Arts Hub, Suzannah Conway
27 June 2023

“Nicole Beyer is Executive Director of Theatre Network Australia, the leading national development organisation for small to medium independent performing arts companies. She is no stranger to strategic planning and offers ArtsHub the following recommendation: ‘A good strategic plan is an accurate reflection of what you are going to be doing in your organisation. It should identify a long-term, concise vision with a few main goals and then strategies for achieving those goals. This road map should include where you want to be in a number of years (three to five years is standard), how you will get there, what you’ll need to support that journey and how you will measure progress along the way.’  

Beyer believes that every arts organisation, no matter how small or large, needs a strategic plan for its daily use and not just because it must have one for a grant application. ‘Your strategic plan should be something you will actually use and refer to regularly. So, include the process you will use to review and update it as part of the overall plan,’ she says.

With regard to using the plan as part of a funding application, Beyer advises: ‘You have to assume that the reader does not know your organisation. You need to clearly and succinctly explain what your organisation is, its history and what you want to do in the future. Don’t use too many acronyms or jargon, so that the plan could be read by a layperson who is not is the sector. Clarity is the key.’  

She adds: ‘It is important to rigorously test the plan, preferably using someone or some organisation outside of your own and outside the arts sector. Do they understand what you are saying and communicating? Are they excited by your vision? Would they support it?’”

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