Entering an organization where you don’t have a solid background on one of its core businesses can be challenging. Ian Rye of Pacific Opera Victoria can attest to this. With his expertise in arts administration, he admits that he was not fully-trained in fundraising before becoming the CEO of one of Canada’s leading opera companies. Regardless of that, Ian put in the extra effort to strengthen his skill set and be an effective leader up to this day. Stewarding the creation of over 50 new opera productions, Ian delves into the importance of having a strategic plan and reaching out to the communities at large to reach goals. He shares the key to the creation of the Baumann Centre – a community hub for artists – and reveals the two biggest challenges in governing any social profit organization.