Professional-level collections management training is the key to assuring your CMS implementation is a success. Gallery Systems’ Training Specialist Allison Galland has worked with many institutions to help them achieve this goal. “There are a lot of reasons people invest in training,” says Allison. “Maybe they’ve recently upgraded to a new version of TMS, or there are new staff members. Sometimes museums go through a data conversion and want training before going live. And a periodic refresher course is always very beneficial.”
The training programs offered by Gallery Systems can open new doors for the staff of any museum. As Allison relates, “One of the best things about our collections management training service is how customizable it is. I can work with your staff on their needs, and develop a curriculum specifically for your team.”
TMS trainer extraordinaire Allison Galland snaps a quick #MuseumSelfie with this sculpture by Jun Kaneko before her TMS training workshops at Dixon Gallery and Gardens.
As a seasoned museum professional, Allison brings her experience to the table when she’s training clients. “I spent five years at the Brooklyn Museum in the collections and registrar department, and five years at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum as a system administrator. I can see things from the perspective of our clients, and that means the training is even more valuable because I can consider the entire process as a TMS power user.”
In addition to covering workflow and procedures, Allison tries to devote some of her collections management training to a discussion of data clean-up, a topic that almost every collection needs to consider. “I love to go explore issues of data clean-up during training because it’s something that every institution faces. I can help with ideas on how to tackle such a big issue that everyone has.”
Allison Galland, Gallery Systems trainer, got a chance to #Ketchup with Heinz History Center at their recent Ketchup exhibit.
When it comes to collections management training tips that clients are the most excited about, Allison points to time savers and efficiency. She explains, “I can describe and explain features that are going to save clients huge amounts of time. For example, the newest version of TMS has a batch update feature that I love to show. You’ll now have the ability to batch link constituents and constituent roles across multiple records. This also really helps with data clean-up.” Citing her own experience, Allison explains, “For example, if we were showing a collection of 100 objects from a single donor, I can now instantly link that donor’s name to all 100 records on the exhibition list. That’s a feature people love seeing, and they might not know it was available or how to use it if they didn’t receive training.”
Whether training remotely via screen sharing, on location, or in the Gallery Systems office in New York City, training is an essential productivity enhancer for any museum. “Museum staff always leave training excited, and with a new set of tools to save time and make their work more efficient,” Allison tells us. For more information on training with Gallery Systems, or if you would like to learn about how you can work with Allison, contact us to learn more.
