Proposal to Create a

Network of Experts to
Provide Services in Support
of the Development of a
Creative Economy
© Kieran O’Hea May 2003

The size and diversity of the creative industries means that in order to paint a true picture of its
current state and future potential, experts from various disciplines must be simultaneously engaged
by Government agencies to carry out research and consultancy assignments. These experts include
academics, consultants, researchers and economists who have the ability to carry out the qualitative,
quantitative and socio-economic research that is needed to inform policy formulation by the client
agencies.

The proposed network (PACE – Promoting A Creative Economy) will improve the efforts of
Government agencies to increase the economic performance of the creative sector. It will do this by
carrying out research and consultation, making recommendations and implementing agreed
initiatives. PACE will combine resources North and South of the border to create an all-Island
perspective. It will also facilitate brand development and dissemination.

The current situation is one in which disparate contractors carry out independent assignments under
the supervision of a principal officer from the client agency, which is a serious drain on his time,
competing for his attention with other important work, compromising his efficiency and resulting in a
lack of continuity. PACE will combat this by centralising and co-ordinating the work on behalf of the
client agency, ensuring that it only has one supplier to deal with. Apart from the resulting efficiencies
for the client, it means that there will always be a steady stream of activity going on in PACE, allowing
for better continuity and planning, providing increased momentum and resulting in a heightened
sense of achievement.

At the moment, continuity is lacking because different contractors work at different speeds, due to
varying availability and the level of detail required in their work. This makes it difficult to co-ordinate
different pieces of work or to find common time for meetings. This is another reason why the client,
who is managing the work of the contractors as well as his own, cannot make optimum use of his
time and subsequently conflict with other duties can occur.

The conclusion from an analysis of the current situation is that in order to guarantee sufficient
progress within a specified timeframe, full-time project management is needed. PACE would provide
this because it would provide a single point of contact with the client. Planning of resources would
become more efficient as the full-time project manager would see the dependencies between the
various tasks being carried out at any one time and would be in a better position to schedule the
experts time in order to ensure they are available when most needed.
 The structure of PACE is a full-time project manager and a core team of not more than four specialists
who will come from the private sector and from academia and will work for PACE on an ad-hoc basis.
Each will provide specialised expertise in an area which covers either a particular type of work (for
example, primary research, strategic consulting) or one of the main sectors of the creative industries
(for example, design, film & television, digital media). Beyond this core team, PACE will be able to
recruit additional experts for special tasks and will build up a database of regular contributors from
trade associations, state agencies, user groups, training organisations, arts councils and arts colleges.

1. How It Works Now

State Agency

Other Contributors:
Project Manager  State agencies
 Trade bodies
 Sector actors
 Training bodies
 Colleges

Academic Researcher
(Primary Research)

Sector Consultant
(Current State-of-the-Art)

Strategic Advisor
(Strategy Plan)
2. How It Works With PACE

State Agency


PACE Network
Other Contributors:
 State agencies
Project Manager
 Trade bodies
 Sector actors
 Training bodies
 Colleges

Academic Researcher
(Primary Research)

Sector Consultant
(Current State-of-the-Art)

Strategic Advisor
(Strategy Plan)
In the proposed structure, PACE is an independent entity, possibly a non-profit organisation, limited
company or partnership. The client agency can have as much or as little exposure as it likes in the
formation of PACE. This can range from a seat on the board of to no formal involvement at all. It can
also range from dealing only with the PACE project manager to a more involved role in PACE activities
and dealings with contractors and constituents. Therefore the client agency can gain in a number of
ways and can decide on the range of benefits it chooses, for example:

1. No role in management of PACE; interaction with project manager only.

2. No role in management of PACE; detailed involvement in assignments.
3. Seat on board of PACE or equivalent; interaction with project manager only.
4. Seat on board of PACE; detailed involvement in all PACE activities.

The client agency therefore dictates the pace of its own involvement. The day-to-day activities of
PACE will include defining assignments, issuing calls for services, managing assignments and hosting
progress meetings and meetings with constituents. The client agency will probably want to have some
input into these activities but the responsibility for managing the assignments and ensuring that the
desired results are achieved will lie with the manager of the PACE network.

The deliverables and milestones by which the success of the initiative will be measured may include:

 The formation of a registered entity and the appointment of its board members.
 The delivery of a work plan for Year One.
 The nomination of the core team of experts.
 The launch of a constituents’ database.
 The launch of PACE web pages.
 An inaugural report from the core team.
 The publishing of the first call for tender.
 The delivery of the first external report.
 Consultation process with the constituents.
 Programme of meetings.

It is suggested that a budget of 100,000 Euro be set aside for the formation of PACE and for the salary,
expenses and office support of the full-time PACE manager in Year One. Further to this a budget not
exceeding 200,000 Euro should be set aside to pay for calls for tender and consultancy services during
Year One. By capping the expenditure in this way, the client agency can measure the results and
success of the PACE network in its inaugural year. This will determine the level of support in
subsequent years, when one of the considerations will be the extension of the full-time PACE team.

The process of initiating PACE should include the formulation of a more exact and extensive
specification based on this document. This should include an initial work programme and will reflect
the requirements and objectives of the client agency. It will also take into account any constraints or
dependencies. This should be followed by an internal decision by the client agency to subsidise PACE
for an initial period of one year. Ideally a contract should then be concluded with the supplier of
choice but if necessary a restricted call for tender should take place.