International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and ...

International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Change Management Volume 4 Article: MC04-0164-2004

Changes in Arts Organisations under the Open Market Economy in Vietnam Huong Thi Kieu Le, PhD Candidate in Education, School of Policy and Practice, Faculty of Education and Social Work, The University of Sydney, Australia

‘Knowledge’ and ‘Culture’: Organisational Intangibles and their Tangible Value Proceedings from the Management Conference 2004

International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Change Management Volume 4

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The International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Change Management is a peer-refereed journal published annually. Full papers submitted for publication are refereed by the Associate Editors through an anonymous referee process.

Papers presented at the Fourth International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change in Organisations, University of Greenwich in London, United Kingdom, 3-6 August 2004.

Editors Mary Kalantzis, Innovation Professor, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. Bill Cope, Common Ground and Visiting Fellow, Globalism Institute, RMIT University, Australia. .

Editorial Advisory Board Chryssi Vitsilakis-Soroniatis, University of the Aegean, Rhodes, Greece. Eleni Karantzola, University of the Aegean, Rhodes, Greece. Gerasimos Kouzelis, University of Athens, Greece. Leslie Johnson, University of Greenwich, UK. Bruce Cronin, University of Greenwich, UK. Martyn Laycock, University of Greenwich and managing transitions.net, UK. Dave Snowdon, Cynefin Centre for Organisational Complexity, UK. David Lyon, Queens University, Ontario, Canada. Krishan Kumar, University of Virginia, USA. Claudia Schmitz, Cenandu Learning Agency, Germany. Bill Martin, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. Paul James, RMIT University, Melbourne. Rob Brooks, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. Margaret Jackson, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. David Hakken, University of Indiana, Bloomington, Indiana, USA. Zainal Ariffin, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia. David Gurteen, Gurteen Knoweldge, UK. Verna Allee, Verna Allee Associates, California, USA. Rod Dilnutt, William Bethway and Associates, Melbourne, Australia. Judith Ellis, Enterprise Knowledge, Melbourne, Australia. Kirpal Singh, Singapore Management University, Singapore.

Changes in Arts Organisations under the Open Market Economy in Vietnam Huong Thi Kieu Le, PhD Candidate in Education, School of Policy and Practice, Faculty of Education and Social Work, The University of Sydney, Australia

Abstract This paper investigates organisational changes in the cultural sector and how arts organisations adapted themselves under the economic reform in Vietnam, and how applicable Australian training courses might be in meeting demands of Vietnam. This paper is originally based on a comparative study between Vietnam and Australia, stemming from the fact that Vietnam has not developed any training course in arts and culture management. The study was also carried out to explore which management methods were utilised in performing arts organisations, and the need for training arts leaders in Vietnam. Case study approaches were employed, using judgmental sampling with two cases in Vietnam, and two others in Australia. Some arts administrators involved with managing performing arts organisations were interviewed. In addition, relevant documents and regulations in the arts field were analysed to lay a foundation for comprehending the operation and management of performing arts organisations in Vietnam and Australia. It is expected that this research will propose the adaptation of some pertinent arts management training courses in Australia that could contribute to enhancing arts management and the entertainment industry in Vietnam, as well as provide mutual benefits for both Vietnamese and Australian education. Only one case study of Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, however, is presented in this paper. Keywords: Organisational Changes, Economic Reform, Arts Management, Arts, Organisation, Arts Manager, Social Changes in Vietnam, Arts Management Training

Introduction This paper investigates the changing context of arts management, and of arts organisations in the current environment of Vietnam, via a case study of the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra (VNSO). A detailed analysis of the changed environment that the VNSO, (as with other Vietnamese arts organisations) has had to confront is presented, and implications for training for arts leaders in Vietnam are proposed.

Significance and Aims of the Research Since the economic reform in Vietnam in 1986, the arts community has had more opportunity to develop, and more artistic and financial autonomy. It has hence become more necessary for arts leaders to obtain management skills to adapt to the new competitive environment. This became vital when the Vietnamese government sought to tackle the problem of inadequate state funding for arts organisations through its policy of socialisation after careful discussions at the 8th Party Congress of 1997 (Lidstone & Doling, 2000; Vietnamese Government, 2000). The main theme of socialisation policy (which is something of an equivalent to privatisation policy, but within a socialist environment) is "to optimise the value of existing government subsidy through the more efficient mobilisation of arts management manpower and to diversify resources for both creation and investment in the arts"

(Lidstone & Doling, 2000:7). Subsequently, government cut funding for some popular arts organisations first, and will cut funding for other types of arts in the near future. These changes clearly pose more challenges for arts organisations that have been dependent upon government subsidies for many years, but equally highlight the role of arts administrators, and the need to provide appropriate curricula and/or training courses for them (Le, 2002; Lidstone & Doling, 2000). In the arts field, Vietnam has given more emphasis to nurturing musical and artistic directors, composers, and related areas in the entertainment industry, rather than developing training courses or degrees in arts management. Indeed, Vietnamese education and training has not offered degree level training courses for arts leaders, nor many projects that study changes required in arts organisations to adjust to the demands of global economic restructuring (Welch & Mok, 2003). One may ask why arts leaders need to have training courses in arts management and what are the various skills necessary to manage their organisations? Such expressed doubts are notwithstanding the fact that the arts has become a significant ‘sector of industry’ (Create Australia, 2000; Reiss, 1974), and have attracted more research. Clearly, however, Vietnamese performing arts have been making great endeavours to transform themselves from being entities almost fully subsidised by the government, into financially selfsustaining organisations, in accordance with the new

International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Change Management, Volume 4 • www.Management-Journal.com Copyright © Common Ground • ISSN 1447-9524 (Print) • ISSN 1447-9575 (Online) Paper presented at the Fourth International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change in Organisations, University of Greenwich in London, United Kingdom, 3-6 August 2004 • www.ManagementConference.com

International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Change Management, Volume 4 policy of socialisation. Finding causes and solutions to help smooth this transition is urgently needed (Dong, 2000). But the transition itself requires specialised arts management skills, which will significantly improve the matching of cultural achievements to audiences' tastes, and increase organisational financial viability while still ensuring artistic quality, (Le, 1996, 2002), (without which it is merely commercialisation). As Vietnam modernises its economy, some questions have thus arisen: Why and how have Vietnamese arts leaders and their organisations changed and adapted to changes? My paper, therefore, investigates changes in management of performing arts organisations in Vietnam and how arts organisations adapted to new economics context through presenting findings of a case study, the Vietnamese National Symphony Orchestra. Deriving from these aims, the study investigates the history and current state of arts management in Vietnam. Examining changes in the economy and politics in Vietnam that relate to the shift in support for the arts will form part of the answer to the question of how these changes affect the sets of skills that arts administrators and managers now require. Furthermore, exploring the growth of pertinent training packages in the arts and culture management in Australia forms good preparation to see what may be adapted from Australia to suit the Vietnamese context. Also, personal interviews with key participants have been conducted in order to discern which direction performing arts management should take to respond to Vietnam’s present and future economic situation, and its political position in the world. Beginning in the 1990s, there has been a shift in arts organisational definitions to emphasise leadership and the importance of audience services (such as meeting the needs of the audience regarding booking tickets, parking, performance time and so on) - “to serve society and its development by means of study, education and enjoyment” (Rentschler, 2002:48-49). Therefore, articulating arts leaders’ manifold roles become essential to obtain these outcomes, and to adapt to the changing world. Arts leaders gain their skills not only through their experience, but also via training courses, which it is believed will provide them with the systematic management skills, while also saving time for onthe-job learning process. In order to have a clear picture of operations of arts organisations in some recent decades, a context of international arts management is needed.

The Changing Context for Arts Organisations There has been a rapid change both locally and globally in arts and entertainment today (Deakin 1540

University, 1996) including changes in culture, economy and society that have significantly influenced arts organisations and artistic activities. Two important changes are cultural policy and a decline of financial support from governments (Casey, Selwood, & Policy Studies Institute, 1997; O'Hagan, 1998; Pick, 1986; Radbourne & Fraser, 1996; Rentschler, 2002, 1999; Soutar et al., 1997). Moreover, technological changes and economic growth has led to an increasingly competitive environment where there are various types of entertainment. This becomes challenging for arts organisations under pressure from the constant restructuring of the global economy and its impact on individual countries including Vietnam and Australia. Not surprisingly, crises in the arts have occurred in many countries in Europe, the United States, Australia, and Asian countries (Mulcahy, 2001; O'Hagan, 1998; Reiss, 1974). Australia also serves as an example. Governments at both Federal and State levels recently adopted a stance that the arts must become more businessfocussed in order to survive and thrive (Soutar et al., 1997), and arts companies also face declining funding, at least in real terms, from governments (Rentschler, 2002, 1999; Rentschler & Katsonis, 1996). Rentschler (1999) argues that these challenges have created a unique environment for strategic changes in arts organisations to confront financial difficulties, especially for non-profit arts organisations. However one understands it, the necessity for arts organisations to be more selfsupporting has now become more evident (Soutar et al., 1997). Consequently, many arts organisations have been both product-oriented, and marketoriented (Colbert, 2002; Rentschler, 1999). Evidently, changes in culture and society in the arts environment have affected not only management styles but also the role of arts leaders, especially in response to cultural policy initiatives (Colbert, 2002; Maddern, Buttrose, & Carclew Youth Performing Arts Centre, 1984; Radbourne & Fraser, 1996; Rentschler, 2002), highlighting the need for highly skilled professionals (Daniels, 1977; Radbourne & Fraser, 1996; Rentschler, 2002, 1999; Rentschler & Katsonis, 1996). Vietnam presents a case which is in general terms, similar to the above examples, but also strikingly distinct. The Vietnamese cultural sector has undergone a profound transitional period, with alterations in accordance with the changes in the socio-economic development in the doi moi process. The term ‘doi moi’ in Vietnamese literally means “renovation and refers to the process and consequences of pursuing an open market while maintaining the principles of socialism as interpreted by the Communist Party of Vietnam" (Kelly, 2000; see also National Centre for Social Sciences and Humanities, 2001; Nguyen & Sloper, 1995:39; Warner, 2001). The adoption of a more market-

Changes in Arts Organisations under the Open Market Economy in Vietnam oriented economy under doi moi has paved the way for Vietnam to record remarkable human development achievements in the last decade, with an annual rate of GDP growth of eight or nine percent over the 1990s, falling poverty rates, and greater access to education. Before the late 1980s, during the period of the subsidised economy, with limited budget, many arts organisations were able to conduct their activities and attract audiences with cheap or free tickets without needing to be concerned with either the income, or outcomes of their organisations (see e.g. Do, 1994; Le, 2002). However, as a result of the significant changing climate after 1986, and also under the pressure of integration to the global economy, arts organisations have adjusted themselves from fully subsidised to partially selfsustaining. Ultimately, as Lidstone and Doling (2000) indicate, in the 1990s, the Vietnamese government cut funding to the cultural sector, due to economic difficulties and, later in the decade, also due to the impact of the Asia financial crisis. Consequently, many theatres, whose main activities were dedicated to the preservation of Vietnamese traditional songs, dances and dramas, and development of the Western classical music and ballet, had to struggle. Many traditional arts companies as well as high-arts organisations only managed to perform several times a year, and some even had to abandon their activities entirely, and reduce their personnel in the early 1990s – the period of the transition economy (Lidstone & Doling, 2000). Given these challenges, privatisation and the development of skills in arts management such as marketing, audience development, fundraising, finding sponsorship to improve financial independence have been gradually applied in arts organisations. This was despite the fact that these skills are mainly learnt on the job.

The Modern Arts Manager: Credentialism Paralleling the changes in the arts environment that have forced arts managers to continually update their management skills, Collin’s work on credentialism also helps to explain why contemporary arts managers need formal training courses. Consonant with changes in technology, that often demand enhanced levels of literacy, job requirements have changed, often becoming more specialised (Collins, 1979), and demanding higher qualifications. Rising aspirations for occupational success, further underpin heightened demand for education. Further training is considered a useful way to provide and improve human capital. Weber argues that certificates support their holders’ claims for connubium with the notables, for “statusappropriate” salary instead of a wage according to performance, and above all claims to the

monopolisation of socially and economically advantageous positions (Ashton & Green, 1996; Weber, 1968:1000, cited in Collins, 1979:vii; see alsoDore, 1976). Thus, demand for further training has become a major feature in both developing and developed societies. Dore uses the term ‘diploma disease’ or ‘qualification-escalation’ to indicate consequences of this situation (see also in Oxenham, 1984:11). It should be noted here that this trend may not always yield the specific training needed by arts administrators. As indicated, however, education is more than an investment, and many individuals engage in learning with little thought of financial gain, all the more so in the arts. In sum, in a very competitive labour market, obtaining high and specific qualifications is an expectation of any employer, arts leaders too obviously require to have specific trainings and/or qualifications as a nature of their position.

Arts Management Training in Australia Training in the arts management field has been emphasised in Australia throughout the 1990’s although it has not experienced the high demand of other courses like computer science or accounting. Several universities offer courses called Master of Business Administration specialised in 'Arts and Entertainment Management' (Deakin University, 2002), or 'Master of Management in Arts Management' (University of Technology Sydney, 2003). These courses appear to provide in-depth knowledge of management skills, and especially focus on key business and entrepreneurial skills to enable arts leaders and their organisations to survive in a new age with restricted government funding. The NSW Department of Education and Training has also developed training packages1 that provides the basis for practical, relevant and accessible training that can be accessed in locations and at times that suit the needs of individuals and enterprises (Create Australia, 2000, 2002). In addition, these training packages are assessed through feedback from those who use training packages for a specific application, to identify how successful the training packages are in meeting learner requirements (Training Development Unit Industry Program and Services, 2001). Such training packages consist of short training courses that seem pertinent to Vietnam, allowing current arts leaders to

“Training packages are comprehensive, integrated documents which provide national benchmarks and resources for delivery, assessment and qualifications in vocational education and training” that are designed to “build closer links between work and learning (or articulate those links). Training packages strongly encourage a significant work related component in the training” (NSW Vocational Education and Training Accreditation Board, 1999) 1

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International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Change Management, Volume 4 upgrade their management capacity within a limited time. Beyond geographic proximity and well-established relations bi-lateral, both economic and cultural, important elements were common to both Australia's contemporary arts scene and its Vietnamese counterpart. These notably included that many arts organisations in each, continue to receive funding from the government (Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (DOCITA), 1999), although Australian arts organisations are more independent and privatised than in Vietnam. The findings of the Ford Foundation project (Visiting Arts, 2001) in arts management in Vietnam indicate that the arts environments in Australia and the UK share more common with Vietnam than the United States where numerous arts companies are fully private and independent of the government funding.

Methodology This paper is originally based on the comparative study between Vietnam and Australia. Case studies of arts organisations were conducted to understand their complexity, organisational changes, and arts leaders’ perspectives in the broader context of government funding. However, in this paper, the analytical comparison is not presented and only findings of one of four professional arts organisations, the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra (VNSO) is analysed. Data from the case study were obtained from several sources, and qualitative techniques (in-depth interviews, documentation, archival records, and direct observations) were used to discover insights from the case studied. The in-depth interview, aimed at presenting perspectives, perceptions and feelings of the informants (Holloway, 1997; Minichiello, Aroni, Timewell, & Alexander, 1995), was used to examine the viewpoints of arts leaders. Up to two arts leaders of the VNSO were selected. Most had been managers in a broad range of arts based organisations for many years, so that they could provide different experiences and perspectives on managing arts organisations. While the interview data focused more on the arts leaders and their organisations, direct observations were used, as well as document analysis (cultural policies, annual reports, archival records, and electronic sources) to provide a background of the case in the a broader context of the economic reform in Vietnam. Interview data of arts leaders and other officers/educators were fully transcribed in the language of the interviewees. After data reduction, process of coding, categorising, identifying themes, and developing concepts, propositions was undertaken (Miles & Huberman, 1994; Minichiello et al., 1995), based upon research questions and theoretical frameworks in the ongoing process. Themes and categories related to the arts 1542

organisation and arts leaders were confirmed, discarded, refined in relation to what found in the data, i.e., funding, arts marketing, training background of arts leaders and so forth.

Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra The VNSO is located about four km from centre of Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam. The three-store building of the VNSO looked rather down at heel albeit built only recently. Offices of the Director and two other Deputy Directors and departments were located on level two while rehearsal rooms for musicians were located on level three. The physical setting of the VNSO, however, indicated limited accessibility for audiences. Nonetheless, performances of the VNSO have been often organised in Hanoi’s classical, and beautifully restored Opera House, located in the heart of Hanoi (Dao, 19 October 2002). A few awards from the Ministry of Culture and Information, displayed on the wall of the director’s office indicated achievements of the VNSO. Established in 1959, the VNSO was a small symphony orchestra divided into small groups that performed voluntarily for soldiers in front line and for the people in different parts of Vietnam under the subsidy of the Vietnamese government, particularly during the period of the VietnameseAmerican war. The VNSO became a separate arts organisation from the Vietnam Ballet Theatre in June 1984, called the Vietnam Symphony Orchestra. Since then, the VNSO has officially become an independent entity, with its own organisational missions and goals. In 2001, VNSO became the largest symphony orchestra in Vietnam (Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2001c). Due to social instability and difficult economic conditions, the development of the VNSO did not occur until the middle of the 1990s. Mr Do was the first Director of the VNSO, departing in the early 1990s. The aims of the VNSO were outlined in the decree No 79 of Ministry of Culture and Information of the Vietnamese government in 1984: The VNSO aims to present symphonic, chamber music, provide musical accompaniment for the stage; to present music for radio, film, television and to record music. Also, the orchestra introduces and extends knowledge and an appreciation of this type of art [symphonic music] for Vietnamese people, and in turn, to widen and develop its audiences, the VNSO will implement educational programs through performing masterpieces with comments and annotations. It aims to establish short and long term performance plans and manage musicians, staff, budget and facilities in accordance with cultural policies and regulations of the Vietnamese government (Ministry of Culture and Information, 1984).

These VNSO objectives were then broadened in the early 2000s in the light of the changes in socio-

Changes in Arts Organisations under the Open Market Economy in Vietnam economic condition, privatisation, and international relations in Vietnam: The VNSO needs to establish and reach an international standard for artistic performance and to widen cultural exchanges internationally and subsequently improve artistic standards. The VNSO can collaborate with other foreign, private, or state partners for cultural projects, and receive funding from sponsorships (Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2001c).

These statements indicate that the VNSO remains at an early stage of development in relation to artistic creativity and organisational adjustments. Hence, its objectives tend to focus on developing, and introducing symphonic music to domestic audiences, and adapting to the new socio-economic environment. Also, symphonic music is still quite uncommon to Vietnamese audiences and deriving profits from ticket sales seems challenging. The nature of this changing environment, and the adjustments the VNSO made, is briefly presented in the following section.

Challenges for the VNSO in the New Economics Mechanism There are two main challenges of the VNSO in the new context: funding constraints and audience development. As indicated, due to limited socioeconomic development in the subsidised economy era, the modest funding available from government for the VNSO meant that relatively few performance opportunities per year constrained the orchestra’s viability before the late 1990s. VNSO reports showed that there were only a handful of programs presented in approximately 10 to 15 concerts annually during the 1980s. The Director of the VNSO also confirmed this in his interview (Dao, 19 October 2002). In the transition economy – the first 10 years after implementation of open policy in Vietnam – this situation seemingly became more challenging, given the fact of a much more competitive entertainment climate and initiation of the socialisation policy in the cultural sector (see the previous section). The VNSO struggled to develop within a slim government subsidy in the early 1990s (Dao, 19 October 2002; Hoang, 19 October 2002). Attracting more audiences from many ages, classes and niche groups in the current competitive marketplace is a challenge for any arts organisation. This is particularly the case for the VNSO and is regarded as the most challenging issue for Western performing arts organisations in Vietnam. There are two main challenges for the VNSO in widening its audiences. Firstly, symphonic music is not yet very familiar to Vietnamese audiences. This art type penetrated Vietnam only after its final conquest by the French in the nineteenth century, whereas Vietnamese traditional music had

dominated for a few thousand years and remained rooted in Vietnamese's people life, (supplemented by the dominance of the Pop culture in the late twenty century). Moreover, the majority still did not attend this type of high-arts, due to lack of income, and/or their preferences. Indeed, in the 1980s and early 1990s, the musicians occasionally outnumbered the audience in the VNSO’s concerts (Hoang, 19 October 2002). Obviously, this made the situation even more challenging for the VNSO. How could the VNSO adapt to changes? The next section will examine this question.

Adapting to Changes In line with the call for more support from government to improve facilities and artistic standard, funding was provided during the 1990s and early 2000s for the VNSO to improve facilities, and upgrade artistic quality (Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2001b, 2001c). Indeed, economic reforms in Vietnam were designed to boost economic growth, thus, state funding for many sectors was improved. Mr Hoang informed me “new instruments were supplied for musicians, more annual performances were instituted, and foreign conductors were invited to collaborate with the VNSO” (19 October 2002). These all have facilitated the development of the VNSO since the late 1990s. Clearly in this case, doi moi policy including changes in economy and politics in Vietnam arguably spurred the development of the VNSO. Since funding from sponsorships may not always be stable, adequate, organisational viability would be problematic for the VNSO, without the ongoing commitment of government subsidies (Hoang, 19 October 2002). This new environment, thus, requires arts leaders to acquire skills to seek/maintain sponsorships and/or other arts management skills, which are still new for Vietnamese arts managers. The role of further education for arts leaders, therefore, is highlighted. A shift from the subsidised economy to the market-oriented economy has provided an incentive to the VNSO to strive for more autonomy, by diversifying funding and in cooperating with partners. More importantly, the new economic mechanism allows foreign direct investments in Vietnam; hence, finding other sponsorships has become a source of alternative income for the VNSO. In the early 2000s, document analysis and interviews indicated that the resourcefulness of the VNSO had secured sponsorships for about half of its concerts, accounting, in all, for about half of its income (Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2001a, 2002a). Whereas, as was seen above, in the 1980s and early 1990s, the VNSO could only offer/present a few programs and perform 10 to 15 concerts per year, during 2001 and 2002 the number of programs rose to about 25, performed at 50 to 60 concerts (Dao, 19 October 2002), all as a result of 1543

International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Change Management, Volume 4 funding diversification. However, the Director noted that the VNSO still needs major funding from government, notwithstanding the ‘flood’ of the funding from sponsorships, as explained previously, which may not always be available. Given that audience pattern and subscriptions directly produced incomes from ticket sales, the VNSO implemented programs to develop its audience. Although attracting audiences for symphonic music has been a challenge in the Vietnamese market, audience development has been an important achievement of the VNSO in recent years (Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2001a, 2002b). The VNSO has disseminated symphonic music to many people, through education programs at universities and has also established a club of 3000 symphonic music lovers (Hoang, 19 October 2002; Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2002b). At the same time, frequent concerts in a small hall of the VNSO’s office and in the Hanoi Opera House were frequently organised for music lovers. Increased ticket sales over recent years represent an impressive achievement of the VNSO, one simply impossible before the 1990s. In line with the increasing number of annual concerts, the artistic quality of the VNSO has been improved significantly, via opportunities to work with guest conductors and famous soloists (Tran, 2001; Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2001b, 2002a). Mr Dao added that the development of many different repertoires enhanced the musicians’ motivation levels (19 October 2002). Performances of the VNSO were also extended to other cities and regional areas in Vietnam (Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2001a). In 2000, for the first time, the VNSO successfully undertook concert tours to several big cities in China. In the same year, the VNSO was awarded medals by the Vietnamese government for their success in disseminating symphonic music to audiences. However, both arts leaders of the VNSO emphasised that “arts management skills are relatively new for Vietnamese arts organisations”. Although the VNSO’s board was active in securing supplementary sponsorships for their artistic activities (Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, 2001a, 2002a), and have acknowledged the role of modern arts management skills, (i.e. arts marketing, finding sponsorship, and audience development) in adjusting to the new market environment, they admitted that organisational management could be maximised if they receive specific and systematic training in arts management. Also, those skills, as the VNSO’s arts leaders indicated, have been newly utilised in recent years and mainly learned on the jobs (Dao, 19 October 2002; Hoang, 19 October 2002). It underlines that, in order to provide arts managers with essential management skills and to help smooth the privatising and self-sustaining process, specific training is necessary. 1544

Arts leaders of the VNSO and documents analysed indicate that in order to become arts managers, requirements for specific and higher qualifications and great experience in managing arts organisations have become more critical in the current context. This finding agrees with the credentialism of Collins (1979).

Conclusions and Implications As a result of the economic reforms introduced by doi moi, arts organisations now found themselves in a more competitive environment, forcing them to adjust in this new economic sphere. Whilst a slow development stage was evident in the transition process, improvements in the socio economic condition in Vietnam boosted the growth of the VNSO’s audiences, sponsorships, and simultaneously upgraded artistic standards, and infrastructure and musicians’ salaries. The VNSO seemed to adjust itself reasonably well to the new market context via utilising skills such as finding sponsorship, marketing and audience development. Nonetheless, the orchestra still needs to depend upon significant state funding. The findings suggest that since other funding sources may not always be stable, the Vietnamese government can maintain support for some types or arts (i.e. symphonic music, Vietnamese traditional music), while simultaneously encouraging arts organisations to diversify funding sources in order to enhance their survival skills. Furthermore, arts organisations need to master management skills such as marketing, including investigates and meets audiences’ needs and wants to improve their financial performance. Consistent with literature (Byrnes, 2003; Rentschler, 2002), the findings from the case of VNSO highlight that in order to adapt to the changing context, arts leaders nowadays need to possess a suite of management skills. They are required to be sensitive to external changes and be risk takers, while at the same time quickly understand and successfully respond to market principles, and pragmatically guide their organisations in a competitive marketplace. In this case, arts management training may strengthen them with updated management skills needed for the market sphere. At the same time, obtaining specific training in management helps qualify them with the necessary knowledge and qualifications. This proves its necessity in the knowledge economy and credential society. Likewise, this finding emphasises that the government could conduct capacity buildings for arts managers to improve their managerial skills. Given the fact that Australian arts organisations had experience not only in surviving under open market economy, but also in enriching Australian life, arts organisations in Vietnam could learn from those in Australia. In this case, strategic collaboration, facilitated by both governments, could

Changes in Arts Organisations under the Open Market Economy in Vietnam be pursued between Australian and Vietnamese arts organisations. For example, training packages in arts management from Australia might be another recommendation for upgrading modern management skills for arts leaders, in the context of their still heavy workload. It is hoped that such strategic collaboration can facilitate Vietnamese arts organisations to make the most of their artistic creativity, in a dynamic and competitive environment. In the final analysis, some reasonable conclusions can be drawn: firstly, the role of government is still vital in partially financing arts organisations; secondly, the provision of capacity buildings in forms of management training for arts administrators to enhance their managerial skills is important (besides local training from the government, more importantly is in a form of strategic collaborations between arts organisations, facilitated by governments). Professional assistances from Australia or other countries are needed as the essential education that Australia, for example, has long and valuable experience while Vietnam has not

developed any substantial training courses in arts and culture management. It is also suggested that Vietnam needs more specialists and researchers in a range of areas, equipped with modern management practices and more effective and flexible skills. This need for highly trained personnel necessitates a shift away from narrow and non-realistic modes of training towards more flexible, attractive and effective forms of education. Finally, to respond to environmental changes, Vietnamese arts organisations and arts leaders in general need to make full use of modern management methods and ultimately to ensure their organisational viability. Future research projects will need to investigate arts management skills and arts management training that are pertinent to the Vietnamese arts context in order to tailor curriculum in arts management to local culture. Also, further investigations of other arts environments such as European countries, the UK and the US are needed to see how Vietnam could benefit from their management practices as well as management training.

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About the Author Ms. Huong T. K. Le is currently studying Doctor of Philosophy in Education, University of Sydney, Australia. She earned a Graduate Diploma of Educational Studies at the University of Sydney in 2001, and a Bachelor of Music (Honours) in Musicology from the Hanoi National Conservatory of Music, Vietnam in 1996. She was a lecturer in the Department of Music Studies at the Hanoi National Conservatory of Music, Vietnam and has experience in music education, and in education and training projects and arts management. This paper is based on her PhD thesis.

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