I echo the sentiments of a whole bunch of arts organizations across Canada. The funds are project-based, so I need to continually come up with a new project. That means that I need to spend my resources and time on that project, and not on what we do day to day.
I recently applied for funding for a project that we're doing with the Ministère de l'Économie, de la Science et de l'Innovation.
I will be working directly on that project along with staff that I hired, but I'm not allowed to put a portion of my salary in that budget. Even though 20% of my time is going into it, it's the only line item they removed from our budget.
Our day-to-day costs, or the value of my time, as executive director of this organization, was removed entirely from that project, yet I'm expected to support that project. I'm expected to make sure that we do all the paperwork, that we abide by all the contracts with the government, that we do our finances, and that I do an audit every year. Who's time is that? It's my time as the administrator, yet there is a value of zero dollars put on my time.