Grant Thornton just released its 12th annual ”Survey of U.S. Business Leaders,” which seeks to capture the tone and strategy of for-profit business decision-makers and their sense of the current business climate. A few of their major trend discoveries should sound strangely familiar to nonprofit cultural managers, and the corresponding strategies seem handy, as well […]
Archives for 2006
Economic impact: strike two
More trouble is bubbling for those who hope to make economic arguments for major public/private capital projects — for sports specifically, but also by proxy for the arts. This article in the Boston Globe suggests that the equation linking major facilities to major economic return is losing believers, if not losing steam: This new skepticism […]
What does a ”great organization” look like?
Jim Collins’ business best-seller, Good to Great, is an inspiring read for cultural managers. But even better is his specific monograph on the application of his thinking to the social sectors. It’s only 35 pages, but it contains volumes of insight and action steps.
The next generation
I’m off blogging in another part of the ether this week (although I will still be posting here, as well), with another iteration of the ”Hessenius Group,” a hosted conversation curated by arts policy wonk Barry Hessenius. This week, the topic is young professionals in nonprofit and public cultural institutions, and the questions in play […]
Knowing your audience, knowing your stuff
An interesting overview of Trader Joe’s in the New York Times (also summarized here) sheds some light on this quirky but successful grocery chain: There is nothing quite like the chain anywhere else on the American food landscape. ”Trader Joe’s is radically different in many ways from other food retailers,” said Stephen Dowdell, editor in […]
Do we ”age into” arts attendance?
In a comment to my post yesterday about demographic shifts in the labor market, a weblog reader asked the essential question: Won’t the aging Boomers come into the demographic that attends cultural events? Older, empty nesters with education and assets? Or are they too glued to their TV’s? It’s a common question and a core […]
Attracting the ‘young and the restless’
A December 2005 study from CEOs for Cities (available for download here, and discussed in the Washington Post) puts a finer point (or perhaps an exclamation point) on the ”Creative Class” hysteria of the past few years. Beyond the hazy competition among cities in luring creative workers, this study suggests the real competition should be […]
To be of use
While searching for something else, I stumbled onto a great (as usual) 2004 keynote by Ben Cameron of Theatre Communications Group (you can find the keynote here), which led me to a wonderful poem by Marge Piercy that Ben invokes in his comments. A favorite passage: I want to be with people who submerge in […]
Martinis and art, shaken and stirred
If you weren’t sure whether large quantities of distilled beverages, big crowds, and invaluable contemporary artworks would make a good mix, a celebration in February pretty much settled the issue. By many reports, the martini-themed rental event at the Milwaukee Art Museum’s stunning Calatrava addition was about as bad as you can imagine: People threw […]
John Kani and the spirit of UBUNTU
The International Society for the Performing Arts has posted an audio stream and a transcription from a recent conference keynote by Dr. John Kani, South African actor, director, and playwright. It runs about 40 minutes, but is well worth a listen as you work. The topic is ”UBUNTU,” an African aphorism with a rich and […]
