Organizational Communication in Museums: A State-of-the-Literature Review of Public Administration and Management Practices

Museums hold a unique status in the cultural industry, playing the roles of both heritage repository and educational institutions and service providers to the community. Although the functions of internal organizational communication in museums are complex and numerous, the scholarly focus on internal organizational communication processes in museums is exceptionally small in comparison with the amount of literature devoted to the interaction with the external audience. This systematic literature review explores the research situation of organizational communication in museums, especially focusing on the public administration systems and management activities. In this review, 20 peer-reviewed articles and research reports (2015-2024) were analyzed using the PRISMA framework. The results indicate chronic communication failures that are marked with interdepartmental silos, lack of strategic-implementation, and poor leadership communication. The critical analysis reveals the structural, cultural, and political aspects of these challenges, as well as the disruptive quality of digital technologies and COVID-19 pandemic on the practices of museum communication. The study provides recommendations on investment in communication infrastructure, professional growth, governance reforms to improve organizational performance in museums.