Cultural Investment Portfolio, Partners
Site Visit Guide
Introduction
Site Visits are a central part of the MCC's Cultural Investment Portfolio (CIP) program. Organizations classified as Partners in the CIP host a Site Visit once every four years. Funding for Partner organizations is formula-based and not linked to information gained during the Site Visit. This is a second Site Visit for most
organizations, and is intended to explore more narrowly focused issues, but in greater depth than the
Round 1 visits, which were broader organizational overviews.
Desired Outcomes
We hope our conversations during the Site Visit will be focused and productive, full of mutual learning,
idea-generation, and problem-solving. This is your opportunity to draw on the combined knowledge of the
MCC and your colleagues. Ideally, by the end of the Site Visit, we will have identified specific strategies to
assist your own organization and/or the broader cultural sector.
For your organization:
These discussions are an opportunity to both showcase what you do well, and solicit feedback and solutions for your challenges.
You might ask the Site Visit Team to:
 detail lessons learned from their own organization's successes and failures;
 share the names of consultants they’ve worked with, or technology they’ve used;
 consider collaborating on a future project or sharing resources.
For site visitors:
We describe these days to site visitors as 1/3 professional development, 1/3 group therapy, and 1/3 focus group. They’re an opportunity for visitors to network, commiserate, and get ideas that they can
implement at their own organizations.
For the Mass Cultural Council:
These conversations are an opportunity for the MCC to learn from your successes, and collect best
practices, programs, tips and tricks that could be replicated at other cultural organizations. They also
help identify sector-wide trends and/or areas where the MCC could make connections, provide training,
or organize a convening.
As a follow-up to the Site Visit, we might ask you to:
 serve as a mentor or resource for another MCC grant recipient;
 be the subject of an article or case study about a best practice;
 share your stories and strategies in a blog post, on a webinar, at a convening, etc.
Preparation & Expectations
Call Kalyn King at (617) 858-2718 (or email kalyn.king@art.state.ma.us) with questions.
Preparing for your Site Visit is an organizational assessment activity in itself, requiring thoughtful identification of your strengths and weaknesses. Designate one staff member as the primary point of contact to
work with Kalyn King, CIP Partners Program Officer, and your organization’s senior staff to plan the day.
Kalyn can be reached at (617) 858-2718 or kalyn.king@art.state.ma.us from 9am-5pm, Monday-Friday.
Scheduling
In the fall of the grant year when your organization is set to host a Site Visit, Kalyn will email you with
guidelines and instructions for scheduling a date that is convenient for your organization. Site Visits are
scheduled well ahead of time to accommodate your organization’s and other participants’ schedules.
The current Site Visit Cycle is the Mass Cultural Council’s FY14–FY17 grant years. Organizations due for Site
Visits in the MCC’s FY15 grant year should follow scheduling instructions and select a visit date no later
than Friday, September 26, 2014.
After a date is agreed upon, we will begin a process of refining discussion topics, inviting participants, and
articulating our desired outcomes.
Site Visit Team
Kalyn compiles and prepares a Site Visit Team to visit, ask questions, share stories, and make connections:
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Anita Walker, Executive Director, Massachusetts Cultural Council
2+ senior leaders from other CIP Partner organizations (“site visitors”)
Kalyn King, Program Officer, Cultural Investment Portfolio Partners
Site visitor matches are made based on availability, interest in discussion topics, and appropriateness of the
individual for any given Site Visit. If you have concerns about who might participate, please contact Kalyn
King (kalyn.king@art.state.ma; 617-858-2718) before Friday, October 10, 2014.
For more information about Visit Teams and the role of a site visitor, please review the Site Visitor Guide.
Partner’s Participants
You are not required to invite representatives of any particular constituency. Invite whomever will be able
to speak articulately and contribute productively to the discussion topics you’d like to cover. Note:
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The most thorough visits include a range of individuals who can who provide different perspectives
on your work.
It may not be appropriate for every individual to participate in every conversation. The number,
type, and distribution of participants is at your discretion.
Creating the Itinerary
Kalyn will work with your organization to develop discussion topics that will guide every Site Visit. Details,
tips, best practices, examples, templates, sample itineraries, etc. are available upon request.
One month before the visit:
Your organization and the MCC must agree upon a draft itinerary, which must include a final start time,
end time, and location, and should give a rough idea of participants and discussion topics.
Two weeks before the visit:
Call Kalyn King at (617) 858-2718 (or email kalyn.king@art.state.ma.us) with questions.
You must provide the MCC with the following materials:
1. One-pager with mission statement and key facts about your organization
2. Logistical information: timing, parking, locations, and refreshments if provided, etc.
3. Final itinerary and discussion topics: with any suggested discussion questions and/or “fast facts” to
provide context for the conversation.
4. Participant lists for each meeting: with contact information and a note about the individual’s
role/connection to your organization.
If these materials are not provided by two weeks before the Site Visit date, the Site Visit may be canceled.
Day of Site Visit
The day will proceed according to the agreed-upon itinerary. Kalyn will take notes to document the visit,
and try to keep everyone to the itinerary (though a back-up person from your organization is helpful).
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You ought to provide:
Meeting spaces for the Site Visit
Lunch and/or refreshments for the Site Visit Team as necessary
Name tags for all participants, and/or bios if available
Materials to provide contextual information for discussions (ex. articles, organizational chart)
Visit Content
Timing and Format
FY15 Site Visits will take place from November, 2014 – June, 2015 (and later into the Summer as necessary).
Site Visits are generally six hours long, but can range from four to nine hours, depending on the organization. They usually take place during regular business hours (ex. 10-3), but we can extend the day as needed
to accommodate programming and participant schedules.
Each Site Visit is unique, and should reflect your organization’s own needs, interests, and organizational
culture. Nonetheless, Partners are expected to structure the Site Visit to include:
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A quick, “101” overview of your organization;
Time for the MCC to introduce new initiatives at our agency;
Observation of your organization’s core programming;
A series of roundtable conversations on pre-determined discussion topics.
[1.] A quick, “101” overview of your organization;
Although we at the Massachusetts Cultural Council are familiar with your organization and you will be familiar with CIP Site Visits, other participants may not be. Please reserve 60-90 minutes for overviews and
introductions toward the start of your visit.
Plan to discuss your organization’s budget size and breakdown, staff and board size and structure, areas of
programming, and changes in the last four years (since the last Site Visit).
[2.] Time for the MCC to introduce new initiatives at our agency;
Call Kalyn King at (617) 858-2718 (or email kalyn.king@art.state.ma.us) with questions.
As your Partner, we want to tell you a little bit about upcoming initiatives and opportunities that the MCC
can provide. Please save 20-30 minutes for Anita Walker, MCC Executive Director, to present these updates to your senior staff (and board, if appropriate).
[3.] Observation of your organization’s core programming;
This might include a: rehearsal, performance, exhibition, YouTube video, lecture, PowerPoint overview, nature-walk, written testimonial, tour of office space, discussion with volunteers and participants, etc.
You will need to provide all necessary tickets and/or access to performances and exhibitions. We regret
that the MCC cannot reimburse host organizations for these costs.
[2.] A series of roundtable conversations on pre-determined discussion topics.
These discussions are the core of a CIP Partners Site Visit. Each conversation will center around a particular
challenge or opportunity facing your organization, and/or the cultural community as a whole.
Visits tend to have two – five conversation sessions, one hour & 15 minutes each, but number and duration
of these roundtables vary widely depending on the number of topics you’d like to discuss, and how complex these topics might be. If new participants join us, leave time for another quick round of introductions.
The structure of each conversation can vary according to your preference. Consider: Casual, or presentation? Who do you want to facilitate? How and when would you like to engage the Site Visit Team?
Discussion Topics
Conversations may cover a variety of topics, including:
[1.] Audience development: deepening and diversifying participation, attracting younger audiences,
overcoming barriers to participation, audience trends and demographics
[2.] Board development /Governance: committee structures, recruitment, organizational policy
[3.] Community: forming partnerships, managing local perception, diversity and accessibility
[4.] Infrastructure: facilities management, information technology systems, human resources
[5.] Finances: stabilization, planning, capital resources, revenue diversification, endowment
[6.] Fundraising: cultivation, planned giving, events, corporate sponsorships, campaigns
[7.] Management: structure and policies, organizational evaluation, staff retention, training
[8.] Marketing: websites, social and new media, public relations, goals and measures
[9.] Programming: planning, evaluation, quality, expansion, curriculum design and education
[10.] Strategic planning: mission development, vision, setting goals, use of data, succession planning
If possible, identify potential discussion topics when you first schedule a date to host your visit. Then, when
potential site visitors are registering to participate, they can choose based on their interest in your organization or topics. Identifying discussion topics long before the Site Visit streamlines the process and allows
us to stay on task.
The more specific you can be about conversation topics, discussion questions, and desired outcomes, the
more your organization will get out of the visit.
Thank
you!
Call Kalyn King at (617) 858-2718 (or email kalyn.king@art.state.ma.us) with questions.