What is a board matrix? A board matrix (composition grid, etc.) for the governing board of a nonprofit organization is a tool that methodically attempts to first inventory the needs of an organization at board level, then the alignment between these needs and both current and potential board members. These needs can include skills & competencies, intrinsic qualities (race/ethnicity, gender, age, residence, sexual orientation), resources, networks or anything the organization values. Matrices range wildly in complexity, from simple to … [Read more...]
Kate Balug & Tanya Daud: A Conversation
This week we will be featuring conversations with leaders working in communities. Kate Balug is an artist, urbanist and educator using play to facilitate engagement, foment curiosity and build collective identity in Boston. Tanya Daud is a freelance journalist, filmmaker, curator and the founder of Aleph Collective, a multi-disciplinary initiative to present more nuanced narratives of differing cultures. Her work is closely focused on South Asia and the Muslim world. She is currently working in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. They recorded their … [Read more...]
Placemaking: It’s About Addressing the Disconnect
This week continues our conversation on creative placemaking where we asked our Creative Community Fellows to talk about creative placemaking and what their role is as community-engaged artists. We discovered that for many of our Fellows, the work they do is about addressing the disconnect that exists not only within the communities in which they are currently working but across sectors and social boundaries. We found that many Fellows see their work as a means to bridge these divides. In their conversation, Rachel Reynolds Luster and Laurelin … [Read more...]
Governance in the 21st Century
Editor's note: As part of our blog event for The Summit at Sundance, we have invited participants in The Chief Executive Program to frame each of our problems to solve. Here, Jean McLaughlin takes on the problem: Create the 21st century board. What would an ideal 21st century board look like? And, how might board members best add value? These are the questions I have been pondering for the past few days. In many ways I marvel at the productive, supportive, responsible and enthusiastic nature of the boards I have worked with. I know this … [Read more...]
Salzburg Global Forum: Some Final Thoughts
We introduced Field Notes as a means of amplifying meaningful conversation. Over the last couple of weeks we put that to the test with content from the Salzburg Global Forum for Young Cultural Leaders, a program that was essentially 5 days of non-stop (and I mean that in the best possible sense) conversation among 64 people from 35 different countries. On an individual basis, I learned something from each conversation, each interview, each post. On a collective basis, what I learned was not something new but it was still incredibly valuable … [Read more...]
Guthrie Theater’s debt to women and diversity
Do nonprofit cultural organizations have a particular responsibility to reach into and represent all parts of the community? Does the benefit of nonprofit status require us to take more risks than commercial theatre? A recent article explores the Minneapolis community’s reaction to the lack of diversity in a local theatre’s upcoming season. While this piece focuses on the choices of one artistic director, other leaders in the field have also argued that not all organizations should feel obligated to be diverse. On the other hand, leadership … [Read more...]