# Starting a new fundraising job at an arts organisation during the pandemic

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2021/08/10/starting-a-new-fundraising-job-at-an-arts-organisation-during-the-pandemic/
- Published: 2021-08-10T08:00:00+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**By April 2020, the world had come to a screeching halt. For James Dyer, CFRE,
that was his first month on the job as a Development Executive at Oxford Philharmonic
Orchestra (OPO). If starting a new job isn’t already equal parts thrilling and daunting,
layer in a global pandemic with a pinch of lockdown and a heaping spoonful of uncertainty
to make the situation even more fraught.**

With the orchestra’s concerts cancelled and donors experiencing upheaval in their
own lives, James had his work cut out for him to help keep donations on track. **
Ashley Gatewood, MA**, interviewed James earlier this summer to discover how he 
and his team pivoted while navigating the unknown.

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**Ashley: Can you walk us through what the atmosphere was like at the OPO’s development
office in April of last year?**

 * ![](https://wfay6x.infiniteuploads.cloud/2021/08/James-Dyer.png)
 * James Dyer

**James:** The overall feeling was one of confusion. The orchestra had built a very
successful annual fundraising plan that centered around concert sponsorship and 
various prestigious events (including an annual concert and dinner at Buckingham
Palace).

The pandemic knocked out more than £650,000, which is a third of our regular income,
overnight. A complete rethink was needed to pivot our activity online and unlock
new income streams. As a fresh pair of eyes in the organisation, I quickly got to
work bringing together the Music Director, Trustees and other members of the Development
Office to think about ways in which we could still reach our audience, give work
to our players and secure funding in different ways.

It was an exciting time but also one full of uncertainty. Looking back, I’m thrilled
we managed it.

**Ashley: Of the various challenges facing your team at the time, which seemed the
most pressing and how did you meet it head on?**

**James:** Our focus for our team, and for the whole orchestra at this early stage
and throughout the pandemic, was to give our freelance musicians work. The orchestra
has more than 150 professional musicians, all of which are freelance and only paid
for the engagements they perform.

The arts industry was hit harder than most by the pandemic, so we felt a duty of
care to our players and wanted to do all we could to give them work at a time when
playing together wasn’t possible. We quickly devised a number of ‘meet the players’
online events for our patrons together with a series of educational YouTube videos(
entitled “Oxford Philharmonic at Home”) for our younger audience, giving our players
freedom to be creative and perform from their homes.

Our existing family of donors were receptive of these initiatives and to the needs
of our players and gave generously at an early stage to the ‘Orchestra Relief Fund’
which made this activity possible.

**Ashley: What kind of conversations have you been having with donors throughout
the pandemic?**

**James:** Donors have been asking one thing – when can we return to the Sheldonian
to hear the orchestra once again? The Sheldonian is the home of the orchestra – 
a 17th century theatre in the heart of Oxford designed, alongside St Paul’s Cathedral,
by Christopher Wren.

![The Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford. Photo: Howard Lake](https://wfay6x.infiniteuploads.
cloud/2021/08/99478005-3D0D-46A8-B026-E2B66807160A_1_105_c-e1628179943927.jpeg)

The Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford. Photo: Howard Lake

The pathway in and out of various lockdowns has made that question very difficult
to answer, not least because Oxford University (who own and run the theatre) have
layered their own lockdown restrictions and social distancing regulations on top
of those made by the government.

In December 2020, we were able to bring our audience back, albeit virtually, with
a live streaming performance conducted by Sir John Rutter, dedicated to the Oxford
AstraZeneca Vaccine Team. This was the first time the orchestra had played together
for more than nine months. It was an opportunity to engage with donors and sponsors
and share with them the work we had been doing whilst performances weren’t possible.

**Ashley: What were the main themes donors expressed during those conversations 
and what did you do with that information?**

**James:** Donors were concerned. They missed performances and were worried about
whether the orchestra could weather the storm of the pandemic.

In late 2020 and again in early 2021, we submitted two successful bids to the UK’s
Culture Recovery Fund, which gave us financial stability to schedule further performances,
digital and in-person, in 2021.

Donors were more reassured of our base level financial security after this news 
was shared. This enabled us to nurture additional support from new and existing 
donors. We ran a highly targeted direct mail campaign in late 2020 both to raise
additional general funds, but also to learn more about our donor pipelines. Keeping
donors at all levels engaged gave both sides confidence that live performances would
return as soon as possible.

**Ashley: What were the primary ways your team adapted their fundraising strategy
and do you think you’ll carry on with any of those approaches post-pandemic?**

**James:** Pre-pandemic, the orchestra definitely had an over-reliance on prestigious
fundraising events and concert sponsorship. With both these income streams dry, 
a big overhaul of the fundraising strategy was needed.

We shifted focus to look in greater detail at grant making organisations. The tough
competition for these grants forced us to consider the outcomes, impact and reach
of our work in a more strategic way. There was a step-shift in the way that fundraising
was no longer just the job of the Development Office – with all staff and lots of
volunteers taking some ownership of income generation.

The orchestra had never received public funding from Arts Council, England, but 
thinking in this more strategic way, particularly how we would connect with harder-
to-reach communities, led to two successful bids that secured more than 50 percent
income shortfall.

**Ashley: The OPO held the Oxford Piano Festival this summer. How has your development
office been involved with this event and what kind of appetite are you finding your
audience has for returning to in-person events?**

**James:** The Piano Festival at the end of July was the first big opportunity for
us to test what we had learnt about working in new ways following the relaxation
of most lockdown restrictions in the UK on 23rd July.

> 📢 Oxford Piano Festival 2021 lineup announced! 🎹
> From 25 July to 1 August, the
> Oxford Piano Festival will host a series of concerts and masterclasses from leading
> piano players and pedagogues. [pic.twitter.com/9vmAbY7mSa](https://t.co/9vmAbY7mSa)
> — Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra (@OxfordPhil) [June 15, 2021](https://twitter.com/OxfordPhil/status/1404824277833113604?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

The festival has always attracted a different audience from the orchestra’s main
concert season, with lots of our audience travelling from overseas to stay in Oxford
throughout the week. As international travel was still going to be different, we
made sure that lots of our concerts, masterclasses and other events, were streamed
online so that our international family of supporters could still be a part of the
Festival.

The Development Office brief was relatively light throughout the week, with a primary
focus on gathering quantitative and qualitive data from in-person and online audiences
that would enable us to better demonstrate the reach and impact of the festival 
to funders in future.

We also planned dinners and hospitality for a number of HNW donors throughout the
week at which they could meet performers and participating students.

Immediately after the Festival, we are planning another targeted direct mail campaign
to gain better understanding of attendees not currently giving.

**Ashley: In the last 17 months you’ve professionally navigated some tricky terrain.
What type of professional development and training have you done in the course of
your career that helped arm you with the knowledge to meet the pandemic’s fundraising
challenges head-on?**

**James:** With everyone pivoting online in the last 17 months, personal development
opportunities have been more accessible than ever. I’ve learnt more about how difficult
conversations about equality, diversity and inclusion is so important in the performing
arts. The orchestra’s audience is dominated by affluent white people and little 
had been done to address this inequality. We were forced to ask difficult questions
and pledge to improve diversity in all aspects of our work.

With no in-person access to donors, I have also wanted to understand more about 
the ways donors think. I undertook training in behavioral economics for fundraising.
This helped me approach much of my work from the perspective of the orchestra meeting
the needs of the donor, rather than the donor meeting the needs of the orchestra.
I now see myself as a conduit between the giver and the beneficiary, working to 
support the giver in realizing their philanthropic goals.

I earned my Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) certification in early 2020.
It’s the only accredited, globally-recognised certification for fundraising professionals.
Going through the study required for the CFRE meant I had brushed up on various 
facets of fundraising just before the pandemic. That studying process and what I
learned during it helped me feel more confident to take on the uncertainty of fundraising
during a global catastrophe.

**Ashley: What is in store for the OPO’s fundraising and what are you most excited
for?**

**James:** The orchestra has exciting times ahead and looks forward to welcoming
their existing family of donors and other concert-goers back to a full season of
performances from October 2021. Alongside one of the world’s greatest violinists,
Maxim Vengerov, they have a really exciting debut at Carnegie Hall in October 2022
planned.
On the other hand, I’m heading off in a new direction and will be starting
work as a Fundraising Consultant for the National Trust from October 2021. I’ve 
always wanted to combine my skills and passion with a fundraising job in Heritage.
For those of you who don’t know, The National Trust looks after some of the UK’s
most precious places of historic interest and natural beauty for everyone to learn
from and enjoy. More info can be found at www.nationaltrust.org.uk.

**Ashley: Thank you so much for sharing what it was like to start a new job at an
arts organisation one month into the pandemic. I wish you great success for your
future fundraising.**

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