20 years of actori – a conversation with an influential voice in the consulting world.
On the occasion of our anniversary, we had the special pleasure of talking to Prof. Dr. h.c. Roland Berger, Chairman of the actori Advisory Board, about key issues for the future.
Mr. Berger, what originally motivated you to get involved with actori—and how do you remember the early days?
I had repeatedly been involved in start-ups founded by former colleagues, such as Alexander Rittweger's Payback, and I found their concept of a specialized consulting firm in the cultural, sports, and education sectors convincing. They had moved from Roland Berger Strategy Consultants to the Bavarian State Opera, and I remembered them as a good colleague who knew their stuff. I also liked you, and we got along well on a personal level. You had already demonstrated your understanding of art and culture and the institutions involved during my consulting work, and you had gained valuable management experience at the Bavarian State Opera. To this day, I have never regretted this decision and am delighted that our personal relationship has also grown closer over time.
We often sat together and discussed actori's strategy. How do you think the idea behind actori has developed over the last 20 years?
Over the past 20 years, actori has grown to become Europe's largest strategy consultancy in the culture and education sector. That is, of course, very gratifying. The quality of our clients and topics is also impressive – actori works on projects for internationally renowned cultural brands such as the Semperoper, the Deutsches Museum, the Burgtheater, the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, and the Zurich Opera House. With its specialized staff, actori now makes an important contribution to shaping the German cultural landscape and ensuring its future viability.
But the consulting topics have also become more diverse. Starting with sponsorship strategies and theater organizations, actori's spectrum is now much broader. For example, utilization concepts and planning support for cultural real estate have become an important part of actori. The support of cultural strategies for regions such as Hesse or Carinthia is also great progress. And they have not missed the trend toward digitalization and artificial intelligence. I see great potential for actori's digital transformation consulting services.
What role does the education and culture sector play in the broader context of social transformation?
I advised former Minister President Edmund Stoiber on the transition from an industrial to a high-tech society in Bavaria. The most innovative companies need the brightest minds and top talent. To get them, the attractiveness of the city naturally plays a decisive role. Edmund Stoiber is probably closer to soccer than opera—even though he often went to the opera. But I managed to convey to him the phrase he later used frequently: Culture is the number one location factor. In addition to their intrinsic value, art and culture also have great economic significance. Munich has three top international orchestras, one of the best opera houses in the world, a diverse theater scene, and outstanding museums and collections. All of this contributes significantly to Google, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, and Facebook establishing their branches here.
You have advised many companies and institutions – how does working with cultural organizations differ?
Advising cultural institutions and public bodies is, of course, different from working for companies. Theaters and concert halls also have to consider economic aspects and deal with issues such as capacity utilization figures. But the focus is on content-related concepts. And the impact these have on society is not as easy to measure as the profitability of a DAX-listed company. Determining this kind of cultural impact requires a specialist like actori.
"actori hat die Strategieberatung von Kultur-und Bildungseinrichtungen in Deutschland maßgeblich geprägt."
You are also active as a private patron of the arts and support a range of cultural activities. Why do you do that?
I first came into contact with modern art at a Kandinsky exhibition when I was at high school in Nuremberg. It was shocking at first, as I had only ever seen old masters such as Dürer's Hare or Raphael's Madonna before. I was fascinated by this new way of looking at the world. Art has played an important role in my life ever since. I have read a lot about art, visited exhibitions, and sought out encounters with artists. In New York, I spent time with Sean Scully and Andy Warhol, who also painted a portrait of me. Georg Baselitz is a great painter whom I have known for a long time and whose works I collect. These people made me realize how enriching art can be and how differently one can see and depict the world. I found my way into music through a very musical family with whom I lived as a high school student in Nuremberg. Everyone there played an instrument. They never missed a concert in Nuremberg and always took me with them. Forty years ago, my wife and I met Claudia Abbado. It was this acquaintance that really opened up music to me. Abbado showed me how he studies, how he works on the scores before rehearsing with his orchestra. We attended many orchestra rehearsals with the Berliners and the Viennese. Abbado allowed us to found the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra. Through our friendship with this extraordinary conductor, my wife and I have developed an even deeper connection to music.
What role will artificial intelligence and digitalization play for cultural institutions in the future?
Most artistic directors come from a different technological generation. The focus is on artistic content and the enrichment that visitors experience as a result. In companies, AI is already fundamentally changing processes and communication. These developments will also reach museums, theaters, and opera houses. Art must be communicated in order to successfully reach people. In this respect, it is important and beneficial that actori has been involved in these issues from the outset and has built up a specialized team. The actori spin-off future demand, a start-up that uses AI to automate marketing activities and addresses the right target groups with the most effective messages based on data, also contributes to the development of expertise at actori. Incidentally, I invested in future demand because I believe that AI-driven audience development will play a major role in the future, even in industries beyond culture.
What advice would you give the actori team for the coming decades?
I think it's a good idea to continue diversifying, for example in the education sector or in cultural real estate. The public and non-profit sectors also offer potential for future growth. In this context, I also see the topic of political consulting, which already plays a major role in actori projects today. How do you communicate complex issues and solutions to the political arena in order to arrive at good decisions? This is where actori can make a valuable contribution to cultural policy. Increased internationalization can also be interesting. For example, there is a great need for consulting services for cultural buildings in Asia or in Arab countries.
actori will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2025. What are your wishes for actori for the next 20 years?
First and foremost, I wish actori and you continued success in developing your image and reputation as you have done so far. Thanks to these two factors, you will continue to gain and maintain the trust of your customers in the future. I wish you success in your further expansion into adjacent sectors and in driving forward internationalization. Continue to live a value-based, consistent corporate culture. The actori spirit is something very special, and you should preserve it!
—