenging and comprehensive nature of the Society's operating plan, there is some question whether it would be possible to limit expenditures to that level and growth rate; however, even if operating outlays were held to $6.5 million, the Society would require very high levels of contributed income in order to bal­ance the budget. Such a significant undertaking would require complete com­mitment of die Society's board of trustees.