Hi Betty (et al)

I have been involved in the conduct of more than 100 evaluative studies of
heritage institutions, all of which involved survey research and a number
focus group research. Both are uniquely useful and, used together, provide
very valuable planning information. I have also been heavily involved in
strategic nd operational planning for a variety of kinds of organizations
and have a good idea of what you are going through.

I find that, in exploring questions related to mandate, mission and
objectives development, deciding which questions to ask and how to ask them
is by far the most critical part of the exercise. Simply taking other
people's questionnaires or focus group moderators' guides and playing with
them will NOT give useful results and may actually give you misleading data
which can be costly to your organization in the long run.

I will be retiring from the staff of this museum at the end of 1999 to work
full-time as a consultant specializing in evaluation, planning and training.
My c.v. is attached. If you are interested, please contact me at either of
the following:

[log in to unmask]
-or-
[log in to unmask]

 <<Musecv.doc>>
Harry


> ----------
> From:         Betty Brewer[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Reply To:     Museum discussion list
> Sent:         Wednesday, October 27, 1999 5:28 PM
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      Conducting Market Surveys
>
> Our Museum is a new phase of strategic planning just now, including
> looking
> at Mission & Vision Statements. We would like to conduct some focus groups
> and send some surveys to our members, volunteers, community special
> interest
> groups (in our case, mostly farm organizations), community leaders, etc.
>
> In an attempt to not reinvent the wheel, is there anyone willing to share
> copies of similar survey documents you have used with your institutions?
> You
> can respond off list.
>
> I would greatly appreciate any assistance!!
>
> Betty Brewer
> Exec. Director
> DE Agricultural Museum & Village
> www.agriculturalmuseum.org
> [log in to unmask]
>
> =========================================================
> Important Subscriber Information:
>
> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
> http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ museum-l.html. You may obtain
> detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line
> e-mail message to [log in to unmask] The body of the message
> should read "help" (without the quotes).
>
> If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to
> [log in to unmask] The body of the message should read "Signoff
> Museum-L" (without the quotes).
>