The Flying Squad: An Organizational Development Program in Theatre
Background
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Canada Council for the Arts offered a program of hands-on assistance to professional theatre organizations, known as “The Flying Squad.” Through this program, members of the Canada Council’s staff and other professional practitioners from across the country were made available to Canada Council-funded companies experiencing organizational difficulties. If requested, and without prejudice to the company’s funding relationship with the Canada Council, a specialist in financial management, board/staff relationships, marketing or other areas of arts management would spend time in residence with a company to assist it to develop the tools needed to resolve its problems.
Between 1998 and 2000, this initiative was re-introduced as a pilot program, but with a larger mandate. It was no longer just an emergency response mechanism for troubled organizations. Today, the program is focused mainly on assisting with effective planning and capacity building to further an organization’s growth and development. Based on the sharing of knowledge between different generations of artistic directors and general managers – from strategic planning and audience development to mentorship and group initiatives, the Flying Squad is built on a wealth of stories about performing arts practitioners sharing their challenges and experiences.
The Canada Council’s increased budget has made it possible for this program to become permanent. Two Flying Squad Co-ordinators (one Anglophone and one Francophone) will continue to assist the program’s peer assessment committees and to manage the program at arm’s length from the Canada Council Theatre Section.
Program Objectives
Specialists will operate at arm’s length from the Canada Council to allow theatre organizations to share their internal problems, challenges and opportunities openly. The specialists will suggest whatever measures they see fit and will leave the full responsibility to organizations to implement the recommended changes. The Canada Council will not be accountable for the advice given by specialists.
The specific objectives of this program are to:
- assist professional theatre organizations in targeted organizational development
- assist individuals working in theatre company management in developing skills, networks and support systems within the theatre community and the community at large, and
- assist associations and groups of non-profit theatre organizations that propose innovative organizational development activities.
Program Components
The program has four components:
I. Organizational Research, Planning and Consultation (with a specialist or peer-to-peer exchange)
Theatre organizations may apply for funds to contribute to costs associated with research and planning related to their organizational development. Eligibile costs include transportation, accommodation, per diem, and professional fees for specialists or senior peers.
II. Mentorship
Theatre organizations may apply for funds to support their management personnel to be mentored for at least three weeks by an in-service arts professional at another arts organization. A clear and substantial plan defining the timelines and terms of the mentorship arrangement must be established by both parties.
III. Special Initiatives
Applicants may apply for support of collaborative initiatives between professional theatre organizations or associations on a regional or sectorial basis, or support of collaborative initiatives that serve the general needs of the theatre milieu.
IV. Professional Development
Applicant organizations may apply to allow their senior management (artistic directors and general managers) to attend professional development workshops and seminars that correspond to specific organizational development needs identified by the organization.
Program Priorities
All eligible theatre companies, associations or groups of organizations are encouraged to apply for support of activities that meet an organizational development need. This includes applicants that are geographically isolated, are undergoing restructuring or reorganization, are in transition, are experiencing a growth spurt, or represent culturally diverse or Aboriginal communities. For established organizations, priority will be given to those whose identified needs lie beyond the scope of the company’s regular operations. Priority will also be given to new and emerging theatre organizations, as well as to organizations producing or presenting works for young audiences.
Applicants who wish to hire a foreign specialist or participate in a foreign mentorship must demonstate that Canadian expertise is not available.
All programs of the Canada Council for the Arts are accessible to Aboriginal artists or arts organizations and artists or arts organizations from diverse cultural and regional communities of Canada.
Eligibility
Eligible Activities
Application may be made for research, planning and consultation (with a specialist or peer-to-peer exchange), professional development or mentoring assistance in the area of theatre management, including:
- artistic direction, artistic vision and programming
- strategic planning, general management and administration
- marketing, audience development and touring development
- producing and production management
- financial management, fundraising
- capital projects (only assistance relating to pre-feasibility, impact of capital projects on company operations, planning or fundraising for the acquisition, renovation, equipment or construction), and
- board management and crisis management.
While the research and planning phases of the above-mentioned activities are eligible for support when done in collaboration with a specialist or a mentor, their implementation is considered as part of the ongoing operations of theatre organizations and is not eligible (for example, designing a new marketing strategy is eligible, but implementing it is not).
Eligible activities (under Component IV) include professional development workshops and seminars offered in Canada and abroad, excluding graduate and undergraduate regular studies at universities and colleges and workshops taking place during annual general meetings of Canadian arts service organizations and associations.
Eligible Candidates
Component I - Organizational Research, Planning and Consultation
Component IV – Professional Development
To be eligible to apply to Components I and IV, organizations must meet all of the following criteria. They must:
- be Canadian non-profit organizations
- be directed by recognized theatre professionals, and
- have received an operating or production project grant from the Canada Council Theatre Section during the past three years.
Component II - Mentorship
Applicant organizations must meet all of the eligibility criteria for Components I and IV, and the individuals being mentored must meet all of the following criteria. They must:
- be Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada, as defined by Citizenship and Immigration Canada
- be currently employed in a management position at a theatre company or have a minimum of five years’ progressive experience in performing arts management, and
- demonstrate the ability to adhere to the full terms of the mentoship agreement (by submitting a mentorship development plan signed by both parties and the board of directors of the applicant organization).
Component III – Special Initiatives
Associations and regional or sectorial groups or organizations applying to this component must:
- be Canadian non-profit organizations, and
- include a majority of theatre organizations that are recognized theatre professionals and have received an operating or production project grant from the Canada Council Theatre Section during the past three years.
Restrictions
Applicants applying to Component I or II may also submit a separate application for Component III or IV. No other combinations are possible. Applicants that wish to work with more than one specialist under Component I must accommodate this within one application and must still respect the maximum allowable amount for one application.
Applicants that have already received a Canada Council grant must submit their final report on that grant before applying for a subsequent grant.
Application Deadlines and Notification Dates
Application Deadlines Notification Dates
1 April 2007 15 June 2007
1 October 2007 15 December 2007
Applications and all required support material must be postmarked no later than the deadline date. If either date falls on a weekend or statutory holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day.
The Canada Council will not accept applications postmarked after the deadline dates, incomplete applications, or applications submitted by fax or email.
Applicants will be notified of the results by mail. The Canada Council does not release results of competitions by telephone or email.
Grant Amount
The maximum grant amounts that will be awarded are as follows:
- Components I and II - $1,000 per project, including a maximum of $2,000 for travel/accommodation/per diem
- Component III - $1,000 per project
- Component IV - $2,500 per year.
Exceptional projects may be eligible to receive a higher grant amount.
Under Component II, the program will generally cover a maximum of $600 per week toward the salary of the person being mentored, and an honorarium of $200 a week (to a maximum of $2,000) for the mentor. Other eligible expenses include travel, accommodation and per diem allowances. Applicants requesting a salary must demonstrate their need for this support (for example, they are taking unpaid leave to undertake the mentorship).
Under Component IV, the program will cover registration fees for workshops and seminars, and if applicable, travel, accommodation and per diem.
Meeting expenses and administrative costs are not eligible.
- In exceptional cases, organizations may receive conditional approval for a multi-year or a multi-phase project if they meet all of the following conditions. They must:
- demonstrate that the nature of the project requires a long-term investment
- identify the different phases of the project in their first application
- submit interim reports to one of the program competitions so that the peer assessment committee can recommend funding or no funding for the next phase, and
- contribute financially to the project.
How to Apply
Applicants must contact a Flying Squad Co-ordinator to discuss their proposed project before submitting an application.
Application forms may be obtained online from the Canada Council’s website (see below) or by contacting the Theatre Section as indicated at the end of this information sheet. Submissions must include the following, depending on the component you are applying to:
- a project proposal identifying the organizational development challenges and opportunities specific to your organization
- your organization’s mission statement and a description of its major achievements
- a detailed work plan that identifies your organization’s personnel and any specialists to be engaged for each phase of the project (for Components I, II and III)
- budget information, including details on any requests you are making for support of this project to other funding programs
- background material on the organization, the specialist and the applicant, including a résumé of the mentoree
- a letter from the chosen specialist or mentor confirming his or her agreement to participate in the project (for Components I, II and III).
Originals should not be submitted. The Canada Council is not responsible for the loss or damage, whatever the cause, of material submitted in support of an application. Submitted material will not be returned to you.
If you wish your application to remain confidential, you must specifically request condifentiality on the application form. When requested, the Canada Council will keep application files, project outcomes and final reports confidential. In addition, conversations with the Flying Squad Coordinators, specialists’ reports and details about unsuccessful applications are always kept confidential.
But since the Canada Council is a publicly accountable agency, these elements are never kept confidential: name of applicant, component applied for, amount of request, amount of grant, and grant notification letters indicating a successful application.
Confirmation of Receipt
The Canada Council will send, by mail, an acknowledgement that the application has been received.
Assessment of Applications
Assessment Process
Eligible applications will be evaluated, in a national comparative context, by a peer assessment committee. The committee will consist of theatre professionals with expertise in various eligible areas of arts management. The committee members will be chosen to ensure balanced representation of gender, regional and cultural diversity, Aboriginal Peoples and various types of theatre. An English-language committee studies applications submitted in English and a French-language committee studies applications submitted in French.
Assessment Criteria
The committee will base its review of applications on the following criteria:
I. Organizational Research, Planning and Consultation (with a specialist or peer-to-peer exchange)
- Clarity of the applicant’s analysis of its organizational development needs.
- Suitability of the specialist chosen to assist the applicant.
- Quality of the work plan.
- Feasibility of achieving the projected goals and outcomes.
II. Mentorship
- Clarity of the goals of the mentorship.
- Suitability of the chosen mentor.
- Quality of the work plan projected for the mentorship period.
- Expected effect of the applicant’s training on the home theatre organization.
III. Special Initiatives
- Clarity of the goals of the special initiative.
- Suitability of the chosen approach and/or specialist.
- Quality of the work plan.
- Projected impact of the special initiative on participating theatre organizations.
IV. Professional Development
- Clarity of the organization’s analysis of its organizational development needs.
- Suitability of the workshop or seminar in addressing the organizational development needs.
- Expected effect of the applicant’s professional development on the applicant’s organization.
Payment and Grant Conditions
Grants will be paid in one instalment.
Successful applicants are required to submit a final report on the use of their grant. The report must be submitted on the form provided by the Canada Council, within three months of the date indicated on the application form as the end date of the project. Applicants that have already received a Flying Squad grant must submit a final report on that grant before the Council can release a subsequent grant.
Acknowledgement of Canada Council Support
In appropriate written materials, grant recipients must acknowledge the assistance of this program and the Canada Council for the Arts.
Application Form
The Flying Squad: An Organization Development Program in Theatre (pdf, 140 KB)
This form can only be printed and cannot be filled out on-line
Further Information
For more information, contact one of the Flying Squad Co-ordinators listed below. You should make this well in advance of the application deadlines.
Telephone: 1-866-359-7782 (toll-free) or 613-566-4443. Messages can be left for the Co-ordinatiors, as instructed by the voice message system. Calls are usually returned within 48 hours. (The Flying Squad Co-ordinators are external to the Canada Council and cannot be reached at the Canada Council’s toll-free number.)
Flying Squad Co-ordinators:
Claudia Buckley
Francine d’Entremont
TTY(TDD) machine for hearing-impaired callers : (613) 565-5194
Email: nathalie.sabourin@canadacouncil.ca
Fax: (613) 566-4410
Theatre Section
Canada Council for the Arts
350 Albert Street, P.O. Box 1047
Ottawa ON K1P 5V8
November 2006