Museums As Progress (MAP)

What Museums As Progress (MAP) does

Museums as Progress (MAP), operating as THE MAP COLLECTIVE LLC (New York, USA), is a community research and development firm that helps museums and cultural institutions articulate institutional value through well-being outcomes research. Founded by Kyle Bowen, the company partners with Dr. John Falk (Institute for Learning Innovation), Kelly Cannon, and Rosie Siemer (FIVESEED) to deliver research-grounded frameworks that reframe museum value from attendance and economic-multiplier arguments toward personal, social, and cognitive well-being outcomes. Its core research base comprises assessments of more than 8,000 museum visitors, producing defensible figures (~$500 well-being value per visitor; ~$10 of measured benefit per $1 spent) used in stakeholder conversations with government ministries, foundation officers, and capital campaign prospects.

The firm's product surface centers on the Value Articulation Intensive (VAI), a ten-week peer cohort program for museum directors with seven facilitated sessions and institution-specific staff outcomes assessments; the Museums as Progress Community Platform (an application-gated member community with paid tiers); outcomes research and assessment services delivered as consulting; and the co-created VAI Sector Report published as a sector-level proof asset. The platform is built as a standard web-based community with embedded scheduling (Savvycal) for direct outreach, Stripe-processed payments, and analytics tooling for usage and session replay.

Revenue is generated through three streams: per-cohort VAI enrollment (multi-year cohort-based contracts, pricing not publicly disclosed), subscription community memberships with paid tiers, and bespoke client consulting engagements governed by separate contracts. Go-to-market is sales-led and network-driven — professional referrals, organic content (Ideas/Blog, weekly newsletter), and direct outreach via founder/partner scheduling links — with no marketplace, reseller, or platform-led acquisition motion. The firm operates as a small, expert-led consultancy with a global-claim geographic footprint, evidenced by Canadian and U.S. cohort participants, but no offices outside its Northport, NY headquarters.

Name

Museums As Progress (MAP)

Legal name

THE MAP COLLECTIVE LLC

Website

https://museumprogress.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Museums as Progress (MAP) is a community research and development firm that helps museum directors and cultural institutions articulate institutional value through well-being outcomes research, delivered via a 10-week peer cohort program, an application-gated community platform, and bespoke consulting engagements.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Museum & Cultural Institution Consulting Services

NAICS

Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA)

Keywords

• Museum consulting services
• Cultural institution training
• Community research firm
• Outcomes assessment
• Professional development cohorts

Headquarters

HQ city

Northport

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Value Articulation Intensive (Cohort Program): Ten-week peer cohort program for museum directors, with seven facilitated sessions (five core + two optional practice sessions) over ten weeks. Sold at a price point of $4.2 million per cohort (Cohort 1 involved 9 directors maintaining full $4.2 million in provincial funding for one director). Revenue is per-cohort/program, recurring with new cohorts.
2. Community Membership: Community membership runs on an application basis. Members can post content to the community including posts, comments, replies, profile information, images, and recordings. Some membership tiers are paid (paid memberships, programs, and purchases).
3. Client Consulting: Consulting engagements with cultural organizations on strategic purpose definition, community goal prioritization, and progress-space research. Governed by separate contractual agreements per Privacy Policy.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Museums As Progress helps museum directors and cultural-organization leaders articulate the value of their institutions to skeptical stakeholders (government funders, foundation officers, capital campaign prospects) using well-being outcomes research grounded in assessments of 8,000+ visitors. Its flagship paid offering is the Value Articulation Intensive, a 10-week peer cohort program with seven facilitated virtual sessions, complemented by a web-based community platform, outcomes research services, and direct consulting engagements.

Product overview

Museums as Progress (MaP) operates as a community research and development firm offering a web-based community platform alongside structured programs and research publications. The core platform provides community features (posts, programs, events, member profiles) for museum professionals. The flagship program is the Value Articulation Intensive (VAI), a ten-week peer cohort where museum directors learn to articulate institutional value using well-being outcomes research. Supporting this is the VAI Sector Report, documenting case studies from cohort participants. Additional offerings include outcomes research and assessment services helping cultural organizations define strategic purpose and community goals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Value Articulation Intensive (VAI) A 10-week peer cohort program for museum directors and cultural-organization leaders that teaches them to articulate institutional value to government funders, foundation officers, and capital-campaign prospects using well-being outcomes research grounded in assessments of 8,000+ visitors. Includes seven facilitated virtual sessions (five core plus two optional practice sessions), live practice against specific stakeholder objections, and a co-created sector report.
• Museums as Progress Community Platform Web-based community platform for museum professionals offering posts, programs, events, and member profiles to support collaboration and professional development. Membership is application-based and operates under the Chatham House Rule; some membership tiers are paid.
• Outcomes Research and Assessment Services Research services helping cultural organizations define strategic purpose, prioritize community goals, and identify opportunities through progress-space research and Staff Outcomes Assessments. Engagements are governed by separate contractual agreements.
• Client Consulting Engagements Direct consulting engagements with cultural organizations on strategic purpose definition, community goal prioritization, and progress-space research, arranged through 'Schedule a Conversation' scheduling links and governed by separate contractual agreements.

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Dr. John Falk (JohnHFalk, LLC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDr. John Falk serves as Value Realization Partner at Museums as Progress. He is the Founder and CEO of the Institute for Learning Innovation and Emeritus Sea Grant Professor at Oregon State University. His research on free-choice learning and visitor well-being provides the conceptual foundation for the Value Articulation Intensive. He co-facilitates VAI sessions and co-authored the VAI Sector Report. His books 'The Value of Museums: Enhancing Societal Well-Being' (2022) and 'Leaning Into Value: Becoming a User-Focused Museum' (2025) underpin the program's intellectual framework.
• Kelly CannoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKelly Cannon serves as Community Research Partner. She previously co-led Coursera courses at The Museum of Modern Art engaging over a million international learners. She brings expertise in community building, peer learning networks, and content development for museums and universities. She contributes articles to MaP's Ideas feed and supports community development.
• Rosie Siemer (FIVESEED)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerRosie Siemer serves as Strategic Research Partner at Museums as Progress, also founder of FIVESEED, a research and strategy partner for arts, culture, and conservation organizations. She has guided dozens of museums in data-informed strategies for audience engagement and financial sustainability. Author of 'Museum Membership Innovation' and co-author of 'Membership Marketing in the Digital Age.' She contributes to MaP's community and facilitates workshops on audience development.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Randi Korn & Associates, Inc. Evaluation, planning, and research firm specifically serving museums. Directly comparable to MAP in applying research and outcomes methodologies to museum practice and decision-making.
• Lord Cultural Resources: One of the largest global museum and cultural-sector planning and consulting firms. Directly comparable to MAP in serving museum boards and executive leaders on strategic purpose, audience research, and value articulation, but operating at a much larger scale and broader service scope.
• FIVESEED: Research and strategy partner for arts, culture, and conservation organizations, founded by Rosie Siemer (MAP's Strategic Research Partner). Closely comparable in serving museum leaders on data-informed audience engagement and financial sustainability.
• AEA Consulting: Arts, culture, and philanthropic advisory firm working with cultural institutions on strategy, planning, and stakeholder value. Directly comparable to MAP's work helping museum leaders articulate institutional value to funders and boards.
• IMPACTS Research & Evaluation: Social and behavioral research firm focused on evaluating the impact of museums and cultural experiences on visitors. Closely comparable to MAP in grounding museum value claims in visitor outcomes research.
• WolfBrown: Research and consulting firm specializing in audience research, organizational strategy, and value articulation for performing arts and cultural institutions. Comparable to MAP's evidence-based value framing work, with a focus on both museums and performing arts.

Broad incumbents

• LaPlaca Cohen: Strategy and marketing firm for cultural and nonprofit organizations, including museums. Comparable in audience research and stakeholder messaging, but offers a broader portfolio spanning branding, marketing, and campaign work.

Emerging players

• Knology: Social science research firm producing evidence on the value of museums, libraries, and cultural institutions. Comparable to MAP's evidence-based framing of museum value, but operating as a research nonprofit rather than a cohort/training business.
• National Arts Strategies: Leadership and strategy organization for arts and cultural leaders, offering programs and resources for executives. Comparable to MAP's cohort-based leadership development model serving museum and cultural executives.
• Pattern (museum/cultural research): Cultural research firm focused on museum and library visitor research and outcomes. Comparable to MAP's research-driven methodology, though more focused on visitor studies than executive value articulation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/museums-as-progress

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Museums As Progress (MAP)