1 Handbook for Young Artists HELPING ARTISTS OF EUROPE SURVIVE AS FREELANCERS AND ENTREPRENEURS
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3 Art is an important part to the social, civic, and economic wellbeing and vitality of our economies. Sadly, arts and culture have experienced significant economic setbacks from COVID-19. The global spread of COVID-19 in the early months of 2020 triggered monumental upheaval within the arts and creative industries. The instigation of lockdown measures in countries all over the world led to closure of public spaces, galleries, exhibitions, museums, arts venues, and other cultural assets. Across the spectrum of artistic and creative endeavors, restrictions on gatherings, changes in consumer behavior (voluntary or otherwise), and severe unemployment have taken a devastating toll on the sector. During this period, all the new challenges and difficulties that emerged, have changed the scenery in the art community. HeART project aims to enhance the competencies and skills of artists and individuals working in Culture and Creative Sectors. This handbook introduces a range of tools that will help you reach your goals through sustaining your practice as an artist: • It will help you better market your art using digital media, • support you in making and selling through a viable business, and most importantly • support you in increasing your personal wellbeing. Its objective is to enable you to thrive in your practice by having a sustainable business. INTRODUCTION
4 WHAT IS IT TO BE AN ARTS ENTERPRISE To sustain our arts practices, we need to create income whether it be through making and selling objects, producing scripts or song lyrics, attracting fees for productions (exhibitions and performances), or consultancy and workshops to develop others. All of these things are forms of enterprise. Enterprise for artists is being actively engaged in producing and selling on the basis of your practice, being part of a dynamic, diverse and open society. It is the way artists from all disciplines are rewarded for their contributions to society. Our practice and enterprise support each other in their success. As successful artists we have to have excellent practice and entrepreneurial skills. We need to develop our skills for practice and enterprise in order to support our success. This section will introduce key skills and help you build your practice as artists and sustaining yourself through enterprise. SKILLS FOR SUSTAINABLE PRACTICE Proactivity - the initiative, hard work and passion required to make things happen in society and the workplace. Enterprise - the mindset that takes measured risks, perceives and creates opportunities, and the resourcefulness to pursue these opportunities in an ethical and sustainable way. Agility - the ability to embrace rapid change and retain an open mind. Communication – the ability to present your work and ideas, to inspire others, and respond to feedback. Connectivity - the ability to collaborate with others, create networks and develop and contribute to communities of practice. Storytelling - the ability to demonstrate your unique abilities and experiences to others in an engaging manner Curiosity - the enthusiasm to seek out new perspectives, to create and build on existing knowledge. Self-Efficacy - confidence in your abilities, and the ability to respond positively in various situations. Resilience – the willingness to adapt and remain motivated, overcome obstacles, and deal with ambiguity, uncertainty and rejection. ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS
5 This exercise is suitable for artist from all disciplines. This first exercise asks you to fill in a diagnosis tool which will help you reflect on where you already have strengths in relation to the skills sets for entrepreneurship and where you need to work to build your skills further. We recommend that everyone fill in the diagnosis tool and review your results before proceeding to complete other exercises. STEP 1: Start by completing the Creative Attributes Framework for Enterprise Reflection Tool. It is a survey which takes about 20 minutes to complete. It can be found through this link: https://glos.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/creativeattributesframework STEP 2 You will be provided a set of results which will include your scores against each (closer to 5 being your strengths and closer to 1 being areas you need to build further) and a diagram that will help you compare them. Please review your results and answer the following questions, writing your answers down: • Which two areas are you strongest at? • Which two areas do you most need to build? STEP 3: Using the following table, plan for how you are going to use your strengths and build on your areas for development. We have provided an example for each: Skills Reflection Objective Action Plan Curiosity I am curious, always looking in to new ways of doing things and interested in finding out about new things that are going on. To use my curiosity to find new ways of selling my paintings. Attend 3 openings and discuss with other artists alternative ways to sell my work. Review 3 artists is respect and review how they have built their profile – contacting them for a conversation Self-efficacy I often lack confidence in my abilities. As a result, I do not put myself forward to be selected for performances. To become more confident and put myself forward for selection in performances. Attend a workshop to help me become better at presenting myself confidently. Work with a coach / friend to put myself forward for performances and attend auditions. To attend 3 over the next 2 months. Time needed: 30 minutes Task: Complete survey, review your results, and plan for action. Reflecting on Your Skills using the Creative Attributes Framework Difficulty: Easy
6 CURIOSITY AND SPOTTING OPPORTUNITIES Curiosity is one of the key attributes of artists who sustain their practice. If we maintain an enthusiasm for innovation and are inquisitive about new ways of doing things we can ensure that we maintain a fresh approach to what we do. It can also be personally enriching to continue learning and do new things. One of the key things our curiosity gives us is the ability to spot new opportunities. These opportunities might be to go about our practice in new ways, including how we run the enterprise part of our practice. Examples of spotting opportunities include where we: • Experiment with using different materials to make their work • Use a different production technique • Work with a different team of people • Sell our work in a different way Spotting opportunities for doing things differently lead to important developments in our practice. SOURCING OPPORTUNITIES AND BIDDING FOR WORK One of the keys to spotting opportunities is knowing where to look for ideas. One way of spotting new ideas and opportunities is to go somewhere different and meet new people. Going to industry events, openings, and seminars are important sources of ideas and you need to put time into them when building and maintaining your practice. It is common for artists to bid for opportunities to make, present or perform work. For different areas of practice there are well-known internet portals and newsletters which will be useful in identifying these opportunities. It is important that you identify them and engage with them frequently. Once you have identified an opportunity it is important that you can communicate and present your work and ideas. That means you need to be able to engage in storytelling – pitch what you do, understand what funders want from your work, and write a bid that responds to their brief. SPOTTING OPPORTUNITIES
7 “If a window of opportunity appears, don’t pull down the shade.” - TOM PETERS “The entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity.” - PETER DRUCKER
8 This exercise is suitable for artists from all disciplines and is intended to help you to find more opportunities and to remember to apply on time. STEP 1 Make a table with three columns. In the first column write the header, Opportunity listings. In the second column write the heading, opportunity and in the third write the heading deadline date. STEP 2 Populate the first column with all the places you can find opportunities in your country and if you like internationally (e.g. Artquest, Artsjobs.org). STEP 3 In the second column start putting in opportunities from each of those places that are relevant to your practice and your goals. STEP 4 In the third column write the date that they are due. This exercise is suitable for artist from all disciplines. It is intended to help you to write and rehearse an elevator pitch so that you can tell people about your practice in a clear and succinct way. This will help with telling your story of who you are, what you do, and why they will want to join in. STEP 1 Start by thinking of 3 words about your practice that sum it up well. STEP 2 Develop those words into sentences, and keep repeating them with slight changes until they feel right. STEP 3 Then rehearse talking about what you do for 60 seconds using those sentences as your starting point.Repeat your rehearsal trying to shave off 10 seconds each time until you get down to 20-30 seconds, the ideal length of an elevator pitch STEP 4 Keep on rehearsing until you can repeat it by heart and it feels natural. Time needed: 60 minutes Difficulty: Moderate Task: To identify potential opportunities to create income for your practice Spotting Opportunities Time needed: 20 minutes Difficulty: Moderate Task: To develop and present your elevator pitch Your Elevator Pitch
9 This activity is designed to help you to think about your work from the perspective of the funder / purchaser. Put yourself in their shoes. STEP 1 Write a hypothetical application brief for an artist opportunity. STEP 2 Include the submission guidelines including: 1. What the opportunity is, where, why, who, when, how? 2. What is required to apply (e.g. and artist statement, ten images or examples of recent works with labels, why you are suited to the opportunity, statement of proposed work and CV.) This exercise is suitable for artist from all disciplines. It is intended to help you develop the ability to write a written application for funding. STEP 1 Write a draft proposal for an opportunity you have identified and would like to make happen. STEP 2 Write about and show images to support your idea. Remember to show: • Who you are • What you would like to do • Why you would like to do it • How you will go about doing it • Where you will make the opportunity happen • How all of this meets the brief Time needed: 15 minutes Difficulty: Moderate Task: Writing a funding brief Creating a Brief Time needed: 2 hours Difficulty: Moderate Task: Writing an application in response to a brief Creating an Application
10 This exercise is suitable for artist from all disciplines. It is intended to help you develop the ability to present a pitch for funding. STEP 1 Take your draft proposal prepared in the previous exercise. Imagine that you have been invited to present and pitch for the funding. Prepare your presentation: STEP 2 Think about which is the best format of a presentation – what will your funder want / expect to see. STEP 3 Develop the materials for the pitch – be it a PowerPoint presentation, demonstration of parts of a performance, mocked up images of how an exhibition of physical work could look. STEP 4 Present the pitch to a colleague, mentor or tutor asking them respond to the following questions: • Did I demonstrate what I propose to do clearly? • Was it clear how I would put the proposal into action? • Did what I proposed meet the brief? • Would you be convinced to fund me? Where the answer is no to any of these questions how can things be changed to enable me to improve? Time needed: 1 Hour preparation +30minutes presentation and feedback Task: Developing and delivering a pitch Pitching to a Brief Difficulty: Hard
11 VISIONING YOUR LIFE Visioning is how we set our goals for the future. It requires us to think about what we want our future to be like to determine our goals. To do that we have to use our imagination and allow ourselves to dream a little about what we want to achieve. It is important that when you do that you don’t just focus on your artistic practice. You also need to imagine what all areas of your life might be like. This is called a whole-life approach. Where will you live, with whom, what will you do outside of your practice, and what will it really cost in time and financial resources to do those things. Once you have the answers to these sorts of questions you can turn them into objectives. It is sensible to set personal, professional, and financial life objectives. You can then work proactively towards them. INTEGRATING YOUR LIFE OBJECTIVES Once you have an idea of your life objectives you need to think about how you can integrate them, making different aspects of your life work together. For example, artists often make decisions on where they live on the basis of where their customers are located and where they can afford the space they desire for their work. Also, many artists have had to think about how they cater for the needs of their children whilst meeting the demands of their practice. When it comes to finances you need to consider how your practice will provide the resources needed to sustain your life as a whole. Taking your life objectives as your starting point, you need to work out what financial resources you will need, and work back to determine how your practice can be run to deliver them. VISION
12 “In order to carry a positive action we must develop here a positive vision.” - DALAI LAMA “Live the Life of Your Dreams: Be brave enough to live the life of your dreams according to your vision and purpose instead of the expectations and opinions of others.” - ROY T. BENNETT
13 This task is designed for artists from different disciplines to help you to think about planning for the near and more distant future. Remember that you might want to adapt the timings of your plan- perhaps it suits you better to do 6 months, 1 year, or 2 years for example. You must also be aware that these plans are adaptable and not set in stone. You will need to be able to respond to opportunities as they arise. They should be useful against your career objectives. STEP 1 Take a piece of paper and split it into three columns. Write 1 year in the first column, 3 years in the second and 5 years in the third. Then split the page down into rows: Personal, Professional and Financial. STEP 2 Imagine where you what you want to archive by those points in each of those areas of your life over time. What are your personal, professional and financial objectives (your life objectives). STEP 3 Now fill in each section with a plan or a number of aims for that year. Remember to think about your plans being, achievable and measurable. When doing this you might bear in mind one aim whilst considering another. For example, some of your personal objectives might impact your financial objectives. Time needed: 5-30 minutes Task: N/A Visioning your 1-3-5 year plan Difficulty: Moderate
14 This exercise is suitable for artists from all disciplines. This activity is designed to help you to map out how much time you are spending on particular activities and to help to decide where you need to focus your attention to develop your career further. Do you need to shift focus? Find a sheet of paper – A3 if possible – but whatever you have available. Section your paper into 8 pieces. Give each section a heading You can pick your own if you have other headings that you prefer. Now give yourself a score for each section, 1 being area where you feel that you have made least progress and 10 where you have made the most. Those areas where you have the most focus will have the highest scores. Identify which those are and ask yourself the following questions: 1. Which areas have I made less progress? 2. What are consequences of me not having progressed those areas? 3. What is it that has prevented me from making progress on those areas? 4. Should I put more focus on those areas? 5. How will I ensure I focus more on those areas I have identified as needing more progress? Time needed: 30 minutes Difficulty: Easy Task: An analysis of where you focus your time / effort Creating Focus for Productivity 1. PRODUCING WORK How much attention you pay to making your creative outputs and how frequently you do this? 2. WORK/LIFE BALANCE How much balance have you created between your work / practice and the rest of your life? 3. WHO I KNOW/NETWORK To what extent do you have a strong network that allows you to achieve your goals for your practice? 4. FINANCE/SECURITY How confident are you that your finances are secure? 5. SKILL DEVELOPMENT How successful have you been in developing skills for your career and in general in life? 6. SHOWING WORK/EXHIBITIONS/ENGAGING AUDIENCES How have you engaged audiences? Are you happy with where you have shown your work / performed? 7. MARKETING/SOCIAL MEDIA The what extent have you promoted your work? Is engagement strong? 8. WELLBEING AND ENJOYMENT Are you enjoying your work and life? How have you made sure that your practice supports your general wellbeing?
15 BUILDING CONFIDENCE One thing that holds people back from meeting their objectives and implementing their plan, whether artists or not, is a lack of confidence. We might worry if we have the ability to deliver a project or about how our work will be received by an audience. It is important that you don’t let these sorts of worries prevent you from working proactively towards your objectives. That means you need to build your self-efficacy – your belief in your abilities to carry out all areas of your practice whether it be to make work or present our ideas to a potential client. One way to start building your confidence is to think about your successes and what you are good at. Everyone has a range of things that they are good at and you should take time to reflect on yours. You can then move on to identify what you are less confident about, and figure out what you can do to change it. OVERCOMING YOUR FEARS Building our belief in our abilities often comes down to how we feel about our skills and aptitudes. Especially where we haven’t done something before we might be nervous about our ability to do it. These three things will help you build your confidence: Learn it – rehearse it at a workshop or with friends in a safe environment. Practice it – give it a go for real. Repeat it – do it again and again so that you improve and become fully confident. Keeping a journal can help you identify your successes and areas where you need to improve. By reflecting as things occur it makes sure you don’t miss those successes that might otherwise be overlooked. It will also make sure you don’t ignore the areas where you need to develop. Over time it will also allow you to look back and see how you overcame worries, giving you the confidence to take on bigger challenges more readily. SELF-AWARENESS AND SELF EFFICACY
16 “Self-belief does not necessarily ensure success, but self-disbelief assuredly spawns failure.” - FROM SELF-EFFICACY: THE EXERCISE OF CONTROL, 1997
17 This activity is suitable for artists from different disciplines. Engaging with journaling aims to help you to reflect on your career so far, your aspirations for the future, and help you to get a sense of what you need to do to progress your career further. Each day do a simple three lines of journaling- Write what you are grateful for in that day in relation to your career. 1) 2) 3) Answering the questions below can also be helpful in helping you write. Answer them in a notebook regularly and then come back to them again every few days or weeks to see how your answers have changed. Use your reflections to help you think about what you should carry on doing and where you might need to make changes and how. Time needed: 10 minutes per entry Task: To create reflective journal Reflective Journaling Difficulty: Easy 1. Who are you? 2. What do you do? 3. What experience have you got? 4. Who is involved? 5. Who do you do it for? 6. How do you do it? 7. What makes you unique? 8. How is your approach/service/product different? 9. How do you add value? 10. Where do you get your creative inspiration from? 11. Why do you do it? 12. What motivates you? 13. How do you define success? 14. What have been your biggest successes to date? 15. What is important to you – in terms of career development and personal values? 16. What is most important to you and why? 17. What do you want from your audience? 18. What do you want them to do? 19. List some of your biggest challenges to date? 20. How did you overcome them? 21. What are your current challenges or things that you are putting up with at the moment? 22. What are you career goals over the next few years?
18 MOBILISING RESOURCES A fundamental resource in an artist’s practice is the artist themselves – their creativity, skills and ability to deliver their work. However, artists utilise a range of other resources when building their practice. These include materials, equipment, space, as well as the labour and expertise of others. It is important that you consider which resources you need to deliver your vision of your practice. You need to start by listing the resources that you need. Some questions might help you do this: • What equipment do you need to make or perform your work? • What materials do you need? • What time do you have for your practice? • Do you need to support of assistants and for what? • Is the expertise of others – e.g. structural engineers or gallery owners – needed? Once you have your list you can start to think about where you might source these resources. BUILDING YOUR NETWORKS Artists who earn a living through their practice are adept at finding the resources they need to be successful. They use their networks to locate and mobilise resources. Who you know and their willingness to collaborate with you, will be central to your success and you need to put time and effort into developing your networks. Building your network will require you to become part of a community of practice, sometimes making contributions without expecting anything in return. People will notice that and be more likely to help you when they have something to offer you but have little expectation of a return. At other times, you will build your network with a specific objective in mind. For example, you may seek the help of someone with a particular expertise and have a clear idea of what you can offer them in return. It is essential that you invest in building and maintaining your networks, alongside the other works of your practice. MOBILISING RESOURCES
19 “Networking is an investment in your business. It takes time and when done correctly can yield great results for years to come.” - DIANE HELBIG “Networking is not about just connecting people. It’s about connecting people with people, people with ideas, and people with opportunities.” - MICHELE JENNAE
20 This exercise is suitable for artists from different disciplines and is designed to help you to reflect on who you know already in your networks and to think about how your connection might be mutually beneficial. This will help you to use your existing network and to build your network further. Reflect on the following questions: WHO DO I ALREADY KNOW • Who do I know? • What is my relationship to them? • What do they do? • How might they be able to help me? • How might I be able to help them? • How might I make contact with them? WHO MIGHT IT BE USEFUL TO KNOW- • Who might it be useful to try to meet? • What do they do? • How might they be able to help me? • How might I be able to help them? • How might I contact them? Time needed: 15 minutes Task: To analyse your network and how to grow it The Connection Exercise Difficulty: Easy
21 FINANCIAL OBJECTIVES Once you have established your life objectives, you will need to consider what financial resources you will need to achieve them. It is important to define realistic expectations, as this will determine the scale of your practice - the amount of work you need to sell and the prices at which you will need to sell at. The greater the level of income you need, the more work you will need to put in to building your practice and achieving its success. At the same time, it is important to understand that artists can only charge for their work what the market will bear given their reputation. The more people demand your work, the more you will be able to charge. This means that, over time, you need to work on increasing your reputation and promoting your work, in order to sell more of your products at higher prices to achieve your goals. COSTING AND PRICING The income you can earn will be determined by the level of your costs for producing work compared to the amount you can sell it for. You will always want to make a work for less than you sell it for. Costs You need to keep close track of all of your costs – and preferably know what they are before you start making a work. Ask yourself if the total estimated cost is going to be covered by a sale before you make the work. If it isn’t, don’t make it. Pricing Artists sometimes under-price their work and as a result give themselves less than the minimum wage. At the same time, it is important not to overprice your work as it is difficult to recover in the market once having done this. When setting your prices, compare yourself to others at a similar career stage who sell work, or seek the advice of agents or galleries. FINANCES, COSTS AND SETTING PRICES
22 “Money, like emotions, is something you must control to keep your life on the right track.” - NATASHA MUNSON “All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.” - WALT DISNEY
23 This exercise is specifically designed for visual fine artists but could be adapted for other disciplines. It is designed to help you to create a pricing structure for your work. STEP 1 Work out the cost of creating the work- what are your overheads? What are the material costs? How long does it take you to make? Think about: Studio costs- including bills I.e. Phone/Internet etc Rent and bills (Household costs) Pension and savings Food/Living expenses Maternity and Childcare Travel costs and Holiday Pay Administration costs i.e. marketing, accounting etc If you live in a big city that is expensive include an extra amount to account for higher prices. STEP 2 Think about what kind of product you normally make. Is it heavily material based or digital, is it a one off or an edition, is it a time-based medium, is it 3D or 2D? What size is it? What stage of career are you at? STEP 3 Add selling costs. Consider the fact that some galleries will take 50% commission so factor this in to all prices. Don’t change your prices if commission is more or less. Factor in 50% always STEP 4 Consider what contingency or income protection you might need. Remember your prices need to have room to go up. What is the price for? A sale of a one-off work? An edition? A bespoke commission? Write notes about how this would affect the price of the work. Time needed: 5-30 minutes Task: Produce a pricing structure Pricing Your Work Difficulty: Moderate
24 Refer to the following resources for artist rates of pay. https://www.artistsunionengland.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/HERE.pdf https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/sites/default/files/download-file/ACNLPG_Fair_pay_0.pdf Can you find equivalent from your country if you aren’t from the UK? 1. Then work out your hourly rate. 2. Think about what is the minimum wage in your country. What is the average annual salary for a full-time worker? 3. Use other artists who are at a similar career stage to you and who make similar work as a benchmark. 4. Now archive the works available with the prices. 5. Create a spreadsheet. 6. Add these titles- (for fine artists). 7. List the work’s title, Materials, Dimensions, when it was made, where it is consigned, price including 50% commission.
25 PRIORITISE, ORGANIZE AND FOLLOW UP To invest in the creation and growth of a business you must take special care of the tools you have available to do so. It is not just amatter of knowing them, but also of mastering themwith awareness and effectiveness. A Maker must Perform! In order to meet their objectives, an entrepreneur (whether aspiring or experienced, it makes no difference) must plan, schedule and control their activities, with regularity and mastery: planning, scheduling and controlling. These tasks are interrelated and essential to the management of your business and your projects in a range of different fields. As a result there are easy to use apps and software tools that can help you take care of all three. Design the process through which a desirable future scenario for the growth of your Art-Business is set. This is called “planning” = how you define our Art-enterprises objectives. Here you analyse their feasibility, the most suitable strategies to achieve them, the possible benefits that would result, and the time required to achieve them. DRAW THE HORIZON Planning, programming and management control are processes that complement each other. Each phase is characterised by a time horizon that is getting shorter and shorter. Step by step, as you move from one phase to the next, the details of the objectives and the means of achieving them increase. Thus we speak of: 1. ORIENT YOUR FUTURE = Strategic planning: translates your company’s mission into strategic goals to be achieved in the long term. It is important because it defines the future of the company itself and orients all its work; 2. ACTONTIME = Tactical planning: strategic objectives are “translated” into concrete actions to be carried out within a given period of time, usually from 3 to 5 years; 3. MOVE WITH STRATEGY = Operational planning: transform your tactical objectives into operational objectives, i.e. goals to be achieved within a short period of time through a series of strategic actions. Usually this period well encompasses a year’s work. PLANNING & MANAGEMENT
26 THE PLANNING AND CONTROL PROCESS INVOLVES BOTH MANAGEMENT AND THE ENTREPRENEUR AND IS DIVIDED INTO SEVERAL PHASES: 1. Why do I exist? - Define your Art/ company mission: which is the role that the company wants to play in the market? Identify its ultimate goal in terms of growth, development and image; 2. Where am I? - Analysis of the starting situation: this analysis highlights the environment in which your Art/company operates and its sector (expected demand for products, supply, number of competitors, ...). Another important element of this phase is the identification of the so-called critical success factors (CSF), i.e. those elements that most influence the success and performance of a company. 3. What makes me myself? – Evaluation of strengths and weaknesses: strengths are the factors and characteristics that determine the success of your Art/ company (or a particular product) within the industry in which it operates. The weaknesses are the same factors and characteristics considered in relation to the strongest competitor; 4. Which is my destination? - Definition of objectives: This is a very important phase in which the contours of the company’s future are set. The entrepreneur specifies the results (qualitative and quantitative) that he wants to achieve in a certain period of time; 5. How to make my dreams possible? - Formulation of business strategies: action programs are defined that make it possible to finalize the use of resources to achieve the objectives. The strategies are formalized in function plans that are contained in the general business plan, which is divided into: • business plan; which summarizes the costs and revenues forecast by the company’s departments for the time span considered • investment plan; which summarizes the nature and amount of all the investments and related disinvestments planned for the time frame considered • financial plan; which shows the capital requirements necessary for the planned investments; and • capital plan; which shows the foreseeable effects of implementing the plan on the company’s capital structure; What are my resources? - Approval and execution of the strategic plan: annual operating programs are prepared, which are translated into the budget.
27 “A goal without a plan is just a wish” - ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPÉRY “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” - BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
28 Read the following case study, discuss in group and then formulate an alternative solution. CHALLENGE: A HIGHLY COMPLEX RESTART The basis of the case study is the desire to go over, theoretically first and operationally later, the realization of a cultural event, with special attention to the design phase. The starting hypothesis is the personal involvement in the project that will be treated as houses of the organizing association; with the task of dealing with the event sponsorship and promotion together with others. In recent years in L’Aquila (a very culturally dynamic Italian city) there has been an increasing need to organize city events in the historic center, which would be able to recreate moments of aggregation for young people and local families, now dispersed too peripherally following the earthquake that struck the Abruzzo capital in 2009. Moreover, with the specific event, it is intended to re-propose a valid, and at the same time completely different, alternative to the “May 1 Concert” in Rome. The objective is to analyze the processes that lead to the realization of an artistic-cultural event from both a strategic and operational point of view, starting from the analysis and evaluation of what has been achieved in the two previous editions, can outline a strategy for capitalizing on good practices and, at the same time, find concrete solutions to any problems encountered during the organization. The case study consists of four parts, the first of which will address from a theoretical point of view the concept of an event, with subsequent declination according to different characteristics. The second part will deal more specifically with the topic of cultural event, from the phase of conception to the phase of evaluating the results obtained and the achievement of objectives, through planning and implementation activities. We will then focus on how much the event has contributed over the years to laying the foundation for the redevelopment of the area concerned. The third part is intended to be first a micro-environmental level study of the local context, with research of the cultural events that have sprung up in the city, paying attention to the differences that inevitably exist pre- and post-earthquake; this will be followed by a focus on the case event, at the end of which an onsite survey will be conducted in the form of a questionnaire in order to enjoy important feedback from the target audience. Last part: analysis of the responses given and other evaluations will lead to results that will finally be detailed in the final conclusions. Exercise / Activity
29 MAKE DECISIONS DEALING WITH UNCERTAINTY, AMBIGUITY AND RISK When you search Risk Management on Google you will see more than 1.3 billion results, and for the word Risk you will see about 2 billion results! The theme of risk management is not just an interest of a few and therefore of professionals in the sector, but has become a “must”. “All organizations, both private and public, of any sector, of any size, are faced with uncertainty, resulting from external and internal factors that make the achievement of their objectives random”. Risk = Unknown = Opportunity The new frameworks and international standards clarify that the risk should no longer be considered exclusively in its negative sense, but broaden the perspective of its meaning, including the unknown, or uncertainty. A new interpretation is given to risk, emphasising the positive aspects of risk, in terms of opportunities for organizations. Be ready for the change: Risk management becomes a fundamental propeller for managing uncertainty, seizing opportunities and always with a view to improving the organisation; all this, in order to protect and mainly create value in an external context in continuous evolution. And here we come to the pivotal point, not to mention the epochal turning point of risk management. Risk Management, also in view of the economic-financial crisis that has afflicted many companies in recent years, can no longer be considered an isolated COPING WITH UNCERTAINTY, AMBIGUITY & RISK
30 process within the organisation, owned exclusively by experts in the field (such as Risk managers, Internal Auditors). The classic structure of the risk management is based on: risk identification, risk analysis, risk evaluation, risk treatment. The new paradigms, shift to “Strategy”, “Performance”, “Value Creation”, “Commitment”, “Leadership”. The interactivity and integration of Risk Management into the business context becomes fundamental, so the emphasis is no longer on mere risk reduction or management of potential threats. You must always remember that: • Without decision-making there are no risks; • Without risks, there are no opportunities; • Corporate culture starts and develops with the board; • Protection and value creation depend on trust and stakeholder engagement. NAVIGATE THE EXTRAORDINARY THROUGH: • Adaptive capacity • Proactively facing and adjusting to changing circumstances and environments • Using creativity as resilience facilitator • Preparation and diversification • Be inspired by art business success stories & case studies https://www.starterstory.com/ideas/art-business/successstories RESILIENCE STRATEGIES: • Finding new spaces and possibilities to continue making art • Presence is essential - you can resist but you have to stick together, continue to interact. • Get out of isolation - Chorality of talents - working together to create something better • Sales vs. Exchange vs. Sharing • Reduce costs by pooling resources • Co-living - artist residences • The starving artist works for free; the thriving artist always works for something • Perseverance pays off • Keep your day job - Stay in the groove • Freedom from financial stress allows you the freedom within your art Obviously, without the growth of the risk culture, in terms of awareness and mastery, a real implementation of the risk management system is not possible; and this is where specialists in the sector (Risk Managers and Internal Auditors) come into play to support and/or supervise the risk management system and even before that in the role of risk trainers and/or coaches. Always bear in mind that, without Board commitment, all of this remains a mere fulfilment of the efforts made. In consideration of what has been written above, only after having thought out and chosen the strategy (duly aligned with the company mission) and defined the correlated objectives can attention be focused on performance and risks (threats and opportunities), as well as on appropriate monitoring and controls. It is therefore considered that Risk Management “is not an objective of business organisations, but above all it is not a project with a scheduled beginning and end, nor can it be included in the strategic map”. Rather, it is an “essential and natural component of the company, one of the main critical success factors of any organisation”, especially in a scenario characterised by complexity, high volatility and technological innovation.
31 “Fear and resistance must be overcome by looking at the lens: everything can be an obstacle or a springboard” - UNKNOWN “When bankers get together for dinner, they discuss Art. When artists get together for dinner, they discuss Money” - OSCAR WILDE
32 THE CASE Lend Lease Corporation Limited is an Australian-based multinational company that specialises in project management and construction, property investment management and property development. The company has over 11,485 employees operating in more than 40 countries around the world where the Bovis Lend Lease division constructs and manages large building projects. THE CHALLENGE Lend Lease is leading a development teamthat includes Bovis Lend Lease as a project and constructionmanager for the residential development and infrastructure for Phase One of the Stratford City project. This involves the construction of up to 3000 residential dwellings and related accommodation that are due for completion in late 2011. As the preferred development partner for Zones 2-7 of the Stratford City regeneration scheme, the company needed to implement the latest risk management technologies and model of proposed developments processes to help ensure the successful delivery of this key project on budget and within tight timescales. THE SOLUTION “Predict!” was selected after a rigorous ITT process which included a detailed analysis of all potential solutions. Risk Decisions was one of the only suppliers able to demonstrate a track record of successful implementations and delivery of high levels of support to organisations of a similar scale working on large complex projects. Predict! was also one of the only systems to meet all Lend Lease’s requirements for an intuitive and easy to learn system that could be configured to meet the needs of a wide range of different users across the organization. Prior to installation on Lend Lease’s servers based in Atlanta, USA, Risk Decisions conducted a masterclass to introduce the concept of risk management at the highest level and a series of workshops with different stakeholder groups to determine configuration requirements. The company has also provided additional consultancy support to assist with stakeholder mapping and setting a framework to enable risk management to be rolled out and embedded as a core process and procedure. Lend Lease has deployed Predict!, the latest enterprise version of Risk Decisions’ powerful suite of risk management and analysis software which includes Predict! Risk Controller and Predict! Risk Analyser. It also intends to implement Predict! Risk Controller Lite, a unique solution that uses familiar spreadsheets to enable infrequent and remote users to provide regular updates on risks. This module will also be a key change management tool to assist in the embedding of risk management across the organisation and will be deployed early in 2009. Predict!’s enterprise dashboard summary is of particular importance to the Stratford City project as it provides a clear view of all risks across the organisation and enables them to be managed across different layers for rapid resolution. Risks can be categorised and scored with qualitative and quantitative impacts scaled for interpretation from different stakeholder perspectives. According to John Walsh, Head of Risk, Athletes Village Stratford: “Predict! is enabling us to meet all regulatory requirements for corporate governance and the management of risk and provides stakeholders with high levels of confidence in our ability to deliver this complex project on time and within budget. It will play an important role in increasing accountability, identification, assessment and role in the management of all risks.” Exercise / Activity
33 RISK DECISIONS – LEADERS IN OUR FIELD Being naturally risk-aware, we don’t make claims lightly. So when we say that Risk Decisions is the expert in innovative, practical and effective risk management, we mean it. Our people have many years’ practical experience as programme and risk managers in major corporations and government organisations. We have a thorough knowledge of good practice and global risk management standards. Our consultants play a significant role in influencing risk management policy and guidance, which includes a major contribution to government risk management guides, membership of the key risk management bodies and taking part in working parties and conferences designed to improve best practice. Most importantly, we lead by example and through building strong relationships with our clients. We maintain our competitive edge by constantly developing our services and products to meet new needs.
34 MAIN PRINCIPLES OF SETTING EFFECTIVE GOAL Clarity: Goals must be clear and specific. Challenge: Goals should be sufficiently challenging to keep individuals engaged and focused while performing the tasks needed to reach each goal. Commitment: Individuals need to understand and support the goal they are being assigned from the beginning. Feedback: Feedback is an important component of the goal-setting theory. Complexity: Goals should be broken down into smaller goals. SMART GOALS Specific: Goals should be written in a simple and clearly define what you are going to do. Specific is the What, Why, and How of the SMART model, i.e. specific answers the questions “what is to be done?” “How will you know it is done?” and describes the results (end product) of the work to be done. Measurable: The goal’s progress is measurable in terms of objective and easily share-able quantity quality and time measures. Attainable: In other words, “realistic” is based on your skills and other important external factors. Relevant: Goals need to be clearly linked tomeaningful or positive outcomes. Time Bound: Goals require a specified deadline PSYCHOLOGICAL EMPOWERMENT GOALS SETTING
35 WHAT IS SUCCESS Success cannot be defined in a single sentence but rather is comprised of many factors. One might argue that the definition varies depending on the individual and that one size does not fit all. To achieve your goals, you should first consider what it is that you want to accomplish and suggesting to start with the below questions: • What is most important to you? • What do you think makes for a successful life? • Is there anyone whom you admire? • What is it about their life or life • Choices you wish to emulate? • How much are you willing to commit to achieving your goals? • How will you know when you have “succeeded”? WORK-LIFE BALANCE Work-life balance refers to an equilibrium state, where one effectively balances work or career demands and those of their personal life. • Signs your work is taking over your life • You work longer hours than your colleagues • You cannot ‘turn off’ at the end of the day • You tie your personal worth solely to your work success • Your relationships are strained • Your work life is negatively impacting your health • You ignore hobbies and activities outside of work that used to bring you joy • You always feel behind no matter how much you do
36 “Build your own dreams or someone else will hire you to build theirs.” - FARRAH GRAY “Inspiration comes from within yourself. One has to be positive. When you’re positive, good things happen.” - DEEP ROY
37 OBJECTIVE Participants will be able to understand the process of setting SMART goals to accomplish a task at the workplace.. INSTRUCTIONS Time needed: 30 minutes Task: Set SMART Goals SMART Goal Setting Difficulty: N/A 1. Write your profession/expertise in the middle of the circle. 2. Write 3 individual goals and objectives inside the circles. 3. Ask yourself the following questions for each Goal / Objective: Specific • What do I want to get done? • Where will I do it? • When will it get done? • Who will be involved? • Which resources are needed and which limits are there? • Why do you want to do it? Measurable • How much? • How many? • How will I know when it is accomplished? Achievable • How can I accomplish this goal? • How realistic is the goal, based on other constraints, such as financial factors? Relevant • Does this seem worthwhile? • Is this the right time? • Does this match our other efforts/needs? • Am I the right person to reach this goal? Time-bound • When? • What can I do six months from now? • What can I do six weeks from now? • What can I do today? 4. Reflect on the above questions to review, if the goals that you have set are SMART. If you don’t have clear answers to the majority of the above questions, it’s better to reorient and rethink your targets.
38 Time needed: 15-20 minutes Task: Define Success How I define Success? Difficulty: Moderate 1. Write 5 qualities / characteristics of highly successful people (eg. hard working, commitment, ethics etc) 2. Write your own 5 most important qualities
39 GROWTH ΜINDSET It is a common misconception that “Positive Psychology” is just about being “happy”; on the contrary, Positive Psychology encourages individuals to embrace every personal attribute and life facet, whilst highlighting the positive characteristics and/or events. One of the cordial notions of Positive Psychology is the power and impact the person has in its own self and life in order to shape their life-experience and path. Positive Psychology encourages people to take command, enhance the parts of life and their selves they find favorable and functioning, hence amplifying their feelings of self-efficacy, self-worth, meaning in life and having a sense of “purpose”. When levels of self-worth and efficacy are high, people also experience elevated feelings of optimism and hopefulness, which makes them more willing to take calculated risks, try new experiences and eventually discover more things they enjoy doing or they are good at; both supporting their journey for self-discovery, happiness and success. Focusing on strengths rather than problems offers control to the person and a new mindset; hence people have the psychological resilience and capacity to start anew when they decide to, rather than feeling being permanently broken or failing. A growth mindset is “the understanding that abilities and understanding can be developed”. Those with a growth mind-set believe that they can master new skills, improve their intelligence, and become more charismatic through putting in time and effort. A fixed mindset is one that assumes abilities and understanding are relatively fixed. Those with a fixed mind-set may not believe that intelligence can be enhanced, or that you either “have it or you don’t” when it comes to abilities and talents. The main difference between the two mind-sets is the belief in the permanence of intelligence and ability; one views it as very permanent, with little to no room for change in either direction, while the other views it as more changeable, with opportunities for improvement (or, for that matter, regression). In summary, individuals who believe their talents and positive attributes can be developed (through hard work, meticulous planning, and constructive feedback from others) have a “growth mindset”. Those individuals tend to achieve more than those with a close mindset do. This is because they embrace the role of a “life-long learner” and worry less about being perfect and right all the time, alas they put more energy into learning and are more subjective to feedback, embracing multiple points of view and knowledge resources .
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