Leadership in Focus: Alain Pineau
By Elisa Birnbaum
August 4, 2009
This month in our Leadership in Focus we feature Alain Pineau, national director of the Canadian Conference of the Arts (CCA), an organization deeply committed to promoting arts and culture in Canada. Alain spent 34 years in various incarnations at the CBC. Before coming to the CCA in 2005, he took on the position of founding director of Galaxie, CBC’s first successful foray into for-profit music distribution. Ever-committed to Canada’s cultural and arts scene, Alain has effectively proven himself one of that sector’s strongest allies and champions.
CharityVillage: As someone who’s been involved in Canada’s cultural and media industries for a long time, how have you seen it evolve? Has the mandate of CCA evolved too?
Alain Pineau: The sector has evolved considerably over the past 50, even 60 years, from the perspective of the Canadian Conference of the Arts - the oldest and broadest umbrella arts and culture organization in the country. Founded in 1945, at the time it was one of a few national organizations preoccupied with arts and culture. Over the years, the sector has really exploded in terms of organizations, which has led, more than once, to us questioning what it is we should be doing, what is our mandate.
It remains a unique mandate, that of a forum for arts, culture, and heritage across the country. We provide information, analysis, and we organize and participate in public debate. The counterpart is we advocate for more investments in the arts and culture sector to strengthen the sector. So, it’s a forum, first and foremost. We convene people to the table who rarely have the opportunity to discuss things together, either because they’re at loggerheads or don’t see commonalities of certain issues. We bring everyone to the table to determine the basic common interest to us all and how we can move forward.
More specifically, the CCA tries to contribute to an informed debate with the research, information and analysis we provide. We also try to improve the coordination between the arts, culture and heritage sectors and other segments of society. CCA is unique in Canada and in the world in terms of having people from all disciplines - new media to crafts to performing arts to literature to arts galleries - our membership is extremely vast; we have a very broad and specific perspective on policy issues at the federal level that affect the sector.
CV: How would you rate the health of Canada’s cultural/media sector today?
AP: It’s extremely healthy but remains very fragile. It’s healthy in the sense that there’s this proliferation of creators. We’re blessed in this country of 30 million people or so to have many innovators, creators, artists, in all disciplines; it’s remarkable the multiplicity of organizations that have sprung up over the years. Of course, it’s also one of the challenges cause it’s led to fragmentation. The sector is extremely resourceful but is being challenged, particularly by new technologies, raising all sorts of questions, whether of access or copyright etc.
It remains fragile because, for example, with regard to performing arts, we don’t have the population base to support the creation that we’re able to make. We have to develop foreign markets etc.; one of the reasons the cuts made last year are such a major preoccupation. If we cannot count on developing markets abroad, which we have been successful in doing in the past several years, our own creators and cultural institutions are at risk.
The other dimension, given the nature of the country, is it’s still dependent on public support. In some parts of the country there is a stronger tradition of more private support for the arts, particularly out west, but that’s not the case throughout. And we don’t have a strong tradition of patronage. So public support and federal support is extremely important.
It’s a very interesting sector because it’s so diversified in terms of regions, in terms of language, and now, progressively, in terms of ethnic background. But it’s also a sector that’s going through transition, not only because of technology but because of the changing of the guard - the people who’ve created, over the past 60 years, the institutions that we have and that we value, are all retiring. We have to find replacements. And the new generations look at things very differently. Whereas some [of the older guard] may look at new media as a threat, the younger generation sees it as an opportunity. We need to include that in the new environment; that’s one of the challenges we’re facing.
CV: What is one of the more significant projects the CCA is currently involved in?
AP: There is one we’re very preoccupied with and that needs attention: having access to cultural statistics. This is a sector that has suffered tremendously since the federal government in the mid 90s told Stats Canada to operate more on a cost recovery basis. There’s been various cuts for various reasons over the years. And there’s been a diminishing number of stats available. Canada used to be one of the leaders internationally in terms of cultural statistics. But the service has been degraded not only because of cost recovery, but also because the sector doesn’t have a means to buy them. And so that’s an area where we are going to be very active over the next two or three years in particular; we need to mobilize people.
"You can’t get anywhere with government these days if you don’t have statistics to support what you’re advancing." |
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We’ve already started to work on that front. For example, I’m currently the chair of the national advisory committee on cultural statistics of Statistics Canada. We’re being very proactive. But these are files that move at the speed of glaciers and they’re very complex. We need a lot of people and political will behind them. You can’t get anywhere with government these days if you don’t have statistics to support what you’re advancing. I’m not a statistician, I’ve just been exposed enough to statistics to realize that cultural statistics are complex, more complex and more difficult to collect than in other sectors.
Even the definition of employment in the cultural sector is very difficult. For example, most artists have two or three jobs and many are self-employed. You can be the producer, writer, and actor in a play. So where are you counted? Other questions include: should people who develop software for video games be counted as part of the cultural workforce? Should journalists be considered part of it? Currently, they do fall under the definition. But these are just some of the complexities. So statistics is a major issue that needs attention.
CV: What are some of the major public policy issues affecting the cultural/arts communities today?
AP:
Many issues are linked, are far from new, and I’m not providing them in any order of priority. Of course, in the short term, copyright has been a major issue for the past 10 years. There are consultations going on again; we’ll see the next bill before Christmas and how it tries to resolve the issue of copyright to bring Canadian law in line with the international treaties we’ve signed and to ensure some type of balance between the rights of owners and the needs of users. The issue affects writers, broadcasters, museums, exhibitions etc. and is made more complex because of new media. Another issue of immediate interest is federal support to develop domestic and foreign markets. The issue is still unresolved. It’s very important because of the small population we have and the importance of developing markets to support our creators.
Speaking more generally, a longstanding issue has been the stability and increased investments in the arts and cultural sector, as part of the creative economy. There are all sorts of arguments to be put forward showing how arts and culture not only contribute to the economy, but also how arts and culture training can benefit other professions. There is still a perception out there - that came out again during the last election - that arts and culture are frills, perfunctory, and the first thing you cut. When there’s an economic downturn, arts and culture are among the first to suffer. And when there’s a recovery, they’re among the last to benefit. There is a long term goal to change this. But it can only change with the educational system and that’s complex in Canada because we have 13 different systems of education. So there is lots of action on this front.
A major concern we have is that all the issues we face are dealt with in a piecemeal fashion. There’s no master plan, despite the fact that people acknowledge more and more that the issues are connected. So there are a number of people, including us, saying it may be time for a royal commission on arts, culture and heritage. We need a national think session on where we want to go. Where does cultural diversity fit into the picture? How do we integrate that? That’s a major challenge. We have all these people with different cultural backgrounds living in harmony in this country, but how do we integrate them?
CV: With experience in public broadcasting, volunteerism, and the for-profit sector, do you think a leader in the nonprofit sector faces challenges that differ from other sectors?
AP: On a personal basis, 34 years with a public broadcaster didn’t really prepare me for the realities of the nonprofit sector. The paucity of resources, the importance of networking and building trust is something I am learning to do. And learning to live with the lack of resources, living from hand to mouth, and the hoops you have to go through to get public funding; the fact that the government doesn’t recognize the importance of civil society and the nonprofit sector, but relies on it heavily when it comes time for delivery of services. We went through the same thing in 1984 when the Conservative government came to power. They came to realize the nonprofit sector was an important component. In 2006 we went through it again with a new Conservative government, which may have an even more difficult time understanding the role that the nonprofit sector plays. There are lots of challenges there.
And the turnover of personnel is certainly a major challenge. We’re very fortunate to be able to recruit talented, young individuals, but we can’t offer competitive salaries so it’s difficult to keep people on board. I’m sure that applies to a number organizations in the nonprofit sector. It’s been a long learning curve since I arrived on November 1, 2005.
CV: Do you think good leaders possess specific traits? If so, what are they?
AP: I would say that there are certain assets that are very useful to have. First, the capacity to listen. There’s a quote that I really love, which comes from a sergeant in the French Napoleonic army during the war of 1812. He was talking to his general who said he should bring his men to a certain area and the sergeant responded with, “I’m sorry, I’m their leader, I must follow them.” I think there’s a lot of wisdom there. You can’t take people where they don’t want to go. You can’t take people against their will or they won’t perform. So you have to listen and sometimes you have to back off. Of course, the counterpart to this is you have to have capacity to communicate your goals and vision. You must have a vision and a commitment to it, that way you can inspire people.
And you need the capacity to delegate and motivate. These are all things that I’m trying to do.
CV: Considering your extensive background in media, do you believe it can be a force of change?
AP: I have no doubt, none whatsoever. Creating the alphabet was revolutionary. Next came the printing press, also revolutionary. Then the telephone, the radio, the television, which all brought their own revolutions and changes in society. And now with the Internet and Wi-Fi technologies, the world is undergoing the most radical transformations we’ve ever witnessed.
For example, I’ve always been a great lover of classical music. If I was born 100 years ago and I wanted to listen to a Beethoven symphony, I would have had to live in a city that welcomed touring companies with an orchestra and that put it on a program. I’d then buy a ticket and go to a specific room to listen to it. Today, I have my iPhone with all the Beethoven symphonies on it and a lot of other stuff. I can listen to it on the street or I can tune into an Internet-based specialty radio channel for Baroque music from Germany.
This has changed our access to culture in an incredible way. If you want to know the answer to a question, use that iPhone, go to Google and have immediate access to information. This is a major change. Kids today will not realize that that didn’t always exist. Research today is completely transformed, work habits too. Yes, indeed, it’s the most fundamental change factor we’ve witnessed.
CV: Do you have any mentors who’ve inspired you over the years?
More about Alain Pineau... |
First nonprofit job: National Director of CCA
Education: BA from Université de Montréal, MA from Oxford University
Annual budget of the organization you oversee: $575,000
Number of employees: 5
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AP: There have been many. Some of them taught me the notion of public service, others have taught me it’s better to make a bad decision than not make one at all; though I’ve learned that’s not always true. Sometimes not making a decision is making a decision - because things sort themselves out sometimes. Some have taught me to bridle my passionate nature, but thank God no one said it was something I shouldn’t have. No one tried to kill my passion, just manage it better.
More recently, since I’ve joined this organization, I’ve been really inspired by two people whose long-term experience in the sector have proven crucial for me. First is the previous chair of our board, Robert Spickler, who used to be the co-director of the Canadian Centre for Architecture in Montreal and a long-time arts professional. The other is Peter Herrndorf, director of the NAC. I’ve had the privilege of seeing him operate from a distance when we were both at the CBC and then when he was at TVO. He has done wonders for the NAC, putting an institution that was extremely weak back on track, giving full meaning to “national” in the National Arts Centre.
CV: What practical advice on leadership would you offer others?
AP: My advice would be one that comes from a contortionist: keep one eye on the horizon and the other one just ahead of you. See every step as having it lead you where you want to go; otherwise you’ll lose your way or you’ll waste your limited resources. Always have a broad goal, asking what is this all about, why am I spending so much of my time on this, where do I want to go?
Elisa Birnbaum is a freelance journalist, producer and communications consultant living in Toronto. She is also president of Elle Communications and can be reached at: info@ellecommunications.ca.
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