Maryland's Premier Performing Arts Center: Building on Success

Booz Allen’s analysis helps Strathmore create a plan to gain national recognition while continuing to serve its community.

In 1983, Strathmore opened as Montgomery County, Maryland’s first center for the arts. At that time, it was a newly renovated 1899 mansion and adjoining grounds offering primarily classical music presentations for small local audiences, managed by a small, loosely affiliated partnership.

Twenty-two years later, however, a great deal had changed.

“Strathmore realized a dream by opening a magnificent 1,976-seat Music Center in February 2005,” says Booz Allen Hamilton associate and program manager Lilith Christiansen.

And in the short time since the Music Center opened, Strathmore’s operating budget has tripled, its staff has grown five-fold, and its seating capacity has increased by a factor of 20. Strathmore now features not only a world-class concert hall with exceptional acoustics, but also outstanding educational venues and year-round programs in a wide array of performing and visual arts.

Strathmore Concert Hall
Photo credit: Jim Morris, © 2005 Strathmore

But this good news also presented unique challenges. Strathmore needed an operating strategy that would extend beyond the opening of the Music Center. Booz Allen’s expertise in strategic planning and philanthropic philosophy caught the attention of the Strathmore Hall Foundation, so the firm undertook a six-month pro bono project that ended in March 2006 and included the development of a strategic plan to address Strathmore’s objectives.

“Many performing arts centers do well for the first year, but after that, it becomes difficult to keep revenue streams strong,” says consultant Gloria Cadavid. “Booz Allen assisted Strathmore in developing a strategy to stay competitive, continue to attract audiences, and maintain public interest.”

The team gathered information that helped Strathmore anticipate new opportunities and challenges. Strathmore’s executive vice president of administration Monica Jeffries says Booz Allen also helped them funnel that information into benchmarks and activities for the next three years. “We’re mapping our strategic intent,” she says, “and the customer analysis was especially valuable for this—it showed that great numbers of customers are going to our programs, enjoying them, and coming back. Now we know how to make them part of our family—how to engage them as members and participants in all types of events.”

Adds Booz Allen vice president Nancy Hardwick, “The team helped Strathmore better understand its customer base as well as the best practices of other successful performing arts facilities. Then we helped Strathmore apply these insights to create a strategic plan.”

New Opportunities and Challenges from Unparalleled Growth

Historically, Strathmore’s success had been buoyed by many factors, including a well-managed budget, diverse events, and a loyal following: 96% of the patrons surveyed would return to Strathmore, and 63% visit several times a year. Although Strathmore’s most-visited venue is the Music Center, over 40% of its patrons also visit the mansion for art, music, tea, and special events.

But Strathmore also struggled with a number of concerns, including the unparalleled growth that followed the Music Center’s debut. “Strathmore had over 20 years of experience operating a successful performing arts facility, but not on this scale,” says Hardwick, who recently joined Strathmore’s board of directors. In addition, Strathmore wanted to develop a diverse repeat customer base and increase its members and donors. The organization also places great emphasis on further collaboration with its partners and creating more educational offerings.

By conducting demographic research and focus groups and administering customer surveys, the Booz Allen team assessed Strathmore’s operations and provided market input. They reviewed existing documentation and interviewed staff, stakeholders, and partners to develop a baseline profile of the organization. Then they developed the strategic plan and metrics to help the organization target approaches to create new revenue streams and sustain current revenue generation.

Recommendations focused on goals that would help Strathmore define its direction; objectives to create specific targets and activities; and action plans to develop tactical-level responsibilities and schedules.

“We helped create strategic goals that emphasized a focus on the community while also attracting world-class performers to deliver a high-quality arts experience,” says Christiansen.

At the study’s conclusion, Strathmore’s primary goals were summarized as follows:

Clarify its identity to reflect the balance between its roles in the community and as a world-class arts establishment
Deliver high-quality programming to enhance community presence and national recognition
Provide enhanced education to develop artistic interests and skills of patrons and future patrons
Establish an operating construct to position Strathmore for continued success

An Experience with Far-Reaching Benefits

Booz Allen’s involvement with Strathmore was an enriching experience for both the team and the client.

“It provided an opportunity for us to see the results of our work in a field in which we each had some personal connection,” says Christiansen. “We applied new creative approaches, such as conducting a large customer analysis with surveys and focus groups. We improved our understanding of customer opinions and decision-making processes. Our survey will also serve as a baseline for Strathmore to gauge its customer satisfaction going forward.”

For Jeffries, the project showed Strathmore how to be more creative in a leadership role. “It was a wonderful experience,” she says. “The team reflected a lot back to us regarding the customer point of view, and that type of analysis had never taken place here before. With that information, we created a strategic direction that will help us better serve the public.”

And Booz Allen’s relationship with Strathmore is continuing: The firm will underwrite a pilot program at Strathmore in fall 2006—a free performance of the U.S. Air Force Military Concert Band to honor the men and women in the armed services.

“This has been one of my favorite projects at Booz Allen,” says Cadavid. “It was a pleasure working with such enthusiastic clients.”

story posted August 21, 2006