Shop Talk Guest and Episode Archives Are A Thing

With 13 Shop Talk episodes recorded and more planned, it’s high time for some organization. To that end, there’s a dedicated landing page with links to the main episode archives, guest list with episode links, and a Last Call archive. It’s available 24/7 from the navigation menu under “Archives.”

I’m very happy to see the series is growing in popularity with each new episode, so thank you for finding the content useful and sharing with friends and colleagues. I also want to solicit input for topics and guests. I’ve been casting a pretty wide net and so long as there’s a clear connection to the field, everything is on the table. To that end, some of the best guests to date are from outside the immediate orchestra sector.

  • NamePositon 
  • I only need this to reach out if I have trouble finding contact info for your guest suggestions or have questions about topics.

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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