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Task 6c - Literature Review

The 1st piece of literature I am to review was a piece I found on the internet called ‘New Species’ by Martin Pople - Course Coordinator, FdA Arts Management and Director, Bath Spa Live, Bath Spa University. It appears on the website Uk Performing Arts

Link - http://www.ukperformingarts.co.uk/management/new_species.asp 

I felt compelled to start my literature review here as the piece discusses the concept that Arts Management has become a newly recognised role within the performing arts industry.  Within the article many people are quote their views on the skills they feel are required and the characteristics they associate with arts management success.

I was interested to read each individuals thoughts on this interesting debate and hoped they would provide me with a deeper knowledge and understanding of my desired role and lead me to explore other avenues.

I was not disappointed, the piece focused on the agreement that ‘Arts management is something unique’ (Martin Pople) and that it is a sought after recognised role leading to becoming a producer.  I feel this to be a little misleading and I would possibly disagree that all Arts Managers are on route to becoming producers. For instance, within smaller companies some might say that the arts manager and the skills they require are just another role of the producer and vise- versa.

Pople quotes many peoples opinions on the qualities needed for this particular career.  First is an anonymous quote and its suggestion of ‘extraordinary and variable span of skills, involving art and arts criticism, politics, psychology, information science, economics, sociology and education.'  I feel this sounds quite intimidating and although most likely to be true are these skills the most important and should an arts manager start with this knowledge or hope to develop it?  I would be very interested to know the role this individual has within the industry, their own experience of management and the the arts.  Also everyone has the right to remain anonymous but does this choice effect the value of his opinion?

Pople then moves on to quote Peter Bendixen, Minister of Culture in Schleswig-Holstein who seems to base his opinion less on academic skills and more on creative skills “social competence, cultural imagination and knowledge of the arts'.  I realise that some might find this a little broad but I do feel that Bendixen is a little closer to pin pointing the inital skills one should possess when considering performing arts management and then learn to develop the other aspects previously mentioned by the unknown.

All of the views speak of both the need for managerial skills and arts based skills / knowledge.  The question “Can you be an Arts Manager without skills or experience in either one of these areas?” (Martin Pople) is of great interest to me.

Many of the skills they refer to within the article I am pleased to. Say I have already established or am well on the way to acquiring. 

• making value judgements
• working with peers and public
• good personal management
• developing and monitoring plans
• prudent management of resources
• attending to the tasks and issues related to specific contexts and situations

My background is dance so it was no surprise to find that the view I related most to was that of Jeanette Siddall, ACE's Director of Dance. 'The individual manager is faced with a complex array of quasi-commercial tasks in the relatively chaotic, creative atmosphere that prevails in many organisations. The apparently conflicting demands of accountability and creativity have to be reconciled.'  Pople summarises by saying ‘it's about managing creativity and creatives’.  

Moving on to the next person quoted within Poples article Chris Smith, Minister for Culture and Director of the Clore Leadership Programme.  I would be interested to hear a response from the Chief Executive of BP that Smith talks of when saying ‘the Chief Executive of BP will not have a deep interest in oil and petrol per se - they are simply the means whereby his company makes money’. He clearly suggests that the arts manager was doing his job for the love and not the money.  I find myself drawn to agreeing with his proposed opinion yet one can not predict this to be true of the BP Chief Executive with out  it being confirmed by that said person.  

All I know is that the statement made by Pople ‘For anyone involved in working in the arts there are no clear career paths. Remuneration, job security, terms and conditions in the arts - in comparison to other sectors of the economy - are frankly poor and are not likely to get any better. But if you are doing what you love and truly care about, this will give you greater job satisfaction than many others’.  This seems to ring true with most if not all of my artistic friends pursuing a career within all aspects of the performing arts and suggests that arts and performing arts managers should be passionate and enthusiastic about both management and artistic awareness.

Overall the article was informative and well written, all be it slightly biased on the part of the arts manager.  But I felt it generated strong questions that would help me within my chosen professional practice.  The final sentence in particular inspired me and led me to my second piece of literature ‘realise your own artistic ambitions - and if you have ambitions, then think big’.

The 1st article and its final words ‘Think Big’ lead me to my second piece of literature that I found on entrepreneur.com called ‘Think Big’ by Robert Kiyosaki

Link - http://www.entrepreneur.com/magazine/entrepreneur/2006/november/169174.html#disqus_thread 

Kiyosaki (2006) writes an interesting and detailed account of his views and understanding on how to achieve business success by thinking big ‘Think expansion’

In this article Kiyosaki explains how from a young age he was taught about ‘leverage and expansion’ by the man he calls ‘My rich dad, the father of my best friend Mike’  His childhood stories compare his own fathers working life to his best friends dad and are both endearing and enlightening.

Once he has set the scene and drawn the reader into the belief that ‘entrepreneurial spirit’ is a rare but motivational way to be. He informs the reader about the ‘Cashflow Quadrant‘ which uses letters to highlight where your individual cashflow comes from - ‘paychecks or passive income.’  Kiyosaki then regularly refers to this to assert his points on expansion.  ‘And this is where most S-quadrant business owners stop: They keep their businesses small. When Kroc developed a franchise system for the small business, he expanded the hamburger business into the B quadrant.’

His ideas are maintained throughout and they are written in a very descriptive and simple way, helping to inspire the reader to believe they can achieve.

Kiyosaki goes on to explain the importance of the BI triangle ‘Many entrepreneurs fail simply because one or more of the eight pieces of the B-I Triangle is weak or nonexistent. Whenever I look at a struggling business, I use the B-I Triangle as an analytical reference.’  He implies that most successful businesses follow this BI concept ‘When you study most successful businesses, you will most likely find a complete and vibrant B-I Triangle in action’  His choice of words ‘many,’ ‘most likely’ only claim that his assumptions are true, yet we are certainly encouraged to believe that we the reader would benefit from the implementation of this magic triangle!

He argues his point well ‘Most of us can cook a better hamburger than McDonald's. But few of us can build a better business system than McDonald's’  I think his use of McDonald’s within this article is a great choice as everyone has heard of this big business and almost everyone will have eaten their at some point.  This helps the reader to connect with the ideas written.  

I conclude that Kiyosaki has written an inspirational piece simply stating a couple of interesting theories that small business owners like myself may very well learn from and expand their ideas with.  

Although he plugs his book ‘In my book Before You Quit Your Job, written for entrepreneurs, I write extensively about the B-I Triangle.’ I am in no way led to believe this article was a way of promoting this as he freely gives away enough information to the reader.  I however think his book may well be a very interesting read. 

Task 4c - Developing questions with my professional associate

My previous questions were the key questions that initially sprung to mind once I had established my professional practice and awards title Performing Arts Management.  The questions were all relevant to my established business and moving it forward which made me realise that I wanted to inquire about Manic Stage Productions and it’s development.  If this were to be the case I needed to think further and consider my business partners views, thoughts and opinions.  My next step in developing lines of professional inquiry was to simply speak to Matt (my business partner) and ask him to answer a new set of questions that would hopefully lead me to the ultimate inquiry question.

1. When is the right time to expand a small business? 

I am unsure as to when is the exact right time to expand, but I believe the company would feel a strain on their resources and have established the business to a point possibly beyond their expectations. You should have made a net profit and should always look at ways of expanding the business to create a bigger profit. 

2. What should you consider before expanding a small business? Whether what you're planning will benefit your business and if there is a need to expand. How bigger an expansion should be considered and the pros and cons of the development.

3. How do you fulfill a small businesses full potential? Make sure you promote your business and market it in the necessary ways. If something's not working don't be afraid to fix it or get rid of it. Always try to aim high and think big.

4. What avenues should you consider when expanding a small business? Whether you are going in the right direction, what direction you wish to move in and if you have the correct resources to do so.

5. Which 3 objectives do you focus on to expand a small business? Create a business plan, List pros and cons and Understand how to do it correctly.

6. Are we ready to expand our small business? Yes we are, we have exceeded our expectations so far and have learnt and researched other avenues for us to take safely and without forfeiting our companies reputation. It is an exciting time all be it a little nerve racking. But I am positive that we have built a strong business relationship that will help us move things forward.

Matts answers proved invaluable and highlighted two things. i] That we were at a point where expansion seemed feasible, even necessary   ii] That despite our obvious need and want for expansion, we were both inexperienced in this process and lacked essential knowledge. 

I was more certain than ever that the avenue I was most interested in inquiring about was finding the answers to small business expansion.  The do’s and don’ts, what you should consider and the many ways of achieving proposed goals.

More questions began to emerge....

How am I going to expand my business? 

What goals and targets should I set?

Should I draft up a business plan? 

Strategic planning is another way of looking at this objective – I want to look at where we are now, where we want to be and how we are going to get there .... what resources you need to achieve this and the time scale in which things should be achieved.

All of the above questions, answers and further reflection made it hard to pin point one specific inquiry question as they were all very much interlinked. Was it possible that my Inquiry question could effectively cover every point I wished to consider?  Could I simply conduct an investigative inquiry on ‘Expanding my Performing Arts Business’

Manic Stage Productions - CODE OF PRACTICE FOR OUR ARTISTS

• Always adhere to and where necessary be responsible for Insurances, Permissions, Liecences, Heath & Safety, Childrens Protection Acts, CRB Checks, Risk Assesments, Data Protection and other Legistations

• Understand prejudices and perspectives and remain impartial and politically correct at all times

• Always be proactive and generous with your knowledge and skills

• Have confidence in your ability, skills and creativity 

• Prepare thoroughly prior to each and every engagement

• Ensure a safe environment for yourself and others to work and learn in

• Know your individual strengths and weaknesses and seek to continually grow and develop 

• Follow the guidelines on conduct and responsibility at all times remaining professional, punctual, approachable, reliable, committed and enthusiastic 

• Stay true to the companies ethos

Manic Stage Productions - CODE OF PRACTICE FOR MANAGEMENT & DIRECTORS

• To always adhere to and be responsible for Insurances, Permissions, Liecences, Heath & Safety, Childrens Protection Acts, CRB Checks, Risk Assesments, Data Protection and other Legistations

• To ensure equal opportunities and equality for all employees and understand prejudices and perspectives 

• To provide and sustain work opportunities for employees and the company by always being proactive and daring to take opportunities

• To manage a professional business using critical reflection as a tool to evolve and research to help prepare thoroughly 

• To create and provide a safe environment to work and learn in

• To maintain interpersonal skills and approachability. To remain flexible and adaptable and see compromise as a form of sharing

• To be committed and responsible for the development of the company, focusing on ideas, solutions and problems. Establishing contracts and connections and negotiating relationships and responsibilities

• Provide clear, realistic guidelines on conduct and responsibility to each representative on every event and collaborate with artists to develop creativity within each project, utilising each individuals skills, experience and knowledge

• Establish professionalism, mutual respect and recognition aiming to keep staff morale high and positive

• Remain trustworthy when managing money, including wages, invoices, bill payment and bank accounts

• Stay true to the companies ethos