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Abigail is an arts consultant and a facilitator. She works with cultural organisations and creative businesses to identify practical and effective strategies to engage and stimulate customer and audience development.
CONSULTANCY – Vision / mission development, business plan reviews, organisation development, audience development and marketing strategies.
FACILITATION – Full and half days sessions for Boards and / or staff teams to identify issues, opportunities, solutions and strategies.
COACHING / MENTORING – 1:1 programmes to develop individuals’ awareness, skills, knowledge and confidence in developing effective work strategies.
TRAINING – Practical interactive sessions in business development and marketing from planning to tactics.
Latest - Abigail Carney has been commissioned by Glasgow Grows Audiences / Scottish Arts Council as an advisor on the Ambition programme supporting arts organisations' digital development.
Arts & Theatres Trust Fife: four strategic development workshops to inform a new audience development strategy.
Dance Ihayami: development of audience development and marketing strategies, tactics and tool kit.
Glenkens Community & Arts Trust / CatStrand: audience and marketing review and staff mentoring programme to develop future sustainability.
Scottish Arts Council Visual Arts Department: a research and development programme to increase public awareness and engagment in Own Art.
Cultural Enterprise Office: Market Day, an interactive training day for creative small businesses - next event is in Glasgow on 16 March.
Dancebase Catalyst Project / Cultural Enterprise Office: 1:1 two hour marketing advice sessions for contemporary dance companies.
Federation of Scottish Theatre: a mentoring training programme for arts leaders to support mentees, in association with Paul Pinson and Jane Hogg.
Puppet State Theatre Company: vision day facilitation to inform business plan development.
Audience Development / Scottish Arts Council: a report assessing the impact of grants received by 25 client organisations for organisational development.
Catherine Wheels Theatre Company: an audience development strategy to grow audiences in 100+ communities / venues across Scotland.
CatStrand / Glenkens Community & Arts Trust: an audience development strategy to launch the CatStrand, a new arts, enterprise, community and tourism centre in New Galloway; a successful funding application for a one year audience development post; and an evaluation of the project.
Centre for Contemporary Arts: a Board and staff session to determine future artistic and business planning priorities.
Creative Arts Business Network, Borders: a training day for creative businesses to develop programmes and customers / audiences.
City of Edinburgh Council: a session for CEC staff and 5 Edinburgh art gallery directors to review emerging development opportunities.
Cultural Enterprise Office: a facilitated day to enable partners to assess the Artists as Leaders pilot programme and plan future programmes.
Cultural Enterprise Office: 1:1 advice sessions and training days in business development and marketing for creative individuals and businesses.
Cultural Leadership Programme: a programme to research arts governance models, meeting leaders in Edinburgh, York, London and Newcastle.
Duff House: a research programme for Duff House management and partners Aberdeenshire Counci, Historic Scotland and National Galleries of Scotland.
Dumfries and Galloway Council: PR programme increasing visitors to Spring Fling open studio event with 100 artists and makers across South West Scotland.
Dumfries Theatre Royal Trust: a public televised meeting to gather the views of 100+ individuals on the future of theatre provision in Dumfries.
Edinburgh Art Festival: a facilitated day to support the Director and Board to determine aims, objectives and strategies for a new three year business plan.
Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop: a business plan development and change programme for a new multi-million pound centre.
Edinburgh Science Festival: a mentoring programme and staff sessions to re-focus vision / mission and develop a branding / marketing strategy.
Education Department / Scottish Arts Council: a feasibility study into an Arts Award for Young People, with consultants Jane Hogg and Scotinform.
EKOS / Glasgow City Council: a marketing strategy as part of a business plan and funding application for Radiance: Glasgow's Festival of Light.
Family Friendly Initiative: Marketing Performing Arts to Families on-line guidelines for the Family Friendly web site.
Fife Contemporary Arts and Crafts: a mentoring programme and staff workshops to support the development of an audience development strategy.
Imaginate: a branding / communications strategy for new arts development agency and parent company of Scottish International Children's Festival.
National Galleries of Scotland: marketing advice and steward briefings on the development of NGS's first family friendly marketing campaign.
NEAT: a review of governance, management and marketing and a marketing strategy for the north east arts promoters' development agency.
Publishing Scotland: a marketing seminar for authors, editors, printers and designers with 7 activities to develop their business.
Re:Create: a facilitated meeting to review the audience development initiative between Stills, Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop and Edinburgh Printmakers.
Scottish Poetry Library: a facilitated day with staff and Board to identify and scope future development priorities.Stills Centre for Photography: a staff mentoring programme and the development of an engagement strategy 2010 to 2013.
Visual Arts Department / Scottish Arts Council: a review of Own Art, the contemporary art buying scheme.
WASPS: vision, mission, aims and management model for The Briggait, a new visual arts and dance facility in Glasgow.
West Lothian Youth Theatre: a consultation programme and the development of a creative brief to re-brand the organisation.
In 2004, after 20 years working as a practictioner in a range of senior arts management positions in Scotland, Abigail became an independent consultant. Since then she has worked with over 50 clients - creative businesses, companies and organisations: large and small, rural and urban, venue based and touring, not for profit and commercial, across all art forms.
Abigail is a Specialist Advisor and Trainer for the Cultural Enterprise Office; a member of the Association of Coaching and the Arts Marketing Association; and an Associate of tourism consultancies The Market Specialists and TEAM. Abigail is also a Director of Stills, Scotland's Centre for Photography.
Previous positions include Communications Director Imaginate; Marketing Director Scottish International Children's Festival; Events Development Manager Edinburgh Tourist Board; Head of Marketing Royal Lyceum Theatre Company; Press Director Unique Events; Marketing Manager Traverse Theatre.
Abigail was a member of the Theatrical Management Association Marketing Advisory Committee, a board member Boilerhouse and the Volunteer Co-ordinator of Edinburgh's consortium of arts organisations, festivals and visitor attractions, The Capital Group.
Abigail is a graduate of Chelsea School of Art and the University of Wales.
Consultancy
Great results , personable , high integrity. I simply would not work with anyone else! Clear about what is to be achieved, gets on with the job and is very focused on the client needs.
Jane Hogg, Management Consultant.
Abigail was a real asset to the Company and her delivery has always exceeded our expectations. Her commitment and expertise has been excellent, from consultation, to project delivery, to evaluation and reporting. Abigail's warm personality makes her feel like she's one of the company, and never a "faceless consultant".
Paul Fitzpatrick, Producer, Catherine Wheels Theatre Company.
I want to reiterate what I said when I first read the plan: it is impressive, comprehensive, realistic, "do-able" and reads like it is written by practitioners not consultants. Well done!
Martin Reynolds, Marketing Director, National Galleries of Scotland.
Abigail provided invaluable support to ESW’s Director during the period spent re-writing the Business Plan. Abigail also facilitated workshops with stakeholders to identify priorities and clarify objectives. It was essential that the Plan clearly demonstrated how we would develop a new building, manage change whilst maintaining our core business. Following the work, funding was approved by the Scottish Arts Council for the new centre.
Irene Kernan, Director, Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop.
Facilitation
The event has certainly achieved the aim of getting the project back and high on the public agenda. It more than matched my expectations, and if you ever need to have a reference from a satisfied customer please use me.
Chairman, Dumfries Theatre Royal Trust.
Thanks for the session and your summary. Both educative and enjoyable; it should be bottled.
Gill Khosla, Board Member, Glenkens Community and Arts Trust.
Everyone at the meeting was delighted with how much we achieved in the time available under your guidance and felt that you led the group though the issues very successfully and succinctly whilst at the same time not making them feel like they were being directed.
Suzanne Jeffries, General Manager, Benchtours.
Thanks very much for the session on Friday - it was exactly what we needed. I particularly liked your super-focused style and the sprightly pace enabled us to air views but not get bogged down (you're also the fastest flip chart writer I have ever seen!).
Deirdre Mackenna, Director, Stills.
Coaching and Mentoring
I found Abigail extremely astute in assessing what my needs were, where I was first to focus. I found she was a fantastic facilitator in the way she made me think about my projects, and drew out information I didn't know I had from me! I left fuelled with drive, focussed, inspired and ready to do anything. She delivered high quality advice which broke down the daunting task I had in front of me and made it seem so much more possible!
Coaching Client.
I can’t recommend Abigail highly enough. Due to her involvement my ability and confidence have improved significantly and the organisation has also seen tangible benefits. On a personal level I have found Abigail to be extremely supportive and positive which has helped me through a period of change, I feel better equipped to deal with the greater responsibility that I now have.
Mentoring client, Edinburgh International Science Festival.
Training
A fantastic day! Greater impact and relevance than a four year marketing degree ... Abigail's experience was invaluable.
Creative business owner and Market Day participant, Glasgow.
I have never met someone who made marketing so practical, so very comprehensive, and possible to understand and apply. Abigail brought a refreshing and focussed approach . . . she provided ideas and asked thought provoking questions to stimulate our understanding of marketing. Her expertise also fed into the workshop and she used a variety of approaches to get people to interact with one another. I had such a buzz during the session and I left feeling inspired.
Market Day participant, Glasgow.
Thank you for facilitating such a stimulating and engaging seminar yesterday. I thought you pitched it exactly right for the group attending and the feedback certainly confirmed that.
Vanessa Garden, Publishing Scotland.
I found the whole thing absolutely brilliant - the organisation, the venue and, of course, Abigail's splendid presentation. She really knows her stuff and has such a lovely engaging presentational style. The event came at just the right time for me, and I can't say how grateful I am. Definitely a 10 all round!”
Sue Palmer, author, Toxic Childhood, Seminar participant, Publishing Scotland.
Advocacy
As is often the case, it was really one indivdual who lit the spark and carried the torch by championing the potential of Hogmanay in Edinburgh. That individual was Abigail Carney, who was then Public Relations Manager at Edinburgh Marketing, the forerunner to Edinburgh Tourist Board. Abigail recognised the tourism and wider civic PR potential of Hogmanay and persuaded Edinburgh District Council, Edinburgh Lothian Council and Lothian and Edinburgh Enterprise of this potential. These agencies combined to commission a feasibility study into what was then called The World Hogmanay Celebrations, Edinburgh with the aim of enhancing the city's image as a European international capital, as a city of arts and celebrations and as a city of world quality.
Douglas Ritchie, Director, Edinburgh Tourist Board speaking at the Millenium Conference, EICC, Edinburgh