Internal Communications at the Ashmolean Museum
What drew us both to the Ashmolean project was the uniqueness of the placement description. Sufei Chen with her experience in finance and myself, Emma deVries, with a background in design we were drawn to the chance of exploring a different side of museums: Human Resources. There is a tendency to focus on the outward facing museum roles rather than an inward reflection of what makes a museum function. The project was people focused and emphasized communication. With close to 300 employees making up six departments the first portion of the placement was introducing ourselves to staff and holding meetings about the current communication networks. While the project quickly solidified into redesigning the staff intranet, Sufei and I were given the freedom to shape how that objective was accomplished.
Emma deVries (left) and Sufei Chen (right) discussing survey results and project timeline details, 2018.
Logo for the new Ashmolean intranet, 2018. Using the collection as inspiration Emma deVries combined the bold Ashmolean typeface with a 16th century lacquer bowl (EA1964.74, ‘Lacquer bowl with a phoenix amid peonies’. Image © Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford).
Sufei and I seamlessly divided tasks and used our backgrounds—in finance and graphic design—to shape our approach. While I focused on design solutions, Sufei was busy channeling the feedback we received into usable data. Together we used what we learned from surveys, conversations, and meetings to build our project. Multitasking became a well developed skill by the end of the placement. I am grateful to have had such an amazing placement partner and the opportunity to work on such a vital project.
Poster to help explain the sorting process to decide what of files will be moved over to the new site (EA1965.1, ‘Figure of a westerner’. Image © Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford).
A draft of the visual explaining the three various roles that will allow the new Ashmolean intranet to function effectively (EAX.402.b, ‘Brick fragment with inscription’. Image © Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford). Designed by Emma deVries, 2018.
There is no better way to learn about an organization than to study internal communications. We have learned that institutional culture can vary greatly across a single institution. No museum of significant size will have a singular, monolithic culture. Instead it will be dynamic, organic in nature and changeable. That was a key feature of our placement project. The work Sufei and I have done will have an impact on the entire museum. We look forward to keeping in touch with our supervisors to learn how “The Ark” has evolved to fit the Ashmolean’s changing needs.
Homepage of the new Ashmolean intranet. Designed by Emma deVries from input from Ashmolean staff and survey results gathered by Sufei Chen, 2018.
Surveys used to collect feedback and opinions of Ashmolean staff.
Engagement from the beginning allowed the final product to be a valuable addition to the employee workflow.
The true legacy of Sufei and my work will be improved internal communications and a healthy, user-friendly intranet that meets the everyday needs of every staff member. At the end of this project—after 30+ meetings, hundreds of emails, two training seminars, and one video—it feels like this was a project greater than two placement students, it was a project that was created by Ashmolean staff for Ashmolean staff. It has been a remarkable—and short—journey but one we will always reflect on with pride and joy.
Emma deVries
Sufei Chen