Collective Conversations with Angela Kipp

Professional Services Specialist, Gallery Systems

With over two decades of hands-on experience in museums, including collections management, large-scale storage projects, and consulting, Angela Kipp brings a wealth of knowledge and a practical, solutions-focused mindset to her role as a Professional Services Specialist at Gallery Systems. In this conversation, Angela reflects on her career journey, what led her to museum technology, and how professional services are evolving to better support cultural institutions. Along the way, she shares valuable advice for museum professionals navigating change and growth.

Please can you tell us a bit about your museum background?

I set my foot behind the scenes of a museum the first time in 1998, even before I started studying Museum Studies. From that moment I think there hasn’t been a month of my life in which I haven’t worked in or at least for a museum. I was a freelancer during and after my studies, working for small museums and cultural projects but also for some bigger names like the Deutsches Museum in Munich and the Museum für Kommunikation in Berlin. In 2003 I started working full-time for the TECHNOSEUM in Mannheim. First, I worked as a museologist, responsible for a collection that contain the earliest developments of magnetic tape and a unit of the permanent exhibition that showed the history of synthetic material. In 2004 I changed hats and became the collections manager, managing one of the biggest collections move and improvement projects the institution had ever seen. We had to give up one warehouse and had to fit the objects in the two remaining ones and if you think that sounds a bit like Tetris you are not wrong.

A lot of storage improvement projects, acquisitions of large collections, and exhibitions followed until I left for Gallery Systems in 2021.

I always kept my freelance consulting on the side and in 2015/16 I wrote the book “Managing Previously Unmanaged Collections”, drawing from my own experiences but also from that of other collections professionals around the world. The book has seen its second edition late last year.

What drew you to work at Gallery Systems?

Truth be told, I could have stayed at the TECHNOSEUM until retirement because a collection managers’ job is never done, especially when you are dealing with the complexities of our industrial and historical heritage.

But… in 2021 my former fellow student from the Museum Studies program in Berlin, Maria, told me Gallery System was gaining more and more European clients, and they were running out of hands to provide all the services to them. She asked me if I knew someone who could step in to help. I pricked my ears, did a few consulting jobs for them, liked what I saw, and the rest is history. It is completely different from what I did previously, and I am still learning new things every day, which is a good thing. Juggling data caters to my inner techie while solving problems you didn’t know you would be having when getting up in the morning is a transferable skill from my old job.

What do you love most about Gallery Systems’ company culture, and how does it influence the work you do?

Let’s put it this way: If I were confronted with a zombie apocalypse I would wish for a team of professional zombie slayers by my side. But for almost all other worst case scenarios I can think of (and I am a creative person, so I can think of a lot of them) I would prefer to have the people I am working with every day by my side. We are a very diverse team, with incredible talents and many obvious and hidden skills, so I am sure that among us, there will always be someone who has already dealt with a similar problem, is married to someone who knows the solution, or has a unique idea how to go about it.

So, when I start my day, I know that whatever I will encounter, there is usually someone who can either help me or at least provide a fitting word, gif, or song of comfort. It makes me feel confident to face the challenges my role will throw at me.

Team dinner to celebrate a great week of collaboration after Collective Imagination in Washington, D.C.

In your view, what sets Gallery Systems apart in the museum technology space?

I think there are very few companies that are in the market of managing museum data for as long as Gallery Systems is. There is the wealth of 40 years of experience behind everything that we are doing. And still, there is a constant drive to improve our services.

But I think what really sets us apart is that I think all of us working here have a deep connection to the arts and cultural heritage, with a lot of us even having worked in museums previously. That means we understand where our clients are coming from and can incorporate this knowledge in our services. For example, when I am doing a training, I am not a software person showing you how to use a database, I am a former colleague who shows you how you can solve typical challenges in your day-to-day job with the help of our software. I think a whole team deeply rooted in what our clients are doing makes us pretty unique in the tech world.

What advice would you give to a museum professional just starting to use the TMS Suite or working with our services team for the first time?

Don’t be afraid of making mistakes, start small, enhance later.

Seriously, when you got your new, fresh, shiny TMS Collections, Media Studio, or Conservation Studio just start building your own data entry views, fill your drop-downs, create your flex fields…Do so until you are satisfied with the result. Then show the colleagues who have to use it every day and see if it works for them. Don’t try to build for all possible future scenarios. Build for the 80% most common cases first. Do test runs in your day-to-day business. Improve until it fits. Add missing fields when they are needed. Build new data entry views when a new workflow crops up. Ask us to build a new list view, report, or data view when you realize it would be helpful.

It is a bit like cooking. Start small. Cooking a good stew is nothing complicated but you might need some practice and vary the seasoning until you are really satisfied with the result. And once you get the feeling for it, you can start thinking about cooking that really fancy, complicated, four course dinner you have in mind.

Oh, and in general: when you feel stuck, reach out to us. We might have an idea how to help you along.

How do you see professional services changing over the next year or two?

Oh, there are a few exciting new things on the horizon. In July we will launch our first set of group trainings in Europe. We have offered those in the U.S. for quite some time but time zones were always an issue for our EU clients. We are closing that gap now with 8 courses that focus on aspects we see in high demand here in Europe. For our clients this will also be a great way to get to know other clients and share their challenges and solutions amongst each other.

The other thing we are developing right now are consulting services. In my day-to-day work as professional services specialists I see a lot of issues that are only tangentially related to our data base. It has to do with how data is entered into the system or how workflows are structured. Now, my colleagues and I have several decades of experience between us on how those issues can be addressed and what can be done to work smarter instead of harder. We think it is about time to put that knowledge into good use for our clients.

European team meeting in Nürnberg for a User Group; a great day of ideas, insights, and international collaboration.

Lastly, what’s one fun or unexpected fact about you that might surprise people?

According to a colleague I have “the most eclectic musical taste of any of us” and I fear she’s right about that. From country to all flavours of metal I think there is no style truly missing from my collection. It is all music to me.

Angela’s deep roots in the museum world and her practical, empathetic approach to professional services highlight just how impactful experience-driven support can be. As the sector continues to evolve, her perspective reminds us that embracing change is easier and far more effective when guided by people who truly understand the work behind the scenes. Whether you’re just starting out with TMS or rethinking your workflows, Angela’s advice is clear: start small, stay curious, and don’t hesitate to reach out.