Museum Relationships with For-Profits (PDF; 151 KB)
Source: Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation

For most museums operating in the current economic environment, dealings with for-profit parties with commercial interests are unavoidable. Navigating the ethical issues arising out of these types of relationships is the first and most essential step for a Museum. Once the ethical issues have been addressed, written agreements between the Museum and the for-profit should be structured to maximize the Museum’s ability to meet its ethical and legal responsibilities as a tax-exempt institution holding the public trust and charged with pursuing its charitable and educational mission.

In addition, reputational considerations should not be ignored. Negative publicity – whether justified or not – surrounding a particular venture with a for-profit can significantly damage the credibility and prestige of a Museum. Thus, even if a transaction meets a Museum’s ethical and legal criteria, a Museum must also weigh how it might be perceived by the arts and cultural community, the Museum’s audience, potential and existing donors and collaborators, trustees and the press.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 27th, 2006 at 2:08 pm and is filed under Business and economics, Ethics, Legal and law enforcement, Nonprofits. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.