Flickr: Bluedharma
ArtsFwd and EmcArts offer a non-scientific poll of emergent arts leaders, and their perspectives on where they work. Essentially, it’s a quick assessment from people who chose to respond, so it can’t be generalized to anything but can be riffed upon to suit my purposes. The gist of it: respondents who self-reported that they worked at a ‘highly innovative arts organization’ were more likely to feel like their voice was heard in the workplace, that they participated in decision making, that they brought their ‘whole self’ to work, and that they felt more connected to the artistic core of the organization.
Obviously, it’s hard to determine whether the self-reporting, the assessment of innovation, and the qualities of the workplace are all intertwined, correlated, or just conflated. But the survey does help identify some key questions for cultural managers who want an engaged and connected staff.
For my own unscientific purposes on this blog, I choose to emphasize the connection to the artistic core of the organization.
As a director of an MBA degree program that’s essentially in the business of finding, developing, and placing emergent leaders in the arts (I hate the word ’emerging’…so I’m using ’emergent’), I know from decades of experience that new hires, staff-level, and even director-level leadership at arts organizations are often disconnected from the organization’s artistic core. They work in an office, often separate from the production space. They pursue job functions that are similar in many ways to non-arts nonprofits, or even for-profit organizations much of the time. And they’re often too busy or bustling to connect with or reflect on the aesthetic purpose of their work.
For example, I had a former student in an orchestra’s development department share with me that she might as well be working at a hospital or social services agency, as she and her team rarely had direct connection to the musicians, artistic leadership, or the music itself (other than staffing the courtesy table before each performance).
There are many, many ways that arts organizations are under-resourced, and unable to compete for professional talent on salary, benefits, or other monetary compensation. But arts organizations are dripping with opportunity for deep connection to the artistic core. If we don’t continually reinforce every employee’s purpose and connection to that core, we’re leaving our most powerful source of energy untapped.
Alas, in some cases it’s because, if the administrators have actual, regular contact with the artists, it reminds that that the organization is — or ought to be, at least — about the art, not the front office.
One thing I’ve always appreciated in my current position as a development staff member at an orchestra is that we have speakers in our offices so we can hear rehearsals and concerts as we work (I’m listening to a rehearsal as I type this) – one of the benefits of owning our own concert facility and having our offices in it. I used to work at another orchestra that wasn’t so fortunate and yes, we were very separated from the artistic core.
Innovation flourishes when people feel they can brainstorm and take risks without fear, which can only happen when they have a seat at the table and their input is not just heard, but sought and valued. There are no guarantees of success when you innovate because no one has done it before! Therefore, innovation will decline when people feel that there is no room to fail.
I sympathize with what your former student says about the disconnect she feels with the artistic staff. It’s important to take the time to engage in conversation with the artists and technicians on occasion. Every week I take a few minutes to visit the scene or costume shops and chat with the staff or talk to the actors in the breakroom during rehearsal. It helps to remind me what I’m raising donations for, and hearing about their work helps me in making a case for support.
I always admired the decision that New York Theatre Workshop made to place the adminsitrative offices between the entry to the building and the rehearsal hall, requiring artists to go through the admin spaces to get to rehearsal. It reinforced on a daily basis for the staff why they were there, fostered appreciation for the management from the artists, and led to unexpected encounters that enriched the organziation. The power of space….