Museums Unlock Their Greatest Asset (Hint: Not Objects)

Museums Unlock Their Greatest Asset (Hint: Not Objects)

From Museum Buzz by Emily Kotecki

September 22, 2025 · 31 min · Season 4 · Episode 5

About this episode

Tamsin Russell discusses the importance of workforce development in museums and shares her approach to creating relevant programs.

Museums don't run without people. Yet workforce development remains underfunded and undervalued despite being critical to everything museums do. It cultivates community, increases retention, leads to employee happiness, and it's a way to future-proof the sector. Tamsin Russell, Workforce Development Lead at the Museums Association, creates multiple opportunities for its 13,000 members to grow. In this episode she shares her overall approach to developing these programs - ensuring they are relevant and even slightly provocative - while diving deep into their online learning offering. Plus, a game that ties together hot dog vendors, nuclear engineers on a submarine, wedding DJs and museum staff.

People in this episode

Guest: Tamsin Russell

Topics covered

  • workforce development
  • museum sector
  • employee happiness
  • community engagement

Keywords

  • museums
  • learning
  • employee retention
  • future-proofing

Mentioned in this episode

Products: online learning programs

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