what do current and future arts leaders needsession1
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What Do Current and Future Leaders Need to Succeed?Session 1
ArtsForwardSurviving and Thriving during Times of ChangeAlene Valkanas
This program is made possible with support from National Endowment for the Arts, American Express Foundation and the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency
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Answers come from thousands of dedicated workers
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Our leaders are leaving their posts.
•Does the next generation want to lead?
•Are they prepared?
•Are the boards prepared to make good hires?
•What are the opportunities for retiring execs?•Does the culture have to change to meet the needs
of the new generation?
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The Bridgespan Group – The Nonprofit Sector’s Leadership Deficit24,000 vacancies in 2009
Top barriers to finding suitable leaders:CompensationDifficulty finding executives with specialized skillsCompetition for same in-sector talentLack of resources to find and cultivate new leaders
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The most important attribute recruiters are seeking
“Cultural fit” – shared passion for the mission
“Functional skills will get you on the short lists, but only cultural fit can seal the deal.”
-Wayne LukeBridgespan Partner
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Succession – Leadership for the 21st Century
First Generation of arts nonprofits retiring
Most learned on the job
Only 5% of organizations have a succession
plan in place
Organizations lack staffing depth to develop
leaders within
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Do arts professionals like their jobs?Job Satisfaction Findings
Executive Directors—76%Emerging Leaders – 78%
“This is a job I love, but I wouldn’t wish it on anyone else.”
- Executive Director
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Focus Group Findings
• Emerging leaders are dedicated to the arts
• The starving artist is an idea whose time has passed
• Professional performance must command fair compensation
• There’s no clear path to moving forward in the arts
• Structure encourages turnover
• Racial barriers hamper minority progress
• Arts management degrees carry both pros and cons
• Professional development can be hard to come by
• Mentors are important but rare
• Lack of exposure to board hinders advancement
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What can we do?•Make leadership transition a more visible issue•Make information about succession readily available•Become an advocate for Professional Education•Create opportunities for person-to-person assistance
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Focus Groups Recommendations
Current leaders mustProvide young artists with info about arts management careersReward the skills developed in arts management degree programsProvide mid-career challenges and growth experienceProvide opportunities for professionals from the corporate sector to learn about arts managementAccept some attrition as inevitable & provide mechanisms for those who leave paid positions to stay connectedCreate support systems for new leaders to help overcome the stress and isolationEncourage mentoring and communication among all levels of the field
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Compasspoint – Daring to Lead
Massive Turnover – Boomer Retirement 70% plan to leave in 5 years
5 Arts service organization leaders departed in last 5 years
Half of social service orgs. are still led by founders
Leadership gap expands with smaller population of Millenials
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Majority of executive directors will not do it again!
Challenges of the Executive Director Job Dissatisfied with Boards of DirectorsFinancial Management and Fundraising – least favorite
aspects of job73% say fundraising most desired partnership area
with BoardMany admit to making significant financial sacrifices
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Rewards of the Job
•Working for organizations that change lives of individuals and communities
•A level of autonomy•Wide variety of tasks and responsibilities•Opportunity to work in constructive partnerships
I think we have a responsibility to dig deep in the community and engage people who are going to care as much about what we’re doing today as we care. Emerging leaders are living with this incredible naiveté about how this really works. We have to grab one and say you and I are going to be partners here. We’re having lunch at least once a month until you have arrived.”
-Executive Director
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Compasspoint - Ready to Lead
Follow up study to Daring to LeadLargest national study to dateProfiles 6,000 emerging leaders across country
“Becoming an ED is one of my goals, but not yet. I would say probably five to ten years down the road. I think I still have a lot of training to go through. .. I think more than schooling, I would say more hands-on…I need a lot of management experience.”
-Emerging Leader
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What did They Learn?
•One in three aspire to be an executive director someday
•A higher percentage among people of color•Nonprofit Sector desirable place to work for social
change•Pipeline filled with highly educated and committed
individuals•Most feel they have meaningful and satisfying work
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The Barriers• Lack of Work/Life Balance•Nonprofit salaries and lifelong earning potential• Lack of mentorship and support form incumbent
executive directors• Inherent nonprofit structural limitation•Prevailing executive director job description
unappealing to next generation of leaders.
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Recommendations to Current Executive Directors, Next Generation Leaders, Boards of Directors, and Funders
Current Executive Directors•Replace dated power structures•Help staff build strong external networks•Be a mentor•Be a good role model•Pay reasonable salaries and provide benefits•Engage in succession planning•Recognize generational differences
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Next Generation Leaders
Take control of your careerDevelop broad management expertiseJoin a boardFind a mentorWork with a coachRecognize and respect generational differences
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Boards of Directors
•Pay reasonable salaries and provide benefits•Ensure robust leadership beyond the executive
director•When hiring - get out of your cultural comfort zone•Recruit young leaders to serve with you
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Funders•Support leadership and training programs•Ask the question•Don’t be part of the problem
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The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation Involving Youth in the Arts Project Phase II – April 2009
Focus Groups on Next Generation Leadership
Study Looked At• Millennials – born between 1980 and 2000• Generation Xers – born between l965 and
1980• Boomers – born between 1944 and 1965
“There are profound and sharp differences in generational attitudes towards a wide range of issues of work within the nonprofit arts sector, based on differing experiences, customs, perspectives, priorities and thinking.”
Barry Hessinius
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What young people want from their jobs:Meaning
InclusionLife/Work BalanceAppreciationLearningCareer Path Options
“While a life in and around the arts may always attract talent, the lack of professional development opportunities, of a support network, of constructive reviews on job performance, of guidance on how to map out a career path and, all too often, miscommunication between colleagues of different generations (on top of the chronic under compensation that permeates the nonprofit sector) makes retaining such talent extremely difficult.”
~Moy Eng, Program Director Hewlett Foundation
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Specific Recommendations1. Create Sensitivity to the Challenge2. Improve Communications3. Provide Lots of Opportunities for Professional Development4. Delegate Real Decision Making Authority5. Modify the Organization’s Culture6. Increase the Opportunities for Junior Level Employees to Network7. Address the Issue of Advancement, Promotion and Career Path8. Help Identify Preferred Perks9. Provide Frequent Performance Reviews and Feedback10. Facilitate and Nurture Employee Creative Interests & Enterprises11. Consciously work at integrating “Fun” into the Workplace12. Bring Staff and Board Closer Together13. Include Line Item in Budget for Updating Organization’s Technology
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The Ideal Executive Director (drawn from focus groups – IL Arts Alliance Succession: Arts Leadership for the 21st Century)
Honor the MissionStay Strategic, Focus on the Big PictureLook Outward, Not InwardBe an Excellent Fund-RaiserBe Multi-dimensionalWork Well With PeopleHold Up Under PressureBe An Excellent Financial ManagerBe Motivated by Intangible RewardsBe Ego-driven, But Only a Little
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Message from Forces for Good: The Six Practices of High-Impact Nonprofits
What do nonprofit leaders need to do to create impact that extends far beyond what they could achieve alone?
• Great nonprofit leaders share power• Let many leadership styles bloom• To relinquish control, hire a COO• Empower your executive team• Great leaders last• Develop a succession plan• Build a big and strategic board• Balance power
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What do you need to succeed?
Should the job of executive director change? If so, how?
How can arts organizations best retain talented professionals?
Follow up with Alene on the BLOG. www.nysarts.typepad.com