The case retraces the individual and collective decisions, as well as the community-engaged processes, that led to the formalization of the national network Mass Culture (MC). MC is a charitable organization dedicated to equitably mobilizing arts research across the Canadian cultural sector. As a value-driven organization, MC’s mandate and programs are rooted in seven guiding principles: mutual respect, access, decent work, reconciliation and relationship-development, relations, stability, and integrity. This case study focuses on MC’s participatory governance structure, including how it was built from the ground up, its membership, and its commitment to occupational diversity and cross-Canada representation. Throughout, the case highlights context-specific resources and constraints, as well as common challenges that cultural organizations in Canada can face when drawing on contemporary management strategies.

• Identify and understand the different phases of a nonprofit’s lifecycle based on Susan K. Stevens’s 2001 model: idea, startup, growth, maturity, decline, turnaround, and terminal. Analyze the societal contexts in which decisions were made during MC’s formalization (environmental analysis).
• Perform a SWOT analysis based on the environmental analysis.
• Analyze the evolution of MC’s structure and governance through four lifecycle stages.