I came across a couple of interesting writings that got me thinking further about changing business models for presenting the performing arts. The first is from Venkatesh Rao titled "The Guerilla Guide to Social Business", recapping a series of blogs on the corporate transition to "Enterprise 2.0". The second, "Winning Opportunities" by Raphael Cohen presents a model for successfully implementing projects. Both are filled with thought provoking and useful ideas, well worth the read.
Performing Arts Presenters find themselves in a transitional period, a time of many opportunities and many constraints. And as the recent study "Set In Stone" by the University of Chicago Cultural Policy Center indicates, there is likely to be more than one solution.
It seems to me that we've created a number of constraints that are slowing the transition to whatever tomorrow will bring. What tomorrow will bring will be very different from community to community. For some it will mean innovation and growth, others obsolesce. And obsolesce may be the best and most moral strategy for many. Innovation and change will happen, its just a matter how fast and at what price.
How we make the transition is important to both us and those that will follow. There is value in doing things the way they have always been done. The enjoyment of being lost in a performance without the interruption of spontaneous applause by a few is valuable to many. And to others its a quaint practice of a time gone by, a constraint to attracting new audiences.
As pointed out in "Winning Opportunities" our stakeholders come with many constraints that must be respected if we are to be successful. Many of our performing arts facilities have many stakeholders with conflicting perspectives. I suggest that these conflicting constraints are an opportunity to embrace. The solution is not one organization at the center of the arts universe, but many, each addressing the needs and desires of its constituents.
Many organizations have embedded interests, and change is frankly not in their constituents best interests. There is value in organizations being loyal to their constituents, especially when constituents have been loyal to the organization. And yes, the organization may become smaller and even discontinue operations.
New organizations will emerge and may or may not look similar to the ones we have today. It's clear that these new organizations can only succeed if they know and understand their audiences, and are able to efficiently deliver solutions. As Venkatesh proposes, our organization cultures have evolved from Management by Objective to Management of Opportunities, a function that is much more democratic than current organizational leadership are prepared for. Crowd sourcing and flash mobs may well be the beginnings of the business model of delivering future performing arts experiences.
Decreasing audiences, financial shortfalls and cries for new business models indicate the time for established institutions to take risks is upon us. Established organizations will have to take calculated risks in choosing which constituents they can best serve. And a risk some organization may take is not to change at all, and their constituents will be just fine with that.
What do your constituents want? And which ones can you deliver viable solutions to?
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