b'NEW STREAMinDublin,deliverswehavehadacompleteattitudechange. Improving Fundraising and Raising the BarOurteamoffour,basedinTempleBarWefeel professionaldevelopmentprogramsdesignedtocreatean The ethos has shifted. For the first time, I feel hopeful about impact. In 2009, just as the economic crisis started to impact on the fortunes of the cultural sector, we created New Stream us making a successful pitch. I feel fundraising is now a multi-year organizational development program to improve fundraising and strategic-planning skills in the arts sector.consideredtobeacollectiveresponsibilityandthere Inthefirstfiveyearsofthisproject,createdwiththesupport of The Ireland Funds, Bank of America Merrill Lynch,ismoretrustbetweentheboardandexecutiveand the Department of Arts, Heritage & the Gaeltacht, participants have raised 12 million which they attribute to the skills and sup- development staff. We have always worked as a team ports provided by Business to Arts. Insupportoftheseprinciples,since2012,TheIrelandbut we have a clearly outlined strategy and all of our FundshavebeenaninvestorintheNewStreamprogram, attitudes and ambitions are now more closely aligned.supporting the sharing of content and learning through an online KnowledgeCenterwww.businesstoarts.ie/newstream.ThisisallowingabroaderreachforNewStream,particularlytoProjects Arts Centreindividualsandorganizationswhoneedmoresupport,butperhaps dont have the resources to participate in a program. ThecatalystofTheIrelandFundssupportwasthe What Works in Ennis May Not Work in Clonmelbeginning of a two-year partnership with the DeVos Institute of As the participating organizations had varying levels of capacity, ArtsManagementattheKennedyCenterinWashingtonDC,we recognized that the program was unlikely to have the same which saw 24 organizations from across Ireland go through theoutcomes for all. Some organizations were large and based inDeVos Ireland Programme. This is an intensive organizational affluenturbancenters;othersweresmaller,basedinruralcapacity-building program which focuses on strategic planning,environments with less apparent access to private support. marketing, board development and fundraising. Working together with the DeVos Institute, we ensured that Participatingorganizationsincludedperformingand the program delivered best international practice balanced with visualartspresenters(e.g.FishambleTheatreCompany, rigorous localization, as what worked in Ennis may not work in Glucksman Gallery Cork); multi-disciplinary arts centers (e.g.Clonmel; and accepted practices in the United States would not glr Ennis, Project Arts Centre), festivals (e.g. Clonmel Junction translate uniformly into the Irish context. Likewise, the limits Festival, Tiger Dublin Fringe, Dublin Theatre Festival); arts-based of a two-year program were acknowledged: organizational habits organizations serving youth, older people, and individuals withaccrued over years (or decades) prior to the program would not disability (e.g. Arts & Disability Ireland and Age & Opportunity).give way overnight!The scale was national, engaging organizations from Clare, Cork, Wexford, Limerick, Tipperary, Dublin, and beyond andThe intensive training thus asserted that, to surviveit built on the achievements of the first three years of the New(and ideally flourish), participating organizations must:Stream program. 1.produce consistently superior art and servicesTheDeVosIrelandProgrammeincludedannualgroup 2.market that art aggressivelyseminars,regularonlineworkinggroups,sitevisits,and 3.build a family of funders, donors, ticket-buyers ongoing,one-on-oneconsultation.Attheoutset,thedomi- and other buyers of its servicesnant concern of participants was the impact of the recession on 4.convert the goodwill of that family into a financial resourceorganizational finances. The majority had experienced recent5.re-invest that resource in even more impactful artsubstantial reductions in both public and private funding. Manythe following yearhad encountered parallel losses in earned revenue from ticket sales, class fees etc, and as a result, had limited the frequency andWehavewitnessednewthinkingandgrowingproactiv-scale of their programming. ity and entrepreneurship in the arts sector. A focus on strategicplanning in participant organizations, is beginning to enhance resiliencewhich we believe is critical at this time.Were also The guiding principles in creatingseeingprogressinsharinglearning,throughthedevelopingthe New Stream program were: networkofartsfundraiserscreatedviaNewStream.Thisis the first of its kind in Ireland and has become a model forTo identify and engage those who will benefit fromdelivery and focus on accountability in other sectors. Our annualfundraising development in the artsevaluationofNewStreamshowsthatthisprogramdeliversTo ensure that the education process is ongoing and thatmeasured,tangibleresultsyearonyear.TheEvaluationisindependentlyassessedbytheSchoolofCulturalPolicyandparticipants have the opportunity to continue toArts Management at University College Dublin.develop their skillsPut simply, there is no more successful program of thisTo create an environment where the arts sector can becometype operating in Ireland, and the model is now attractingincreasingly collaborative in its approach to fundraising andinternationalrecognitionandbeingreplicatedelsewheredevelopment in Europe. Business to Arts is enormously grateful to The Ireland Funds and their supporters for this investment over a number of years in New Stream. We hope to continue this support with new partnerships and success into the future.connect2015 | 18'