Presentation on results of PhD research made to DISH conference in Rotterdam, 8th December 2015

1. COLLECTING INSTITUTIONS
IN THE NETWORK SOCIETY
Chris Batt OBE PhD
Digital Strategist

2. Doctoral Research
The relationship between
public collecting institutions
(museums, libraries and archives)
and 21st century
socio-technical determinism

3. 2003
Lobby government for funding to
create integrated digital
collections
Advocacy
The synergy of collective action
in a learning society

4. ARCHIVE
THE DIGITAL SPACE:
Collection convergence?
From physical to virtual

6. THE WORLD HAS MOVED ON…
Since then there has been a socio-technical revolution

7. THE NETWORK SOCIETY
“Networks have become the predominant
organisational form of every domain of
human activity... The space of flows has
taken over the logic of the space of places.”

8. THE NETWORK SOCIETY
“The Internet has become a vital part of our
lives and our society.”
Dutton, W. and Blank, G. Next Generation Users: The
Internet in Britain. Oxford Internet Institute, 2011.

9. THE NETWORK SOCIETY
“The average UK citizen spends more time
each day using digital technologies and the
Internet than sleeping.”
…like 8 hours and 16 minutes
OFCOM. Annual Communications Review, 2014

10. THE NETWORK SOCIETY

12. THE NETWORK SOCIETY AND CHANGE
IN 2002…
• STREAMING VIDEO was rare, short and choppy.
• WIRELESS HOTSPOTS were a novelty.
• MOBILE PHONES were used primarily for (gasp) phone calls
• A TUMBLER was a kind of drinking glass
• A TWEET was a type of birdcall
IN 2022 THE INTERNET WILL LIKELY BE DIFFERENT FROM
THE INTERNET OF 2012
Karpf, D. 2012. Social Science Research Methods in Internet Time. Information,
Communication and Society. Vol. 15, No. 5. June, pp639-661.

13. How do collecting institutions maintain strategic fit in the face
of dramatic and continuing socio-technical change?

14. RESEARCH
STRATEGY
“How to change the world…”

15. Research Question
How to provide online service offers that are
distinctive in form and maximise public value through
alignment with changing trends in user needs and
expectations?

16. SOCIO-TECHNICAL DETERMINISM:
AN ATOMIC MODEL
The OUTER WORLD
of socio-technical change The INNER WORLD
of public sector
collecting institutions

17. MUSEUMS LIBRARIES ARCHIVES
SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES
COLLECTING INSTITUTIONS
SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES
THE OUTER WORLD OF SOCIO-
TECHNICAL CHANGE
THE INNER WORLD OF
COLLECTING INSTITUTIONS

18. RESEARCH LANDSCAPE
CONVERGENCE
Are there commonalities between museums, libraries and archives?
READINESS POTENTIAL
How aware and prepared are practitioners for uncertain future possibilities
in the digital space?
STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITIES
Would they be similar for all collecting institutions?
STRATEGIC CHALLENGES
What barriers to progress? How to deal with them?

19. STAGES OF ANALYSIS AND SYNTHESIS
1. Key trends in digital supply and demand in the Outer World
2000 - 2014
2. Analysis of the Inner World of collecting institutions
3. Comparative analysis and synthesis of the Inner World and
the Outer World
4. Outcomes and future actions

20. Not a study about what the future might be like

21. Not where is socio-technical determinism going, But
what makes it go?
What is driving the changes that are taking place?

22. Today Future
?
Purpose, strategy, structure, process

23. RESEARCH
FINDINGS

24. OUTER WORLD
• Incremental change
• Slow diffusion of innovation
• Shared expectations
• Multi-channel society
• Access = travel
PRE-2000 BASELINE
INNER WORLD
• Long, evolutionary histories
• Destinations
• Monopolistic merit goods
• Skills and values defined by
public sector and collections
• Technical rationality, rather
than strategic thinking

25. Organisational ecosystem
PRE-2000 BASELINE

26. Key Trends in Digital Supply and Demand in
the Outer World1
• New business models, new markets
• Speed of innovation and social diffusion
• Social networking, crowdsourcing
• Centrality of online life, 24/7
• A social (agrarian) revolution:
The hunter/gatherer becomes
online harvester

27. THE INTERNET AND SECTORAL CHANGE
LOSERS WINNERS
Recorded music industry Smartphones, iTunes, Spotify
Traditional book publishers ebooks
The High Street Amazon, eBay
Travel agencies Expedia, TripAdvisor
Reference books, Libraries Wikipedia, Google
Traditional telephony Skype, email
? Social networking services
Cinemas, terrestrial TV Video streaming
Key Trends in Digital Supply and Demand in
the Outer World1

28. Key Trends in Digital Supply and Demand in
the Outer World1
37 key issues synthesised from the evidence
The essence of determinism presented as
Four Generic Drivers of Change

29. 1. THE INTERNET AS DIGITAL COMMON CARRIER
• Single channel
• Internet protocol
• Convergence
• Instant two-way communication
2. THE INTERNET REDEFINES SPACE AND TIME
• Global interconnectivity
• Internet time is dog time
• User impact - multi-tasking, meshing and mashing
• Transaction costs are independent of time and distance
3. THE INTERNET POSSESSES ITS OWN GRAVITATIONAL FORCES
• Scale
• Growth
• Impacts on supplier and user
4. THE INTERNET REDEFINES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE
SUPPLIER AND THE USER
• Innovation and risk – low entry barriers encourage risk taking and new ideas
• Science of user engagement
• Skills shift to support new technologies and service needs (the user can be part of the supply
stream)
FOUR GENERIC DRIVERS AND CHANGE

30. Analysis of the Inner World of Collecting
Institutions2
COLLECTING INSTITUTIONS IN THE BROADER CONTEXT
OF THE PUBLIC SECTOR
• Structure, policy and power
• Public sector change and innovation
• The generic Institutional Paradigm

31. INFRASTRUCTURE Top/down silos Within the vertically integrated structures of public service
Control, not
collective action
While a controlling form of organisation, vertical integration
Destinations Primarily physical collections in fixed locations
Fragmentation Caused by organisational structures and nature of audiences and collections
Stability Neither incremental change nor structural fragmentation seriously hindered
service delivery so long a social change was slow, funding levels were
maintained and service monopolies uncontested
POLICY
Social purpose
and practitioner
values
Defined by a long process of incremental evolution
Explicit policy Until the end of the 20th century limited to direction for statutory services and
some basic standards assessment tools
Tacit policy For almost all of collecting institution history incremental evolution sustained a
stable , monopolistic service paradigm that provided unchallenged and highly
regarded merit good services
POWER
Locally In the absence of clear national policy direction, practitioners may be able to
influence priorities and methods within local governance structures
Nationally The tradition of local services defined by geography or audiences the
hierarchy of vertical integration and the fragmented nature of the three sectors
have acted to constrain the ability to exercise collective power at national level
to influence and shape policy
THE INSTITUTIONAL PARADIGM

32. Organisational ecosystem 2.0
INDUSTRY-FRIENDLY INNOVATION

33. SYNTHESIS OF RESEARCH
EVIDENCE AND OUTCOMES

34. RESEARCH LANDSCAPE
CONVERGENCE
Are there commonalities between museums, libraries and archives?
READINESS POTENTIAL
How aware and prepared are practitioners for uncertain future possibilities
in the digital space?
STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITIES
Would they be similar for all collecting institutions?
STRATEGIC CHALLENGES
What barriers to progress? How to deal with them?

35. COLLECTING INSTITUTIONS:
STRATEGIC CHANGE SINCE 2000
• Service delivery still rooted in the Institutional Paradigm
• Fragmentation continues - +2000 institutional websites, wide
range of aggregators
• Lack of strategic or policy frameworks nationally
• Digital innovation is sustaining, not transforming

36. COLLECTING INSTITUTIONS:
CONVERGENCE
• The digital artifact
• A shared mission – similar stories
with different voices
• Common traditions of focus on
education and learning and
openness
• The Institutional Paradigm
• The reality of financial famine
• Central government policy toward
the integration of digital services
“The purpose of museums, libraries and
archives is to maintain and promote
collections and services to encourage
people’s learning and enjoyment and to
develop communities”
gov.uk was the overall winner for Design
of the Year 2013 for its well thought out
yet understated design, making the user
experience simpler, clearer and faster

37. COLLECTING INSTITUTIONS:
READINESS POTENTIAL
• Status Quo 2.0
• Technical rationality dominates
• Organisation-friendly innovation
• Minimal evidence of reflective practice
Risks of strategic change Social and financial price of mistakes; risk aversion
Organisational constraints Vertical integration limits structural change
Collecting institutions specific needs Sunk investment in physical collections, and user expectations
may be put at risk
The limitations of incremental
change
Industry friendly innovation is safe, but threatens loss of
strategic fit
PUBLIC SECTOR: INNOVATION AND CHANGE

38. RESEARCH LANDSCAPE
CONVERGENCE
Are there commonalities between museums, libraries and archives?
READINESS POTENTIAL
How aware and prepared are practitioners for uncertain future possibilities
in the digital space?
STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITIES
Would they be similar for all collecting institutions?
STRATEGIC CHALLENGES
What barriers to progress? How to deal with them?

39. Comparative analysis of Generic Drivers and
Opportunities/Constraints for Collecting Institutions
Opportunities of the Generic Drivers Constraints of the Institutional Paradigm

40. THE DIALECTIC OF CHANGE
Defining the key challenges for a collective future
THESIS
OPPORTUNITIES
ANTITHESIS
CONSTRAINTS
Potential of the Internet to increase social
value of collecting institutions
Institutional Paradigm and lack of strategic
planning
New relationship between supplier and user,
new business models
Importance of the status quo; long
established service patterns
The importance of presence in the digital
space to meet emergent behaviours and build
wider audiences
The value of the institution as physical
destination
Rapid innovation and diffusion The risks of radical change
Implications of strategic change Constraints of structure and resources
Digital channel convergence Organisational fragmentation
Globalisation from gravitational forces Localism and vertical integration
Need for one voice and one message to
promote collective value nationally
Absence of of explicit shared mission across
collecting institutions
2. User relations and the
boundary exchange
3. Speed of innovation
and change
1. Common purpose and shared
strategy in the digital space

41. CHALLENGE ONE
The quest for common purpose
Overcoming fragmentation
Placing the user at the heart of
strategic developments
Moving beyond the Institutional
Paradigm
Agreeing a common mission,
finding a single voice

42. CHALLENGE TWO
The boundary exchange: from
hunter/gatherer to harvester
User at the heart of developments;
convenience and uniqueness
in face of competition
Confidence about the physical and the
virtual
Learning as leitmotif

43. EMERGENT LEARNING THEORY

44. CHALLENGE THREE
The speed of innovation and change
How can collecting institutions maintain
strategic fit today and future?
Balancing the long-term value of collections
against changing behaviours and expectations
in digital use.

45. DO IT ONCE, DO IT RIGHT
Finding the means to create a collective
approach to a successful digital future
for the benefit of all citizens

46. DIGITAL KNOWLEDGE ECOLOGY

47. FUTURE ACTIONS

48. Commitment to a shared digital
future by all practitioner groups
Develop a single voice for advocacy
and the power to influence policy
New approaches to strategy development
replacing technical rationality with
reflective thinking
A BLUEPRINT FOR CHANGE:
A Plan for Action
Potential benefits from resolving
the Strategic Challenges

49. POSSIBLE MEDIUM-TERM BENEFITS
OF THE DIGITAL KNOWLEDGE ECOLOGY
• POLICY
• Clarity of purpose
• Bottom-up engagement
• Power and influence
• Economies of scale
• THE USER AND THE BOUNDARY
• Skills to create user-friendly delivery systems
• Understanding of the processes of individual learning
• Capability to demonstrate collective value at national level
• INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABLILTY
• Agility in rapid testing of new ideas to maintain strategic fit
• Shared practitioner skills and education
• Redefining the collection for the 21st century

50. Thanks for listening
cbatt@mac.com
www.digital-futures.org
If not to change the world,
to demonstrate that the world
of collecting institutions
may need to change.

51. 1. The quest for common purpose
• Overcoming fragmentation
• Placing the user at the heart of strategic developments
• Moving beyond the institutional paradigm
• A single voice for a collective digital future
2. The boundary exchange: from hunter/gatherer to
harvester
• Scale, convenience and uniqueness to face off competition
• Confidence about the physical and the virtual
• Learning as leitmotif
3. The speed of innovation and change
• How can collecting institutions maintain strategic fit in the future?
• Balancing the long-term value of collections against
changing behaviours and expectations in digital use.
STRATEGICCHALLENGES

52. Strategic fit
Time
H1
H2
H3
Three Horizons of Innovation
Christenesen, C. The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail.
Harvard Business School Press, 1997.
Hodgson, T and Sharpe, B. Deepening Futures with Systems Structures. In Sharpe B, Heijden K
van der. Scenarios for Success: Turning Insights in to Action. John Wiley & Sons; 2008.
Leicester, G., Bloomer, K., Stewart, D. (2009). Transformative Innovation in Education.
International Futures Forum

53. Strategic fit
Time
H1
H2
H3
Three Horizons of Innovation
HORIZON 1
Sustaining Innovation
HORIZON 2
Disruptive Innovation/
Transformation Bridge
HORIZON 1
Transformative Innovation
Christenesen, C. The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail.
Harvard Business School Press, 1997.
Hodgson, T and Sharpe, B. Deepening Futures with Systems Structures. In Sharpe B, Heijden K
van der. Scenarios for Success: Turning Insights in to Action. John Wiley & Sons; 2008.
Leicester, G., Bloomer, K., Stewart, D. (2009). Transformative Innovation in Education.
International Futures Forum

54. Strategic fit
Time
H1
H2
H3
Three Horizons of Innovation
HORIZON 1
Sustaining Innovation
HORIZON 2
Disruptive Innovation/
Transformation Bridge
HORIZON 1
Transformative Innovation
CD
heaven
Napster
MP3
iPod
iTunes
Mobile
revolution
Christenesen, C. The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail.
Harvard Business School Press, 1997.
Hodgson, T and Sharpe, B. Deepening Futures with Systems Structures. In Sharpe B, Heijden K
van der. Scenarios for Success: Turning Insights in to Action. John Wiley & Sons; 2008.
Leicester, G., Bloomer, K., Stewart, D. (2009). Transformative Innovation in Education.
International Futures Forum