Productivity, performance indicators and motivation: : A case study in the UK’s non-profit cultural heritage sector

This research project explored performance indicators and motivation in the UK’s non-profit cultural heritage sector, a sector that includes public sector and charitable organisations. This topic matters because a well-motivated workforce is better able to use resources efficiently and deliver an effective service. A mixed methods approach was used. Data was gathered from ten interviews, an online survey, and a practitioner workshop. The survey used questions from the Work Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivational Scale informed by Self Determination Theory. Based on the 132 completed survey responses the workforce shows a nuanced pattern of motivation, with high levels of intrinsic self-determined motivation at the same time extrinsic factors were also important for paid employees. The report makes practical suggestions to increase the motivational power of performance indicators and describes how the KBAC Matrix can be used as a planning tool to build consensus and use resources more effectively. It also explores the limitations of traditional linear value chains for museums, archives and other non-profit cultural heritage organisations and presents the Value Loop as a more accurate representation of the value creation process.