I'm reasonably new to the field but have had about 5 years of experience working in collections at one capacity or another. When I began as collections manager, one of the first things I did was a wall-to-wall inventory. The collection was long overdue for one anyway and it helped me become even more familiar with the museum's 4,000 objects. This also allowed me to make sure every object's file (hard file and PP file) was in order. You wouldn't believe the mysteries that project helped put to rest!

Obviously an inventory is something that takes some time so it is possible you are not in a position to undertake a project like that right now. I was able to do it because we happened to be closed to the public at the time. But I just thought I'd share my experience in case it proves useful.

On Jul 9, 2016 11:50 AM, "Kelsey Perrigo" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Hello everyone! I recently became the Collections Manager for a small museum. I have museum collections experience but this is my first time as collections manager and want to do the job correctly. The museum, thankfully, is in a newer building and the collections are relatively well cared for.

What would you say are some of your first priorities when you begin a job as a collections manager?

Also, the vast majority of our collections have strange accession numbers (i.e. P-287) and I was curious if that is something I should consider addressing immediately or if that is something to tackle at a later date. At the moment, everything is easily found in PastPerfect.

Thanks!
Kelsey

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