So Far, It’s Still All About Millennials

Early results from this year’s reader segmentation survey indicate that Millennial readers continue to comprise the majority of overall Adaptistration readers. Based on the nearly 150 replies at the time this article was written, Millennial readers comprise a slightly higher percentage of overall readers compared to last year’s survey.

MillennialsHaving said that, there are some intriguing differences as well and it will be interesting to see if they end up in the same places by the end of the survey. Here’s an overview of what the early data is showing:

  1. Last year, there was nearly a 50/50 split between male and female Millennial readers but so far, male readers have increased to a 60 percent share.
  2. Ethnic diversity among Millennial readers is higher than last year, although Caucasian readers continue to comprise the majority.
  3. There’s a small increase in the ratio of Millennial readers identifying themselves as a nonprofit performing arts executive, manager, or staffer.
  4. There’s a sharp uptick in the number of those identifying as an arts manager working in development.
  5. Millennial readers are reading slightly fewer culture blogs but are engaging with peers more often about what they read.
I’m very anxious to see where these trends will go so to that end, if you haven’t done so already, thank you in advance for taking a moment to complete the survey.

You can learn more about the Millennial readers in a special Readership Segmentation Survey article dedicated exclusively to results from that demographic. As a bonus, if you’re all about infographics, then you’re going to love the big infographic at the end!

Lastly, if you want to learn more about Millennials as arts managers, set aside some time today to read a related post from the end of 2013 titled The Habits Of Successful Young Arts Admin Professionals; it shares some insights about the traits (good and not-so-good) among Millennials who stand out from their peers along with how these qualities are sometimes very different from previous generations.

About Drew McManus

"I hear that every time you show up to work with an orchestra, people get fired." Those were the first words out of an executive's mouth after her board chair introduced us. That executive is now a dear colleague and friend but the day that consulting contract began with her orchestra, she was convinced I was a hatchet-man brought in by the board to clean house.

I understand where the trepidation comes from as a great deal of my consulting and technology provider work for arts organizations involves due diligence, separating fact from fiction, interpreting spin, as well as performance review and oversight. So yes, sometimes that work results in one or two individuals "aggressively embracing career change" but far more often than not, it reinforces and clarifies exactly what works and why.

In short, it doesn't matter if you know where all the bodies are buried if you can't keep your own clients out of the ground, and I'm fortunate enough to say that for more than 15 years, I've done exactly that for groups of all budget size from Qatar to Kathmandu.

For fun, I write a daily blog about the orchestra business, provide a platform for arts insiders to speak their mind, keep track of what people in this business get paid, help write a satirical cartoon about orchestra life, hack the arts, and love a good coffee drink.

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