The idea of a “museums profession” is a very generous one and many people who work in museums would want to identify with it. In Britain, the museums profession has long since ceased being a synonym for curators, and this is paralleled elsewhere to some degree or another. As museum work has become increasingly more sophisticated, so has the understanding of museum theory and practice. This has brought about a greater awareness of what it takes to turn indifferent museum services into ones which are intellectually challenging, educationally viable and socially useful. In this paper, the author outlines some of the changes and discusses the ways in which professional attitudes are fostered and promoted.