The National Geographic Society's organizational evolution and strategic challenges

NatGeo

The National Geographic Society is based in Washington, DC, and was founded in 1888. The society was originally comprised of scientific professionals -- one of its early presidents was Alexander Graham Bell -- and dedicated to the publication of a scholarly journal, the National Geographic Magazine. Over time, the magazine moved away from its original scholarly mandate to become one that brought the world to life through investigative articles and vivid images. This tremendously increased the appeal of the society, and by 1930 the National Geographic Society had 1.2 million members. The society began to fund programs that would enhance our knowledge of the world.

The magazine remained the major focal point for the society, and as one of the world's largest and most famous magazines, National Geographic was the major revenue-earner for the organization, with several spinoff magazines and a massive subscriber list. The Society itself moved into digital content, with both a television network, film and documentary production and other new media content. National Geographic appeared to respond well to the rapidly changing media environment at the beginning of the 21st century. It had also branched out into retail, opening a few stores and developing a line of retail products.

Driving the business side of National Geographic is the need to fund its research activities. There are high costs associated with some of its groundbreaking research, especially compared with the time when the Society was founded. As expensive as hiking to Macchu Pichu would have been at the time, it does not compare to the high cost of things like deep underwater exploration that we see from the society today.

Further, the organization has had to refresh its mission. Climate change and the threat of catastrophic consequences to humanity as the result of our profound impacts on the planet are critical factors in the changing mandate and new urgency from the National Geographic Society. With these new mandates, there has been a strategic and organizational evolution of the National Geographic Society. The Society has moved to become more international, especially with the television channel. There has been a move within the organization to create different units, reflecting the differences between the Society's different properties. However, there remains a need for convergence, to keep the different businesses of the Society united by a common vision and mission. This remains one of the most significant strategic challenges for the organization today.