Drew McManus on the orchestra business.
Do you know what a HiPPO is? I bet you’ve encountered one in a meeting whether you knew it or now. For those unfamiliar with the acronym, HiPPO stands for Highest Paid Person’s Opinion. HiPPo’s can be a real challenge to work with, especially if your goal is to create a data driven culture. To help turn the tide of HiPPO driven conventional wisdom, I published an article at ArtsHacker yesterday …
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association held its second teleconference press conference on Monday, 3/18/19 and as luck would have it, I’ve been unable to attend both. Nonetheless, Chicago Tribune reporter Howard Reich authored an article for the paper’s 3/18/19 edition that includes his overview of the conversion. While most of the conversation seems unremarkable, one comment stood out. For those unaware, Chicago is amidst an historic mayoral election where the two …
Just a quick post today as I’m still playing catch-up after being away for part of last week. Fortunately, quick doesn’t mean insignificant as the topic I want to toss out is related to pensions. In light of the ongoing Chicago Symphony Orchestra work stoppage that hinges on the orchestra’s pension plan, I wanted to point out there is an alternative to traditional defined benefit and defined contribution pension plans: the …
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s (CSO) musicians have been on strike for one week and over that time, both sides have spent as much, if not more, time waging PR battles than actively bargaining. As of now, the employer, Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association (CSOA), has been cancelling events on a day-by-day basis. On a broader perspective, this can be a positive as it provides as much time as possible to reach an …
I’m on my way back to Chicago after a wonderful week in Portland attending the 2019 Nonprofit Technology Conference. All my sessions were a hit and I want to extend my thanks to the NTC crew for putting together such a fabulous event. Likewise, many thanks to my co-presenter Ceci Dadisman; I’m grateful for all of the opportunities we’ve had this past season to refine several of our regular sessions and …