museums the collapse of the welfare-state
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Humberto Rendeiro
MUSEUMS: THE COLLAPSE OF THE WELFARE-STATE
AND THE EMERGENCE OF STRATEGIC PHILANTHROPY
EUROPEAN MUSEUM ADVISORS CONFERENCE 2012
The crisis as a challenge to do more and better
COMMERCIAL ENTREPRENEURISM, PHILANTROPY AND GOVERNMENT SUBSIDY
Panel organised by ICOM Portugal
National Museum of Archaeology LisbonJune 02
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Introductory Notes
The way museums present themselves to society nowadays does not match the
definitions which have been ascribed to them. The majority of museums has adopted,
even if automatically, a business-like behavior, in order to cope with the Stateseconomic and financial constraints. This has led them to create a new acting paradigm.
With the collapse of the Welfare-State, also reflected in the lack of support to culture,
those in charge of the cultural heritage were forced to innovate and to adapt themselves
to different management models. A new concept of museum was created. We are now
witnessing a new age in museology.
As a result of these transformations, museums have become closer to local communities
and more attentive to stakeholders, the interested parties. From this connection,
emerged natural partnership and collaboration bonds, which can be referred to as
strategic philanthropy or causes marketing.
With this study we aim at showing how financial crisis is related to cultural
innovation
The collapse of the Welfare-State
The concept of Welfare-State arose in the end of the nineteenth century, with
Bismark, as a response to the threat of class struggle when faced with the expansion of
socialism. The Welfare-State had as its main goal to sever the image of the State as a
political agent, thus transforming it into a social agent (DRUCKER, 2012). The State
emerged as the keeper of social society, insuring all individuals the coverage of risks
and the access to assets and services, aiming at an effective social inclusion (PEREIRA,
2012). That is, a State which would protect both in sickness and unemployment,
providing for primary health care, which instigates the access to culture and education.
However, the Welfare-State proved financially unsustainable and, in the current
socioeconomic state of affairs, we are witnessing the fading out of this governance
model.
This situation is even worse since there is no sustainable alternative to the
ineffectiveness of this model, leading those who depend on it to disbelief, uncertainty
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and fear of forthcoming days. You should also bear in mind that States are, usually, the
biggest employers, which means that any downfalls it might suffer, will carry large-
scale collateral damage. This means that a big State is not necessarily a strong one and
that, in adverse conditions just like the economic and financial ones we are facing now,
many of the pillars and structures sustaining a government may collapse (DRUCKER,
2012).
According to what has been mentioned previously, public Portuguese museums, as
Non-profitable Organizations, belonging to the tertiary sector and financially
dependent on the State, are now being faced with a rather delicate situation, as their
source of sustainability is increasingly scarce, which is leaving them in the brink of
poverty. On the other hand, if we take into account that museums financing comesfrom public funds, own revenues and sponsors/donations, it is vital that the latter be
regarded with seriousness, professionalism and tenacity (AZEVEDO, 2012), with the
current States retraction. This means that, due to the economic constraints, States
cannot fulfill their full obligations and institutions dependent on the State have had to
find alternative paths for sustainability. This situation leads us to question the current
management models of the Portuguese museums, as far as debating the need to import
and implement models from for-profit organizations. Museums today have to deal withmany issues: merges, inventory, conservation, research, exhibiting, the increase in their
action scope, a bigger exposure to competition and higher demands from the
stakeholders as well as a dependence on a strategic marketing plan to communicate
well. This situation makes us believe that applying good examples of private
management might help to ease the future of museums. It should be stressed, however,
that we do not partake the concept of museum-business company. On the contrary, we
defend that it is the States responsibility to insure the sustainability of the cultural
heritage and that it should, once and for all, recognize the value of museums in the
development of the regions which they are part of. However, it has to be stated that,
nowadays, we are now witnessing in the national museum panorama, a hybrid model of
patrimonial management, in the worst sense of the word. That is to say that, on the one
hand, the State is not fulfilling its obligation by retracting cultures financing. On the
other hand, when museums adopt, albeit involuntarily, a business company posture,
they are assuming a behaviour which is not theirs. It is vital, therefore, to define and
update what is expected and meant by museums in the twenty first century.
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Cultural Innovation
Cultural innovation is understood as the change in attitude adopted by cultural
institutions, in order to cope with the economic-financial constraints experienced today.
Innovation means, therefore, the introduction of something new. One could even talk
about the introduction of a new paradigm in how museums today play their role in
society. By accepting that the crisis is a challenge to do more and better we are
accrediting the idea that there was a need to innovate, to embrace new challenges and to
diversify both intervention and posture. Museums today are more than mere physical
spaces with a given collection. Likewise, if museums were firstly seen as warehouses
for curiosities or odd items, only accessible to a restricted fringe of society, today
museums are modern and pleasant places, focused, as never before, on their cultural and
educational impact and, foremost, open to communities (RENDEIRO, 2010).
This cultural innovation is also intimately connected with the fact that museums
today, as non-profitable organizations, do not have, as of yet, the obligation to generate
profit (in the strictly economic meaning of the term) in order to justify their existence,
unlike what happens to business companies. It should be stressed, however, that
museums bring added value, even if not generating profit, and often become true
economic leverages of specific regions. However, the inexistence of the pressure to
produce profit allows them to bet more and higher, to invest in new ideas, new services
and new approaches (AZEVEDO, 2012). Despite this, it should also be insured that the
behavior of cultural innovation does not clash with the institutions good name and do
not endanger the image of rigor and seriousness demanded from it.
However, since they are implemented in a specific community, because they relate to
the other stakeholders and because they need to find alternative ways of providing for
themselves, museums and their professionals have had the possibility of creating new
products, new services and identifying new opportunities to satisfy their audiences. The
following examples of such are the establishment of partnerships, the management of
their own revenue, the enthralling of sponsors or benefactors, the introduction of
cultural marketing, joining social networks and outsourcing contracts. These are
examples of what being a museum is and how to do museology today, in todays world.
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For all this, regardless of the posture one adopts before this vital pressing question,
should it be acceptance or denial, the truth is that museums today are more than a
permanent, non-profit institution.
Museums and communication
The use of communication in museums, as a strategic tool in their current management,
should aim at stressing a reliable brand, which offers valuable proposals, captivating
and brining added-value. It is unquestionable that the value of museums relies on their
collections, their assets and their buildings. However, as it can be inferred from what
mentioned before, it is not enough that museums open their doors to seduce andcaptivate their audience. The answer to the ever demanding needs of the public and
stakeholders relies partially in professionalizing communication, i.e., in how museums
affirm their value and relevance. Despite this, it must be taken into account that pockets
of resistance to communication are not seldom found, as it is still though that
communication is not determinant to the core business of museums.
It is accepted that museums should not rely solely on communication but, without it,
survival is also compromised. There should place, within the institution, to preserve,
research and exhibit, but also to communicate. Museums are also their own public and
communication is the link between both.
If one considers how museums are increasingly dependent on private funding and how
the establishment of partnerships and the captivating of benefactors are some of the
viable alternatives to the States cuts, adopting a socially responsible management
system is urgent, which includes being aware of the stakeholders expectations,
providing them with answers and being accountable to them.
This clarity of action can only be achieved through an effective and strategically
oriented communication policy. Therefore, communicating is more than joining several
social networks, being part of mailing lists or feeding blogs. Communicating relies in
making the institution know, transforming it into a prestigious brand and aligning both
collaborators and mission for the same purpose.
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Only by following an effective communication, which inspires, motivates and prompts
action can the attention of potential benefactors, sponsors or partners be caught
(AZEVEDO, 2012). We reiterate, thus, that the relevance of communicating in
museums is just not the need to attract more and new audiences; it also lies in
seducing potential philanthropists.
What is strategic philanthropy?
The concept of a business company, in the most immediate sense of the term, refers to
the exploration of an activity with economic interest. A good performance by business
companies where this is concerned, without which financial survival is not insured,further announces the fulfilment of what being a good employer is, as well as the
notions of citizenship and neighbourhood practises. However, business companies, as
institutions mirroring society, are more than an economic tool. Business companies are
also a political and social being. That means that business companies responsibility
runs deeper than economics. They are socially responsible (DRUCKER, 2012). The
social responsibility of business companies, or triple bottom line, is made of three
essential pillars: economy, environment and society. It is by fulfilling their social
obligations that business companies might be able to establish cooperation ties with the
tertiary sector, namely with museums. Those responsible for patrimonial management,
as well as business companies and the respective political enforcers and tutelary entities
will be responsible for grabbing this new way for sustainability and establish
collaboration partnerships/agreements which aim at, on the one hand, insure bigger
financial autonomy for museums and, on the other hand, enable the fulfillment of the
social responsibility business companies are bound to. Therefore, strategic philanthropy
or causes marketing is regarded as the establishment of partnerships between business
companies and museums, enabling the joint promotion of causes, events or campaigns.
Each involved entity will be responsible for making its skills and resources available for
the partnership (AZEVEDO, 2012).
The fact that the cultural sector has been given shorter budgets than necessary has led
museums to adopt measures that insure self-sustainability. As examples of this we could
name: the creation of partnership networks, their own revenue management, thecaptivating of sponsors and benefactors and outsourcing contracts. However, we deem
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better to discuss whether these solutions are enough to make up for the lack of
investment in culture by the State and if these can be transversally used in Portuguese
museums and palaces. Amongst these measures, we believe that the development of
partnership networks with the local communities, not only guarantees bigger
independence from the state and insuring the promotion of the museological space, also
increases the integration of the community. This is a practice, which has been
institutionalized, in the vast majority of cultural equipment. It is vital, however, to
mention that the concept of local community also encompasses its public, the economic
and institutional agents (stakeholders). Some examples of institutions that are part of the
local community are: Town Halls, Local Parishes, Associations, Safety Enforcement
institutions, Universities, Schools, Nursing Homes, Industry, Commerce and so on It
is the responsibility of those in charge to nourish this integration, deepening bonds with
potential partners. Furthermore, the bureaucracy-free in which partnership contracts rely
favors their establishment, making them feasible for all national museums and palaces.
Furthermore, the wider the area of the partnership network, the smaller the influence of
the government will be.
The support given by benefactors is, because of its own features, mostly related to big
business companies, particularly international ones, where this type of action is aimedspecially at bigger interest and visibility projects. Thus, we believe that there is a highly
specific area of action for all issues related to this type of fundraising. That does not
mean, however, that one cannot find, nationally, particular situations of the support by
benefactors or that museums cannot access this type of support, regardless of its
geographical situation. However, as we move further away from the biggest urban
centers, we can not only see the decrease in the number of companies aware for this
type of action but also the increase in the number of regional museums. We believe,
therefore, that there is major background work to be done, namely the change in
legislation associated with sponsorship, making this a less bureaucratic process and
fiscally more attractive. On the other hand, if we take into consideration the Portuguese
business fabric, which is based in Small and Medium-sized companies, it is determinant
to the establishment of a clarification with business companies, so that it becomes
common knowledge the benefits of supporting culture. These awareness sessions should
be seen as benefit meetings with sponsors, following the example of what takes place in
the USA, where culture is largely subsidized by the private sector (RENDEIRO, 2011).
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We consider that, in the current moment of financial crisis, a safe path to insure more
sustainability for national museums has not been created. However, we believe it is
fundamental that new bonds of cooperation with the local community are created, thus
integrating it, and also that a joint marketing strategy is outlined, aiming at promoting
and boosting museums, thus encouraging the proximity between external entities and
the creation of a strategic philanthropy by business companies. However, in parallel
with these new sources of funding, which are based on fundraising, a direct and
effective support by the State must remain, without which the concept of the self-
sustainability of museums is nothing more than utopic.
Final notes
One could question whether crises are in fact a challenge to do more and better or
whether opportunities exist, regardless of the economic and financial scenario we live
in. It is believed that the issue lies in the difficulty to bring together people with ideas,
people with problems and people with the institutional resources and the financial
means, attempting to overcome and satisfy common needs (AZEVEDO, 2012). To do
so, we believe it mandatory to have a different attitude towards the problem of public
finances, which encourage practices different from the ones we have today. Namely, on
what concerns the cultural sector, unlike what happens now, an increasing financial and
budget autonomy should be stimulated for example, so that the projects museums are
involved in do not fade away, drowned in bureaucracy. The State, by cutting down on
financing museums and depriving them of autonomy, is condemning one of the sectors
of economic development to lethargy. That is, other than the disappearance of the
concept of a Welfare-state which fosters and supports social causes, we are now
witnessing a State which discourages cultural action, failing to recognize the relevance
and value heritage has in national economy.
On the other hand, museums, by adopting a new posture of facing economic and
financial difficulties, have created a new paradigm of action which might be referred to
as cultural innovation. Nowadays, museums are far more than a simple permanent,
non-profit institution. We are watching a turning point on what is still thought of
museums and what museums are turning into. This change will lead to an opportunityfor those responsible for cultural heritage to attract more and new partners through
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strategic philanthropy or causes marketing. That means that, on the one hand, museums
have been able to extend their value and prestige to the service of society and that, on
the other hand, local communities, in the wider sense of the term, also need to associate
with museums. The difficulty lies in knowing how to advertise culture.
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