Embracing vulnerability

This year’s AMA Conference took place in a very sunny Leeds, and it was great to be back in one of my favourite (and local) cities. 

The sun, the lovely venue – thanks Leeds Playhouse – and the theme, Together, really set the scene for a conference full of positivity and good energy. 

I was attending this year’s conference as Strategy Director here at Supercool, and as a Trustee of Northern Broadsides and Venture Arts. Two incredible organisations supporting individuals and communities in different ways. 

For me, a key takeaway from the conference was the power of vulnerability. The benefits of not assuming we know the answer, of questioning and interrogating our actions, and being open to being wrong. 

Interrogating your value

Shawab Iqbal’s (Chief Executive at Leeds Playhouse) opening keynote challenged us to ask ourselves who should determine whether we are succeeding as cultural organisations? In a country that is changing politically and economically, it isn’t us as cultural organisations who get to decide whether we are meeting our mission and living by our values, but the communities we are here to serve. 

This demands us to be vulnerable, to leave the assessment of our work to others. And that can be scary - what if the people we’re here to serve don’t think we’re working for them? What if the actions we take don’t support those we say we’re supporting? These are scary, also vital questions. Without the knowledge, we can’t be sure we’re doing the best we can. 

Sarah Derbyshire (Chief Executive, Orchestras Live) and Nicola Dixon (Arts Manager at East Riding of Yorkshire Council) have developed a means of measuring their work through a Social Value Engine. The tool allows Sarah and Nicola to calculate the impact of Orchestras Live’s community projects. 

This puts a specific number on the value of their work, and it’s not guaranteed to be a good number. When we measure our impact in this way, we have to be open to doing the work and finding out the impact isn’t as big as we thought it would be. Sarah and Nicola spoke about how the Social Value Engine has confirmed the huge impact of their projects, but that there was no guarantee of this.

Embracing the unknown

This year I chaired a panel of absolutely brilliant people:

• Hannah Barton – Head of Digital Media, National Museums Scotland
• Ruth Cooke – Executive Director and Joint CEO, Northern Broadsides
• Isabella Feros – Media Manager, Edinburgh International Festival
• Lauren Cowdery – Digital Marketing Officer, Yorkshire Sculpture Park

During the panel we discussed how each organisation is tackling the climate crisis. What stood out most about the panel was the honesty and vulnerability shown in acknowledging we don’t have all the answers. 

The panelists are tackling the climate crisis in lots of different ways, from taking care of insect samples to building community events, creating residencies for international musicians and keeping a flock of sheep happy. But no one said they have the answer, and we all acknowledged that we need to work together to tackle the climate crisis. 

More on this topic: Supercool's Sustainability Resources

Embracing the unknown was echoed in Friday morning’s panel session with Sarah Ogle (Interim Director of Audiences, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic), David O’Hara (UK Marketing Director, ATG Entertainment) and Oghenetega Oke (Marketing Manager, Revolution Arts). As the panel reflected on what’s next for arts marketing, each acknowledged that there are a lot of unknowns. 

Sarah spoke about the importance of putting audiences first, and listening to feedback. And Ohenetega described how Revolution Arts’ small but mighty team sometimes have to make the leap and step in front of the camera, or reach out to local communities and put them at the forefront of marketing activity. 

Human connection

DK’s session on Dynamic Models for Connecting Together took us through new ways to connect. From fireside conversations to walking in nature and the fishbowl method. Arriving in any space requires us to be authentic, and bring our whole selves to the gathering. Whether it’s turning to the people next to us in the auditorium, a one-to-one with a manager or a group meeting, for collaboration to take place, we need to be present and open. 

David Larbi’s final keynote was a lovely way to end the conference. David invited us to find joy and happiness in the smallest things. After reading an excerpt from his book, Frequently Happy, David invited us to journal about what action and personality traits make us proud. 

We were then invited to share this with our neighbour in the auditorium. 

There was an audible gasp when David asked us to do this. We’re not all great at talking about ourselves, especially when it comes to saying what we’re proud of. But the room soon buzzed with voices, and it was a lovely way to wrap up the conference. 

Embracing vulnerability

A special shoutout to Dimple Meera Jom (Freelance Theatre Marketeer) who delivered my favourite session of the conference, Rethinking UK Arts Marketing Through a Developing Country’s Lens. Dimple’s session reframed marketing in the UK. From “Sorry, but we only have a small budget” to “We have a budget!” 

Dimple’s session was funny, warm, and confident. Despite the nerves, Dimple got up and did an incredible job. 

For me, this year’s conference taught me that we can’t be together – we can’t truly collaborate or work with communities – until we embrace vulnerability. 

Walking into the room, being open about what you don't know, asking the hard questions, and accepting that you might be wrong, is the only way we can move forward as individuals, as organisations, and as a sector.