On June 19, 2019, the CVSuite team held a webinar for current users that focused on utilizing the Creative Vitality Suite to learn more about diversity in the creative sector. In this webinar, the CVSuite team explained how users can identify the most diverse creative industries and occupations, find areas within the workforce that could be improved, compare peer regions, and create data visualizations. Check out the webinar below to see how the tool can help move your organization forward by providing demographic data to implement diversity in your creative workforces.
Listed below are answers to some of the questions the CVSuite team received after conducting this webinar:
What access do you have to qualitative data? How are you collecting demographic data? Where is it coming from?
- The CVSuite demographic data come from our data partner, Economic Modeling Specialists (Emsi). The data originates from a combination of national sources, including the Bureau of Labor Statistics Quarterly Census of Employment & Wages (QCEW), Occupational Employment Statistics (OES), National Industry-Occupation Employment Matrix (NIOEM), the US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS), and the Quarterly Workforce Indicators (QWI). Emsi cleans and revises the data by geographic region. The CVSuite does not include qualitative data.
What is the definition of diversity in the creative sector and how can its impact be captured in data and analytics in a meaningful way?
- Defining the term “diversity” requires time and thoughtful consideration. When going through that process, it is not uncommon for organizations and agencies to arrive at a broad definition that encompasses various identifiers within a group or community, such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, veteran status, age, profession, personal interests, etc. The demographic data available through the Creative Vitality Suite include race and ethnicity, gender and age. Users can utilize as much or as little of this information as desired, based on what is most relevant to your organization’s diversity goals. In addition to the webinar, users may find the additional resources provided below to be useful in their efforts.
To tell the story of diversity in an occupational group, I may want to differentiate the occupational codes by level of influence in the occupational group. Example: “Art Director” and “Graphic Artist.” Does the CVSuite have analytical tools to demonstrate a hierarchy of occupations?
- The Creative Vitality Suite does not offer a hierarchy of occupations. Instead, the tool is sorted by categories such as “management occupations,” etc. The occupation titles are listed in the data settings, which allows you to select your specific codes for analysis.
What are the current trends across the sector on how support is provided for staff of color who come against opposition?
- As is the case with many other professions, people of color are underrepresented in the creative industries and arts and culture fields. You may recall from the webinar that some communities/cities have broader representation in comparison to others, but the issue still remains. Organizations and agencies have adopted different approaches to cultivating networks of artists/entrepreneurs of color, and some offer professional development opportunities, such as the Arts & Business Council of Greater Boston’s Creative Entrepreneur Fellowship and ARTISTS UP in Seattle and King County in Washington. Since 2010, WESTAF’s Emerging Leaders of Color program has been working to advance multicultural leadership in the field of arts of culture by annually convening arts administrators of color working in the western United States. It’s clear that there is a good deal of work to be done to develop a more representative sector. Looking to models like these will hopefully help spur progress and meaningful growth in this area of the creative industries and the arts.
Does CVSuite data include economic impact data for the arts similar to the Arts and Economic Prosperity study?
- The Creative Vitality Suite contains multi-year, national-level data that can be used to create an economic impact study. Both creative industry and occupations data for 2011-2017 are included in the tool.
How do we use the data knowing that our region did not participate fully in collecting the data?
- That’s okay–the tool does not use data collected from its users. CVSuite’s data is from national data sources.
- The data are available at the state, MSA, county or ZIP Code level.
How can we find and reach a more diverse audience (artists, creators and art enthusiasts alike)?
- Going back to our earlier remarks about diversity, you’ll need to take some time to define the aspects of the community that resonate most with you, your company, institution or agency, then think about who is missing and consider the reasons why–without making any assumptions. Organizations seeking to engage more women, men of color, younger professionals, etc. in their work can use the tool to view the racial/ethnic, gender and age diversity that exists within a specific occupation. With that information, and a sincere commitment to learn about the barriers to access for your target audience, you can begin to explore areas of shared interest and make connections with diverse audiences.
How can we devise the best ways to gather our own data and translate that into effective communication tools for a broad range of audiences from elected officials to educators to small arts orgs?
- Gathering your data (especially when you have a lot of it) can be difficult, but creating a variety of data visualizations can help you tell your story. Tools like Canva, Datawrapper, Tableu and programs such as Google Sheets will provide you with various graphs and charts to display your data and help you tailor your message to your audience.
For additional resources, please refer to the links below:
Why Diversity Matters in Tech, Forbes, Murray Newlands, 2016
Diverse Teams Feel Less Comfortable –– and That’s Why They Perform Better, Harvard Business Review, David Rock, Heidi Grant, and Jacqui Grey, 2016
Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter, Harvard Business Review, David Rock and Heidi Grant, 2016
Camouflaging Diversity Issues Isn’t the Same as Solving Them, Fast Company, Ginga Glantz and Morra Aarons-Mele, 2018
Why Diversity is the Key to Unlocking Sustainability, GreenBiz, Jarami Bond, 2017
Outreach ≠ Community Engagement, Engagement Matters, Doug Borwick, 2013
CVSuite Data Blogs: Data Dives
CVSuite Blogs on Diversity: Diversify the Workforce and Diversity in the Arts
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