Desart Conference – Board Governance

WorkshopMarch 2015

Cultural Roles and Challenges

What Makes a Strong Arts Centre

• Culture• Artists• Bush trips• Keeping arts centres

clean• Working and meeting

together• Good relationships• Training the young

people to work together• Supporting other artists

and other communities

• Respect for each other• Supporting and helping

the manager• Everyone taking

responsibility• Strong directors• Regular board meetings • Having skilled art

workers• Good training• Not talking wrong story

What Makes a Weak Arts Centre

• no funding• weak arts centre

manager• no communications -

computer/ telephone• manager coming and

going• weak relationships• no bush trips • no exhibitions

• not working together• no meetings• no training• private dealers• no transport• bad manager• humbug• no other art centre

visits• not many artists turn

up

Role of the Board in Making a Strong Arts Centre• hold meeting with manager

and explain money story• Board members meet

together with staff • Board members meet with

artists about exhibitions and paintings

• go to conferences• go with other artists from

other centres - get everyone involved

• good communication between board and staff

• travel for exhibitions• have rules for new managers• look after manager good way• better communication with

older artists

• sharing with arts centre manager and supporting them to improve the arts centre

• support the arts centre manager

• planning together• board members make sure

they have training and arts centre manager has training

• rules around business and stick to rules

• if something bad happens have a meeting - talk together - not before meeting

What Makes a Strong Arts Centre

We want the arts Centre to be strong like this tree.

Maruku Arts

What Happens When An Arts Centre Manager Says “I’m leaving”

Example Slide 3

7 Steps – a Board Needs to Do When the Arts Centre Needs a new manager

1. Write the Job Description - a list of what the manager does in the job

2. Do the interview – a meeting to talk about why they want the job and a chance for the Board to ask questions

3. Choose the new manager – have a meeting to talk about who is the best for the job

4. Find out from the old manager what story the new manager needs and teach the new manager the job

5. Time in Between Old manager leaving and new manager starting – who worries about the arts centre when we are waiting for a new manager to come

6. New Manager Starts work – help the manager do a good job7. Probationary Review – like a second interview, time to tell our story about the new manager and hear their story –things to talk about – are we happy with the work of the new manager?, is the new manager happy? Do we need to do anything different?