You don't know you don't know

Knight Foundation research shows that 60% of cultural institutions either don't have a digital strategy or have one that's still in development. Half report having no dedicated digital staff—exactly what you'd need to explore games.

My Institutional Readiness Diagnostic is the essential starting point for cultural institutions exploring game-based creative practices. Like a health check for your organization, it reveals where you stand on the path to integrating interactive media into your mission.

My comprehensive assessment helps you understand where your institution is now and what capacities you need to develop, identifying the key organizational structures, decision-making processes, and cultural readiness that determine success with game-based programming.

Why conduct a diagnostic?

I provide the strategic assessment and roadmap to integrate game-based practices without requiring you to hire full-time digital staff.

Right-size your initiatives. I help you understand which game-based approaches align with your current capacity, ensuring you don't over-commit to programs your institution isn't ready to sustain.

Build internal alignment. By mapping stakeholder perspectives and decision-making structures, I surface where departments need to coordinate and where leadership alignment is required.

Identify prerequisite work. Not every institution is ready to launch game-based initiatives immediately. We'll tell you what organizational development needs to happen first—whether that's building digital literacy, clarifying governance, or establishing risk tolerance for experimental work.

Deliverables

A comprehensive assessment across 12 dimensions

Our proprietary framework evaluates your readiness across three tiers—Foundational Alignment, Operational Readiness, and Market Positioning. Each dimension receives a detailed score revealing exactly where your institution stands and what needs attention first.

Strategic recommendations prioritized by impact

You'll receive clear guidance on which initiatives to pursue based on your institution's current state. I identify the highest-leverage interventions and sequence them so you build capacity progressively rather than taking on too much at once.

The Assessment

Following submission of institutional materials and stakeholder interviews, your diagnostic evaluates 12 critical dimensions across three categories. Each recommendation is tailored to your institution type, size, and specific goals.

Tier 1: Foundational Alignment

Without these, execution will fail

• Clarity of Purpose — Leadership alignment on why game-based practices serve the mission
• Decision-Making & Governance — Clear authority structures that enable innovation
• Risk Tolerance & Innovation Culture — Capacity to navigate uncertainty and learn from experiments
• Institutional Vision — Mission and values that create space for experimental practice

Tier 2: Operational Readiness

These enable execution

• Cross-Functional Collaboration — Departments working together on integrated projects
• Infrastructure & Capacity — Technical resources, staff expertise, and available bandwidth
• Resource Flexibility — Budget reallocation capability and discretionary funding

Tier 3: Market Positioning

Only matters if Tiers 1-2 are solid

• Audience Strategy — Understanding communities interested in game-based work
• Programming Strategy — Curatorial vision creating space for interactive approaches
• Content & Communications — Effective positioning reaching the right audiences
• Cultural Sector Knowledge — Understanding games as legitimate artistic and cultural form
• Previous Game-Based Engagement — Track record with interactive or experimental work

Timeline

The Institutional Readiness Diagnostic typically completes within one week, though timeline depends primarily on stakeholder availability and document access.

Week 1: Stakeholder Mapping & Document Review We identify key perspectives across departments, develop interview guides, and review strategic planning documents, organizational charts, and programming history.

Week 2: Stakeholder Interviews Typically 4-8 interviews spanning artistic leadership, education, operations, IT, communications, and board members to understand both formal structures and informal power dynamics.

Week 3-4: Synthesis & Strategic Recommendations I score each dimension, identify patterns, surface constraints, and develop phased recommendations that account for your political and structural realities.

Additional Services

Public Scorecard Assessment

Before engaging in a full diagnostic, I can conduct a preliminary scorecard using only publicly available information. This external positioning assessment examines your Create, Connect, and Convene capabilities and helps shape our initial conversation about opportunities.

Timeline: 2-4 hours for basic assessment
Deliverable: Strategic positioning summary

We'll help you build capacity strategically.

Discover how the Institutional Readiness Diagnostic reveals your path forward for integrating game-based creative practices into your cultural programming.