#TBT Stingy Event Details
Thu, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
Back in 2013 we examined the trend of orchestras to include scant information about an event on the corresponding single event pages at their website. Since then, not much has changed. Spend a little bit of time going through orchestra websites and odds are, you’ll find very little information about the works listeners can expect
The Latest Trend In Hiding Compensation Within The Nonprofit Sector
Tue, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
There’s a thought-provoking article by Sarah Pulliam Bailey in the 1/17/2020 edition of the Washington Post that examines a growing trend among evangelical organizations to shift from a traditional nonprofit status to what the IRS defines as a “Church” status. The impetus for this is a desire to obfuscate executive leadership compensation. While both status
The Price Of Failure
Mon, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
One of my long-standing pet peeves with the field is its willful evasion of examining failure. There’s too much paranoia over controlling narratives and fear of negative donor reaction that we not only miss out on learning from failures, but we begin to spin them as success. Worse still, there are plenty of examples where
Taking Stock Friday
Fri, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
Sometimes, it feels like the days just melt away, but it’s better to be busy than bored. To that end, here are some of the things that occupy my time as of late. Consulting Work I’m very happy to say that the musician employment agreement model I wrote about back in April 2019 is starting
One Week From Today = Brand New Star Trek Music!
Thu, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
Are you excited for the Star Trek: Picard series premiere one week from today? All things being equal, that means the powers that be could begin releasing music from the series as soon as the same day. Hopefully, we won’t have to wait until the end of Season 1 and if we’re lucky, CBS will
Don’t Get Suckered Into This Billable Fluff Expense
Wed, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
I published an article today at ArtsHacker that examines one of the less than scrupulous trends of web designers making clients feel like they are getting something special that expresses their uniqueness but in fact, it’s just something used to pad invoices. I’m talking about custom navigation icon design. At best, you’re only paying for
A Good Reminder That You Don’t Always Pick Engagement Channels
Tue, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
While yesterday’s article examined the highlights from the 2019 reader survey, there was one particular item that warranted a separate post: RSS feeds. Among the new questions in the 2019 survey was one asking readers their primary point of contact with articles. For those indicating a daily or weekly email subscription, the survey included a
2019 Readership Segmentation Survey Results
Mon, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
The Readership Segmentation Surveys routinely produce intriguing insight and this year was no exception. Having said that, it’s been a few years since our last examination and the added time gap produced some eye-opening perspectives. Demographics & Occupation Direct reader responses confirmed something Google Analytics has been indicating in that the division of readers across
If You’re Looking For Greener Pastures, Now Is A Good Week
Fri, Jan 1, 2020
by Drew McManus
For whatever reason, there was a flood of job listings at ArtsAdminJobs.com this week. 14 so far and only four of those were internships. Two were Featured Listings and the rest cover everything for orchestra gigs to Choral, Academic, Festival, Theater, Dance, PAC, and Opera sectors. You’ll find opportunities in San Antonio, Palm Beach, San
Workplace Culture Jargon That Needs A Timeout