Museums 101 › Museum Toolbox

The Museum
Toolbox

Planning templates, worksheets, checklists, and frameworks across the full arc of museum development — feasibility through opening day.

Companion to
Museums 101, 2nd Ed.
Planning Phases
4
Tools & Templates
20+
Publisher
Museum Planning LLC
How to Use
Four Phases. One Continuum.

The toolbox is organized to follow the actual sequence of museum development. Start with Phase 01 — Institutional Planning — before a single line is drawn. Bad feasibility is still fatal.

Who It's For
Founders. Directors. Boards. Staff.

Whether you are planning a new institution, evaluating an existing one, or preparing a capital campaign, the tools on this page give you the language and structure to move forward.

About
Mark Walhimer · Museums 101

Mark Walhimer is the author of Museums 101 (2015) and Designing Museum Experiences (2021), both published by AAM Press. He has planned 40+ museums across the United States and internationally.

1 Phase 01 · Institutional Planning

Community Assessment · Mission & Vision
Feasibility · Strategic Plan

Before a single line is drawn, the museum needs a clear strategic foundation — why it exists, who it serves, and whether it can operate sustainably.
Template
Community Assessment
Framework for evaluating the community context before committing to a museum concept. Includes demographic analysis, competitive landscape, and demand indicators.
Census data collection checklist
Cultural competitor mapping
Community stakeholder interview guide
Catchment area analysis framework
Request Template →
Worksheet
Mission / Vision / Values
Structured worksheet for developing and stress-testing institutional mission, vision, and values statements. Includes examples from comparable institutions.
Mission statement development matrix
Vision and values alignment check
Board consensus-building exercise
Request Template →
Checklist
Feasibility Study Checklist
The essential pre-capital checklist. Attendance projections, operating cost modeling, staffing requirements, revenue assumptions, and key go/no-go criteria.
Attendance projection methodology
Revenue assumption framework
Operating cost pre-model
Go / no-go decision criteria
Request Template →
Framework
Strategic Plan Framework
Multi-year strategic planning framework covering institutional goals, KPIs, resource allocation, timeline, and board accountability structures.
3-year goals and objective matrix
KPI definition and tracking template
Annual plan / budget alignment
Board reporting dashboard outline
Request Template →
2 Phase 02 · Facility Planning

Master Plan · Capital Campaign
Visitor Experience · Exhibition Design

Translates institutional goals into physical space and financial reality. Structures the capital campaign required to fund the building and its exhibitions.
Template
Museum Master Plan Outline
Standard outline for a museum master plan document including building program, adjacency diagrams, phasing strategy, and budget structures.
Building program template (NSF/GSF)
Space adjacency matrix
Phasing and sequencing framework
Budget structure and contingency guide
Request Template →
Framework
Capital Campaign Structure
Framework for structuring a capital campaign including case statement components, gift range chart, donor prospect categories, and campaign phases.
Case statement outline
Gift range chart generator
Campaign phase timeline
Donor prospect research framework
Request Template →
Worksheet
Visitor Experience Plan
Framework for documenting the intended visitor journey — from arrival through exit — including wayfinding, pacing, engagement moments, and accessibility requirements.
Visitor journey map template
Interpretive framework outline
Accessibility audit checklist
Visitor flow diagram guide
Request Template →
Template
Exhibition Design Brief
Standard template for an exhibition design brief covering concept, content, space, sequence, interpretive approach, and fabrication-ready documentation requirements.
Concept narrative structure
Content outline template
Space and sequence diagram
Fabrication scope checklist
Request Template →
Checklist
Architectural Program Checklist
Pre-design checklist for museum spaces: gallery environment requirements, HVAC and climate control standards, loading dock dimensions, security, and collection storage.
Gallery environment standards
Collection storage requirements
Security and access control specs
Request Template →
3 Phase 03 · Operational Planning

Business Plan · Programming
Marketing · Emergency Preparedness

Builds the systems that keep a museum running financially, programmatically, and physically. Personnel accounts for 60% of annual budget — rigorous modeling is not optional.
Calculator
Business Plan & Pro Forma
Five-year operating pro forma model with revenue assumptions (admissions, membership, earned income, contributed income) and staffing cost modeling.
Revenue model by line item
Staffing plan and salary template
5-year projection worksheet
Revenue-to-expense ratio benchmarks
Request Template →
Template
Collections Policy Template
Standard collections management policy document covering acquisition criteria, deaccessioning procedures, loans, care and handling, access, and inventory requirements.
Acquisition and deaccession criteria
Loan agreement framework
Care and handling standards
Collections inventory checklist
Request Template →
Worksheet
Programming Plan
Framework for developing a museum programming calendar including school programs, public programs, special events, membership, and community partnerships.
Annual programming calendar template
School program scope and sequence
Revenue-to-cost analysis per program
Request Template →
Framework
Marketing Plan Framework
Audience segmentation, channel strategy, social media framework, earned media approach, and digital presence benchmarks normalized by institutional budget.
Audience segmentation matrix
Digital channel strategy worksheet
Social media benchmark table
Instagram follower / budget ratio
Request Template →
Checklist
Emergency Response Plan
Collections emergency response plan framework covering fire, flood, theft, and structural damage — with priority salvage lists, staff notification trees, and recovery contacts.
Priority salvage list template
Staff notification tree
Emergency contacts and protocols
Annual drill and review checklist
Request Template →
4 Phase 04 · Opening & Operations

Grand Opening · Impact Assessment
Evaluation · Institutional Review

A successful opening is planned, not improvised. Post-opening assessment closes the loop and initiates the next strategic planning cycle.
Checklist
Opening Day Plan
Pre-opening punch list and soft opening / grand opening sequencing guide — from staff training completion through press preview, member preview, and public opening.
Soft opening readiness checklist
Staff readiness and training log
Opening day communications plan
First 90 days operations calendar
Request Template →
Worksheet
Community Impact Assessment
Post-opening framework for measuring community impact including visitor origin data, economic impact modeling, school program reach, and community survey instruments.
Visitor origin survey template
Economic impact calculation guide
Community engagement metrics
Request Template →
Framework
Exhibition Evaluation
Front-end, formative, and summative evaluation framework. Includes visitor observation protocols, satisfaction survey instruments, and interpretive effectiveness measures.
Visitor observation protocol
Satisfaction survey template
Learning outcome assessment
Hold rate and dwell time tracking
Request Template →
Framework
Board Governance Self-Assessment
Annual board self-assessment instrument covering fiduciary responsibilities, strategic engagement, executive director relationship, development participation, and committee structure.
Board member self-assessment survey
Governance policy checklist
ED performance review framework
Request Template →
★ Featured Tool

Museum Vitality
Index

79
/100
B+ · Strong — Connecticut River Museum, FY2024
The MVI is a proprietary 0–100 composite scoring framework that benchmarks museums of every size using size-normalized metrics. A $500K museum can score 85+ and outrank a $25M institution — if it's operating well.
01 Visitor Experience
16/20
02 Digital Presence
17/20
03 Financial Health
15/20
04 Community Impact
16/20
05 Institutional Strength
15/20
How the MVI Works

Every metric is expressed as a ratio or rate — never a raw number. Five years of IRS Form 990 filings, TripAdvisor and Google review data, Instagram followers normalized by operating budget, U.S. Census catchment demographics, and institutional history.

The use of public 990 data is deliberate. An analyst who knows how to read a 990 can reconstruct an institution's revenue mix, expense structure, surplus history, and implied endowment size — without a single phone call to the museum.

Every report includes a data confidence table — what was obtained, what remains partial, what requires direct outreach. Transparency about data quality is built into the system.

90–100
A+
World Class
80–89
A
Exceptional
70–79
B+
Strong ← CRM
60–69
B
Developing
50–59
C+
Emerging
Below 50
C–D
At Risk
Request an MVI Assessment →

Get the Full
Toolbox.

The complete Museum Toolbox — all 20+ templates, worksheets, and frameworks as editable Word documents — delivered to your inbox.

No purchase required. Companion to Museums 101, 2nd Edition (forthcoming).

Community Assessment template (.docx)
Mission / Vision / Values worksheet (.docx)
Feasibility Study checklist (.docx)
Business Plan & Pro Forma (.xlsx)
Collections Policy template (.docx)
Exhibition Design Brief (.docx)
Board Governance Self-Assessment (.docx)
All Phase 01–04 tools listed above
Get the Toolbox — Free
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Essential External Resources · Updated 2026
AAM
American Alliance of Museums — Standards & Best Practices
→ aam-us.org
ICOM
International Council of Museums — Code of Ethics
→ icom.museum
IMLS
Institute of Museum and Library Services — Grants & Resources
→ imls.gov
AZA
Association of Zoos and Aquariums — Accreditation Standards
→ aza.org
ACM
Association of Children's Museums — Strategic Resources
→ childrensmuseums.org
AASLH
American Association for State and Local History
→ aaslh.org
RC-AAM
Registrars Committee — Sample Documents Library
→ rcaam.org
ProPublica
Nonprofit Explorer — IRS Form 990 Database
→ propublica.org
Museums 101
Glossary of Essential Museum Terms
→ museumplanner.org