Apropos of 'stakeholder engagement' in the arts

A colleague who apparently loves to hear me rant sent me a link to a Facebook post flogging this article on Uni Melbourne's discussion blog. The bullet is that arts and cultural organisations shouldn't shy away from the concept of 'stakeholders' and should concentrate on engagement that focuses on building relationships and 'enduring partnerships' with their communities (whatever those are), audiences and other stakeholders. They should do this because, in the authors' view,

...many initiatives focus narrowly on ticket sales or programming outputs rather than encouraging genuine, two-way interaction with artists, communities and funders.

Hmmm...I wonder where arts organisations ever got the idea of focusing on ticket sales, programming outputs, social media metrics or hell, even the number of tee shirts or hotel beds or pies sold at festivals (true story)? Could it have been from the likes of those who ooze through the corridors of three-letter corporate consultancies and seep their way onto the boards of public institutions and into government advisory roles? Could it have been from folks who can only understand information when presented in spreadsheet form? Arts orgs didn't decide all by themselves to go down the quantitative data road; that was a forced march.

Oh, and let's talk about this clanger:

Government and infrastructure sectors, for example, use engagement to build social license, demonstrate accountability and ensure that projects reflect community needs.

I'm wheezing; that was the kind of laugh I really needed at the end of this dismal year. Most government bodies do not take part in true engagement or consultation; they manage constituencies. Citizens (not stakeholders, thanks) know the feeling very well. It's that sensation of having been consultold what's about to happen TO your community, not WITH it.

Thanks but no thanks to the corporatised branding rhetoric presented here, wrapped up in 'relationship building' language. The book The Relationship is the Project is a far more useful read.