In "Building a New American Theater of the Commons," Polly Carl and Vijay Matthew of The American Voices New Play Institute discuss the need to approach theater as a "We" rather than a "Me." They cite the ideas behind the regional theater movement of the 1960s: "...that cultural institutions like theaters, museums, and symphonies are a value proposition and compose the life-blood of any city along with libraries, schools, hospitals and public works. It was born out of the same collaborative impulse that is required in making a great play—a … [Read more...]
Innovation strategy: The Innovator’s Manifesto
Innovation is the hot topic in many arenas: politics, economics, business and not the least, our own cultural field. Financial Times writer Philip Delves Broughton (former and now part-time journalist, fiction writer and somewhat regretful Harvard MBA) reviews Michael Raynor's The Innovator’s Manifesto. The author notes leading thinking on innovation has cleaved (emphasis mine): On one side are those who embrace the ideas of collaborative consumption and fast failure, who argue that innovators need to experiment with their potential … [Read more...]
Creativity! Innovation! Right Brain! I’m sorry, am I making you uncomfortable? Or, why we desire but reject creative ideas.
The gents at Freakonomics point to a fascinating study - and paradox: The irony is that as a society, we’re constantly talking about how much we value creativity. And yet, the study implies that our minds are biased against it because of the very nature of its novelty. Going forward, perhaps it’s not that we need to get better at producing creative ideas, but at learning how to accept them. Freakonomics » Why We Desire But Reject Creative Ideas The Bias Against Creativity: Why People Desire But Reject Creative Ideas. (original study) … [Read more...]
St. Stevens Day, or, How Steve Jobs Solved the Innovator’s Dilemma
At the risk of piling on the beatification bandwagon, an interesting post from the good folks at Harvard Business Review. The author argues that Jobs solved (Clayton Christensen’s) Innovator's Dilemma upon returning from the wilderness, citing the radical changes he made at Apple. You know the ending: the case of Jobs and Apple is an excellent illustration of the difficulty, rarity and reward of “solving the dilemma.” I was equally struck, however, by some of the language employed. He notes (emphasis mine): Apple talks a lot about its … [Read more...]
Bon Jovi and the Pay-What-You-Can Experiment
We recently announced a new pricing model for Business of Arts and Culture seminars in which we will ask organizations to name their own tuition. We decided to embark on an experiment with this model after soliciting input from organizations we serve and quite a bit of investigation into how this model is performing – in the cultural sector and in the greater business world. Just after we announced our pricing experiment, I came across a very interesting new example of the pay-what-you-can experiment: Jon Bon Jovi’s Soul Kitchen in Red Bank, … [Read more...]
Avoiding Messy Breakups: Merger Lessons for Charities
Avoiding Messy Breakups: Merger Lessons for Charities - Ideas & Advice - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas. In tough economic times, more and more nonprofits consider mergers. This can be a good move for organizations sliding into the red, such as Virginia Ballet Theatre mentioned in the article. However, the author points out that losses are often incurred when organizations merge. Some smart thinking here on the benefits and risks of entering into a union of two organizations. … [Read more...]
Don’t throw that home run ball back!
A bit of a longer leap than usual, but stick with me for a moment. Baseball fans have taken to throwing back home runs hit by the opposing team, a practice this author decries as "the worst tradition in baseball." This article on the trend made me think about one of the challenges we face every day in arts and culture. The author is speaking as an expert, as a connoisseur of baseball. For him, you should keep the home run ball hit by your opponent because, in the bigger picture, it is a great souvenir. If you love baseball, you know the … [Read more...]
Of mental models and doorknobs
In a rapidly changing environment, examining and recognizing our mental models is essential if we are to shape organizations that have the resilience to adapt to change.This article from Andrew Taylor is an excellent quick read about how prevalent those models may be, even if we are not aware of them. Of mental models and doorknobs - The Artful Manager. … [Read more...]
Finding Your Funding Model
In a follow up to their 2009 article 'Ten Nonprofit Funding Models,' Peter Kim, Gail Perreault and William Foster of the Bridgespan Group argue organizations often have a clearer vision of what their programs will be in five years than of the funding that will support them. They offer a road map for leaders seeking to develop appropriate funding models for their organizations: Getting a deep understanding of one’s own fundraising approach and history, learning from peers, tallying the likely costs of change and weighing them against expected … [Read more...]
The Innovator’s DNA, or More Disruption
From Clay Christensen and friends, of Innovator's Dilemma fame. In a new book, Christensen and coauthors Jeff Dyer and Hal Gregersen investigate what characterizes innovative individuals and how these traits transfer to the organization. Five habits of mind...characterise disruptive innovators: associating, questioning, observing, networking and experimenting. Innovators excel at connecting seemingly unconnected things...companies that have the highest “innovation premiums”...display the same five habits of mind as individual innovators. … [Read more...]
Who Is Governing Whom? Senior Managers, Governance and the Structure of Generosity in Large U.S. Firms
Interesting new research from Christopher Marquis and Matthew Lee at Harvard Business School on key structural drivers of corporate philanthropy: gender of senior managers, CEO tenure and board structure all have an impact on a firm's generosity...and you may find some of them counter-intuitive. Corporate philanthropy is highest in corporations with new CEOs, and decreases with the length of CEO tenure. The greater the proportion of female senior managers in a company, the greater the corporate philanthropic contributions will … [Read more...]
Public Service, Advocacy and Institutional Transformation
A provocative post by Nina Simon on Musuem 2.0 discussing the role of museums (or any nonprofits, cultural or otherwise) in their community. True public service, she suggests, requires more than mere expansion of outreach services. I want our museum to be the host for dialogue--not just through panel discussions, but through exhibitions and events and commissions and community experiences that both invite and challenge people to engage with each other around the issues that matter most. And I think that requires us to be an advocacy … [Read more...]
A Logo Is Not a Brand
A great post by Dan Pallotta on the HBR blog site. He talks about brands as a whole range of things -- tangible and intangible -- that contribute to your customers' perceptions. I found the article a good reminder that as organizations that deliver experiences, we must keep our brand in the forefront of our minds. We should put ourselves into our customers' shoes, thinking about all of the details that affect their perceptions. What's your organization's brand? A Logo Is Not a Brand - Dan Pallotta - Harvard Business Review. … [Read more...]
Orchestras at the Cross Roads
Jesse Rosen, President and CEO of the League of American Orchestras, provides a clear-eyed view of the challenges facing orchestras in his plenary remarks from the League conference this month. The fundamental issues he highlights in community relevance, governance, stakeholder cooperation, and financial "clarity" are important considerations for cultural leaders in all disciplines. … [Read more...]
IBM’s Centenary: The Test of Time
This article (IBM's centenary: The test of time | The Economist) is a great reminder (or introduction) to the way in which organizations can limit their opportunities by thinking about their purpose too narrowly. "IBM’s secret is that it is built around an idea that transcends any particular product or technology... Building a company around an idea, rather than a specific technology, makes it easier to adapt when industry 'platform shifts' occur." In the arts the "mission" is the broader "idea" to which arts organizations are committed, and … [Read more...]