Ask My Frends - Consult Us

Today’s Ask My Friends is coming from completely outside the world of theatre for the first time. Today’s posting is from Joshua White who is a great friend and pretty good basketball player (compared to me). Josh consults large companies on major projects in the greater DC area and around the world so my question was, “You consult for large companies every day and are familiar with non-profit theatres. If you were hired to consult for non-profit theatres, what is the biggest problem you see that you would suggest they fix or change?”

“Hi, my name is Josh, and I'm an IT consultant. Since this blog is aimed at the theatre industry (and since my parents still don't even understand what I do) I'd like to start off with an explanation of what that means. First, let's debunk some of the myths: I cannot fix your computer, I don't send anyone's jobs to India, and most importantly, I don't go to companies to tell them what they're doing wrong.

Instead, I'm hired to help businesses find what they can do better. I'm there to streamline their processes, improve their systems (anything from websites to customer management tools), and make it so the business user won't try to throw his computer out of the window after spending 3 hours trying to log an electronic expense report.

Is this relevant to you? Probably not, unless you happen to work in the IT department of a theatre. But there's a less transparent part of my job. It's harder to quantify but equally as important as the items above. Consultants are outsiders to a company, and while we may come in with a defined goal (Let's introduce new donor tracking software!), a good consultant is always looking for other areas of improvement. Not to mention having to learn, and re-learn, the culture and politics of whatever company/organization you happen to be working for.

Now, unlike many IT consultants, I'm also an avid theater-goer (Yes, I know that's stereotyping, but the last show I was able to convince my co-workers to see was Spamalot.) I'm fortunate enough to have lots of friends who work in theatre. I've gotten up-close views of the ins-and-outs of a number of DC's non-profit theaters, big and small. I'm always amazed at how these seemingly small organizations are able to put on such amazing shows, raise money, market themselves, and manage all of their workers, outside actors, and crew.

So here is where the lines between consultant and theatre-goer get blurred. I was asked to put on my consultant hat and write about what I would change or fix at a theatre. This was actually really hard for me, because I think all theatres are doing things right as long as they are fully committed to meeting their artistic missions. So instead, I'm going to look at an area where a theatre can grow (and not have to change), and an area that I'm all too familiar with as a consultant.

I'd like to focus on skills-based volunteering. Most theatres have pretty extensive volunteer programs. It's a good way to encourage community members to be active (ie. paying) members of that theatre. They tend to be middle-aged or older and spend most of their volunteer hours calling donors, ushering patrons, and arranging the opening night cheese platter.

While all of these activities are important, I'd like to recommend looking at other ways your theatre could use their volunteers. It's no secret that times are tough right now, and the headcounts are being frozen or cut at both for-profits and non-profits. With limitations on headcount, skills-based volunteering allows for theatres to use their volunteers as extensions of their paid staffs. Skills-based volunteering allows for volunteers to use skills they're specifically trained in (IT, marketing) instead of the more traditional tasks (licking envelopes).

The obvious limitation to this form of volunteerism is the investment time needed by in-house employees. Skills-based volunteers will need more organizational training and will require more oversight from the theatre. However, the benefits can be huge, with the traditional volunteer in DC being worth about $30 an hour (Volunteer Time Value Chart). Compare that to a typical IT worker, who can fetch more than $100 an hour. Plus, it gives the actual theatre employees a chance to work with an industry outsider (most likely with different skills), which can encourage innovation within the organization.

That's not to say it doesn't help the volunteers too. The Boston Globe printed an article last year that discussed the win-win situation posed by skills-based volunteerism. Volunteers not only feel they've provided a valuable service, but sometimes learn workplace skills - such as managing a project or mastering a software - that make them more valuable professionally. For nonprofits, the assistance not only helps their constituents, but strengthens the charities internally.

A number of Fortune 500 companies do offer skills-based volunteering, but it typically goes to investor-friendly non-profits that are A) helping the needy or B) helping the environment. Theatres would need to be a little more creative to bring people in. However, that doesn't mean it needs to be difficult. College students are always looking for opportunities to add to their resumes and could even add new knowledge to an organization (no matter how many social networking conferences you attend, a 20 year old marketing major could out-Facebook and out-Twitter you any day). Plus, theatres have one advantage other non-profits don't: free tickets!

In closing (finally), I'd encourage you to look into skills-based volunteering for your organization (be it production, marketing, HR, or development). Who says you can't have your cake and eat it too (and have that cake baked for free by the nice lady down the street)?”