Matt White
What would you say are the benefits of working in a museum consultancy rather than in a museum?
Working across multiple organisations gives you incredible variety in your work. It also puts you at the forefront of cross- and inter-sector learning which benefits everyone. Not only that, rather than your day being filled with organisational admin, you’re concentrating on where you add real value which apart from being cost-effective for the organisations means you get to enjoy playing to your strengths.
How has the impact of the pandemic influenced freelancing in the sector?
Freelancing has been a strength during the pandemic as you’re able to be nimble and adapt to rapidly changing requirements. It has also been a challenge as rapidly changing teams within hiring organisations can make it hard to maintain contacts and pin down projects.
What skills do you think are the most important for freelancing or consultancy work?
Adaptability and resilience. You don’t have a team behind you to fall back on so it’s about constantly maintaining and building skills to be a reliable one-person agency.
How do you find out about opportunities for freelancing?
Word-of-mouth has always been my biggest source of work. It’s also great to be part of freelancing networks, whether museum-specific or not. Depending on your speciality, as well as the MA, there are other useful networks such as GEM and AMA.
What advice would you give to someone who is not currently working as a freelancer or in a consultancy?
It’s not for everyone but if it works for you then it’s great. If it’s something you’re considering then talk to someone that’s already doing it – in person if possible. Social media is full of people saying they’ve made lots of money in their first year. Do not believe a word of it! If you want a book to read about going freelance, try Be a Free Range Human by Marianne Cantwell.
What else do you need to take into consideration when working in a museum consultancy rather than in a museum?
No matter how good you think you are at managing a massive organisational budget, if you don’t have the head for it, tax returns are a whole other level. Find a good accountant!
What should museums be doing to support the wellbeing of freelancers in the sector?
Don’t try and use the same contracts you use for massive capital projects for freelancers. Remember that freelancers are freelancers and not staff members, especially where meetings are concerned. Every hour a freelancer is in an unpaid meeting is an hour they cannot get paid by another client.