In the current economic climate, many museums and science centres are struggling with limited budgets. It is therefore more important than ever for these organizations to wisely prioritize new initiatives. At present, we do not have a united approach to priority evaluation in Europe. Three presentations will serve as a point of departure for a plenary discussion on this key question: How much should we invest in research and evaluation and how does it pay us back? Participants will learn different evaluation approaches including how to conduct visitor tracking studies, measure learning outcomes and identify their own evaluation needs.

Speakers: Mr. Saiful Bahri Baharom Director, Centre of Learning, Petrosains

MAKING A BUSINESS CASE FOR RESEARCH

Petrosains formed a Research unit in 2006, to lead and manage all research efforts including an annual performance study. Originally sited within the programs-department, the Research unit has been reassigned to the Strategic Planning Department since 2010. The move is due to the inherent value of research findings in terms of making well-informed and relevant business decisions. This session will present how research in Science Centres is an increasingly important element for decision-making and planning