HI, I’M JIM DEGOOD
The Person Who’s Been on Both Sides of the Table
Jim spent nearly two decades inside arts institutions: running marketing at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, managing the books at a regional theatre, directing grant programs at Mid-America Arts Alliance. He knows what a board meeting feels like when the numbers aren’t working. He knows what it costs to lose a first-year subscriber before you ever had a chance to bring them back.
That inside experience is what makes the work at Cultural Catalysts different. He’s not advising from a distance. He’s carried the budget, answered to the board, and lived with the results.
He jokes that his career has been “culturally promiscuous”: opera, theatre, ballet, museums, and the service organizations that hold them together.
TRUSTED BY LEADING CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS
“Your exhaustion isn’t from working too hard. It’s from working against the current.”
RELATIONSHIP-MINDED
Results Built
From the Inside
Jim’s path to consulting ran straight through the institutions he now advises. As Director of Marketing at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, he increased total ticket revenue by 115%, grew the subscriber base to its highest level in 17 years, and rebuilt first-year renewal rates from 37% to 65%. Not through better campaigns, but by rethinking how the institution related to its audience at every touchpoint.
He then spent over a decade at the sector’s leading data-driven consultancy, ultimately serving as Vice President of Consulting: advising orchestras, opera companies, museums, festivals, and performing arts centers across North America and the UK on revenue strategy, patron loyalty, and audience development.
30+ years
Arts and culture leadership
Interim Chief Philanthropy Officer
Cincinnati Opera
Interim Development Director
City Theatre
Revenue Consultant
Music Theatre Wichita
Former VP of Consulting
TRG Arts, advising organizations across North America and the UK
When the inside works, the outside follows.
The pattern Jim has watched repeat across every kind of institution is consistent: organizations that grow sustainably aren’t the ones with the best campaigns. They’re the ones that have closed the gap between what they believe about their audiences and what their audiences actually experience.
what our colleagues say
“Jim proactively invests in our organization. His approach is personalized for us after he deeply listens to our concerns. He makes us feel as though we are his only client. It feels like Jim is an extension of our team and that he is super invested in what we do and want to accomplish.”
Brian J. Marcum
Artistic Director, Music Theatre Wichita
what our colleagues say
“Jim approached every challenge with a blend of strategy and heartfelt dedication…His talent for listening, combined with these communication skills, made it clear Jim was committed to not just achieving results but also to nurturing a positive and inclusive working atmosphere.”
Andrea Davies
Leadership Giving Manager, Cincinnati Opera
what our colleagues say
I was consistently impressed with [Jim’s] strategic insight, professionalism, and ability to deliver valuable action items. He offered solutions that were both practical and impactful. What sets Jim apart is not just his expertise in nonprofit development, but also the ability to listen and truly understand the needs of the people he is advising.”
Erica Allen
Texas Ballet Theater
WORK WITH ME
I believe your institution is capable of more.
I’ve been a marketing director scraping for a budget, an interim development chief steadying a team through transition, and a consultant sitting across from executive directors who knew something had to change but didn’t know where to start.
I built Cultural Catalysts from all of that because I believe the institutions that serve their communities best deserve the tools to prove it. If you’re ready to find out what that looks like for yours, I’d love to help.
