Gradually getting back on schedule here, so the regular round-up is on Tuesday this week, then returns to Monday next week. Here’s the goods!
- A propos of recent discussions on emerging leaders, the Council on Foundations has released a first-time report looking at Career Pathways to Philanthropic Leadership. Among the highlights:
- Nearly four out of five new foundation CEOs or executive directors were hired externally rather than from within the organization.
- Nearly two-thirds had an executive-level position (CEO or VP) in their immediate prior position.
- While gender diversity was pretty good, only 20% of successful candidates were non-white.
- Most troubling, a full 85% of interviewees “expressed significant skepticism about the willingness of trustees, search consultants, and other hiring decision makers to be influenced by leadership development efforts (such as fellowship programs that train new leaders) as they contemplate hiring decisions about executive candidates.” Ouch!
- Amelia Northrup from Technology in the Arts has a preview of Google Wave and what it means for arts organizations.
- What a fascinating story: a group of guerrilla artists conducted an operation removing those ubiquitous advertisements on construction sites in New York City (most of which, they claim, are illegal anyway) and replacing them with original art. But as soon as they were done, guys in pickup trucks showed up and put up more advertisements. Who are these mysterious pickup truck advertising men, and why won’t they talk to the media? And is unsanctioned, uncurated guerrilla art any better for the public space than the ads? Great read. (h/t Steve Dahlberg)
- The group of community arts activists behind the Art and the Public Purpose cultural policy framework are getting the word out. Arlene Goldbard has a longer explanation on her blog, and Nick Rabkin writes of it in the Huffington Post.
- Maybe I’m just a sucker for personal retrospectives on blogs, but if you are too, go read Andy Horwitz’s reflections on six years of CultureBot.
- Great discussion on diversity in the arts going on, tipped off by Michael Kaiser and expanded upon by Adam Thurman of the Mission Paradox blog. I have to say that Adam’s take seems compelling to me. Your thoughts?
- Bloomberg is running with the Carnegie Hall stagehands story, and now reports that Joyce Theater stagehands (who are paid much less than Carnegie’s) have voted to link up with the same union that represents the Carnegie workers.
- Createquity contributor Guy Yedwab has been blogging furiously at CultureFuture this week, and has some interesting thoughts on the relationship between cultural policy and political power.
- Watch out: there might be more cuts to the New York State Council on the Arts on the way.
- Is this the next big thing or just more talk? Inquiring minds, etc.