Leadership in the arts is a clogged and leaky pipeline
Sunny Widmann says we need to start developing leaders at every stage in their arts career, if we are to persuade them not to leave the sector.
Many great thinkers in our field have discussed the complexity of talent development and succession planning in the cultural sector. Marc Vogl, who works with arts and culture organizations in his role as Principal of Vogl Consulting, aptly describes the problem as a clogged and leaky pipeline. Basically, there are a small number of leadership positions at the top, often held for many years by the same people (that’s the clogged part) and therefore more junior employees are stuck at their current level, growing increasingly tired of waiting around for these positions to come available. Eventually, financial realities of working at a nonprofit and the monotony of a static career path push workers to leave the cultural sector (that’s the leaky part).
I’ve seen this happen in my own community. Through my role on the steering committee of Emerging Arts Leaders DC, I talk to a lot of people who have five or fewer years of experience in the field. Many of them express a love for their organizations, but a frustration at the lack of upward mobility in the structure. So, like any good employee would, these arts managers become experts at their daily job responsibilities. However, perfecting current tasks – for example, data entry – doesn’t necessarily give you the skills required for the next step in your career. It’s often people-management or leading a team that hiring managers are looking for at that next level. If those tasks are absent from your job description, how can you gain the abilities necessary for moving up the ladder?
Many great thinkers in our field have discussed the complexity of talent development and succession planning in the cultural sector. Marc Vogl, who works with arts and culture organizations in his role as Principal of Vogl Consulting, aptly describes the problem as a clogged and leaky pipeline. Basically, there are a small number of leadership positions at the top, often held for many years by the same people (that’s the clogged part) and therefore more junior employees are stuck at their current level, growing increasingly tired of waiting around for these positions to come available. Eventually, financial realities of working at a nonprofit and the monotony of a static career path push workers to leave the cultural sector (that’s the leaky part).
I’ve seen this happen in my own community. Through my role on the steering committee of Emerging Arts Leaders DC, I talk to a lot of people who have five or fewer years of experience in the field. Many of them express a love for their organizations, but a frustration at the lack of upward mobility in the structure. So, like any good employee would, these arts managers become experts at their daily job responsibilities. However, perfecting current tasks – for example, data entry – doesn’t necessarily give you the skills required for the next step in your career. It’s often people-management or leading a team that hiring managers are looking for at that next level. If those tasks are absent from your job description, how can you gain the abilities necessary for moving up the ladder?