Art Museum Director Survey, United States, 2020, 2022

The first wave of the Art Museum Director Survey was launched in early 2020. It examined strategy and leadership issues from the perspective of the directors of art museums across the United States. Respondents were asked about their role as museum directors, their strategic priorities and leadership practices, budgeting and resources allocations, current and expected future staffing, their institutions' public trust and engagement with new and existing audiences, collections care and stewardship, their institutions' fiscal health and financial viability, and organizational and talent management.

Conducted prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (the survey's closure was on March 30th 2020), the data from the first wave of the survey offer a glimpse into pre-pandemic perspectives and priorities of art museums.

Launched in April 2022, the second wave of the Art Museum Director Survey offers insights into the evolving strategies of museums over the past two years, covering governance, leadership, collections, public engagement, staffing, and budgets. It also evaluates shifts in directors' perspectives since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and explores responses to other national and international crises.

Demographic variables include respondents' institutions' admission fees, years in their current position, years in the museum sector, their highest degree earned, the position they held prior to their current position as a museum director, the staff size of the museum, and the type of museum (academic or municipal).