Over the next couple of months, I working on an exciting new project led by MMM called Capital Matters. Working alongside fellow independent consultant Holly Tebbutt, I’m researching how business models are developing in the arts and cultural sector and the capital needs related to this. We’re looking for non-profit arts ands cultural organisation organisations (visual arts, Performing arts, literature or museums) from the UK which are developing innovative business models.

Please get in touch with me if you have any suggestions about individual organisations worth considering or research on this subject.

The outline below is take from the MMM website -

MMM is working on a major new national research project aimed at designing a new policy framework for building financial resilience in the UK arts & cultural sector. Entitled ‘Capital Matters the research will take an asset based development approach and will focus on two areas:

• Expanding understanding and recognition of the diversity of business models supporting creative practice across the arts and cultural sector, how they are evolving and the factors that will enable that diversity to flourish further.
• Identifying the potential for developing a new generation of specialist financial providers funding and investing in creative practice.

Together with a broad range of industry leaders and a programme of consultations with front line creative practitioners and organisations across England and in Scotland, three interdependent issues will be examined

• The potential for expanding the range of different kinds of financial capital available;
• The development of the skills and knowledge needed to use them and
• The revision of policy and infrastructure frameworks to enable the speedy evolution of both the above.

Why is a new policy framework needed?

MMM’s work to date shows that thousands of arts and cultural organisations in the UK, critical to both the historical and contemporary cultural canon, are over-extended and under-capitalised. In particular, weak balance sheets are endemic in the sector. Often with high fixed costs and inflexible business models, many are overly dependent on annual public sector grants to survive. The fallout of the global financial collapse, which is reducing, contributed income from the private sector is exacerbating this scenario and expected reductions in the availability of public sector grant income will increase stress further.

Nevertheless within this turbulence is an unprecedented opportunity to create a forward looking, national long-term policy framework designed to accelerate evolution of working practices and behaviours by arts and cultural organisations and public and private funders and investors. One which

• helps arts organisations shift away from a subsidy mindset to an investment mindset. From “how can we possibly close the gap between income and cost?” to “what are the core assets of our organisation, intangible as well as tangible, and how can they best be nurtured?” and
• helps catalyse an innovative and fundamental transformation in the sources of financial capital available to arts and cultural organisations. Capital which will enable them to evolve into more resilient, adaptive, organisations delivering cultural excellence to an even wider general public.

The research draws on learning from MMM’s previous work on Expanding the Financial Toolbox and is supported by The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation’s Innovation Fund, The Northern Rock Foundation, The Scottish Arts Council and Arts Council England.The report recommendations will be published in the autumn.

UPDATE – the consultation briefing paper is now available online. I’ve largely finished my involvement in the primary research stage now – over the Summer a final report is being written – look out for this towards end September. It’s going to be great – can’t wait!