Managing Teambuilding In The Creative Industries: A Case Study Of Les Folies Bergere

Is teambuilding more problematic in the creative industries Make a list comprising functions that are ‘artistic’ and others that are ‘production’ oriented at Les Folies Bergere. Choose any two functions from Figure 10.4 and explain why they need to know and understand what each other is dong. Identify five potential sources of tension and conflict in the production team.

Is teambuilding more problematic in the creative industries? You may research the nature/ characteristic of this industry, and compare other typical service/manufacturing industries. You may research the relationship between a teambuilding and a business success in the industry and other industries. Recommendation  - Read the sources of the case Librizzi (2009) and Hakins and Menear(1988).Choose any two functions from and explain why they need to know and understand what each other is dong. Figure 10.4 is in the case.  

Research suggestions would  help to produce  better answers rather than being limited in the information in the case. 

Team building in creative industries

The management of an organization is considered as one of the best ways of utilizing the organizational talent as well as the resources so that the organizational goals as well as mission are achieved (Anderson et al., 2015). The organizing function of management is concerned with the accumulation of the organizational resources and subsequent development of the organizational structure so that there is successful accomplishment of the objectives. It is also important to motivate the employees so that they can give their optimum performance. The managers need to be efficient in managing the groups so that they can fulfill the organizational objectives.

This assignment would be focused on the case study of Les Folies Bergere Theatre. The four issues would be explored in detail such as comparison of team building between various industries, type of functions in the industry, analysis of specific functions and the identification of potential sources of tension at the chosen company.

The team building is an important affair in the organizations and especially in the creative industries (Basadur, Gelade and Basadur, 2014). The team is considered as a group which works intensively with one another so that a common goal is achieved (Anderson et al., 2015). The team is considered as a collaborative effort in which the group members intensively work with each other so that a common goal can be achieved (Kwon, Liu and Johnson, 2014). There are different types of groups formed due to the different functions, roles and the expectations of the organizations. The creative organizations are organic organizations in which there is high degree of flexibility and decentralized decision making activity (Challagalla, Murtha and Jaworski, 2014).

The creative organizations such as film studio, music hall or design firm requires a great degree of innovation and hence it is important that correct teams are formed (Leyshon et al., 2016). It is often a problematic task to form coherent and inter-dependant teams, which would fulfill the requirements of the organization. In Les Folies Bergere Theatre, there is the formation of a cross cultural team. It is important to segregate the different teams of the organization in terms of their competencies and skills (Anderson et al., 2015). This team comprises of the different levels of competencies such as technical, artistic and the different managerial competencies, which would help in the proper management of the shows (Cummings and Worley, 2014).

 There are often issues with the team building in such complex scenario. There can be difficult in decision–making activities when there is involvement of a complex group of people. There may be issues in understanding the knowledge as well as skills of the artists in the team, which may fail to identify their distinct skills (Schwalbe, 2015). There may also be issues in the cross cultural management of the teams. The creative industries as they have different level of customer satisfaction than the usual “process drive jobs” (Schwalbe, 2015).  There may be issues with the integration of different people coming from diverse backgrounds (Levi, 2015). There may be issues in the leadership domain and the creative firms may find it difficult to provide appropriate leadership to the employees (Schwalbe, 2015). There are high chances of creation of conflicts, especially in the stage management team rather than other industries. Several team members may strive to act in a particular character, which increases the frequency of conflicts (Schwalbe, 2015). The stage crew may have different in segregation of duties in taking charge of the machineries in the stage. As compared to the other industries (such as manufacturing), there is high level of complexity of the creative organizations resulting in insufficient communication, which may hamper the day to day functioning of the organization (Salas et al., 2015).

Artistic and production functions

The artistic functions comprise of the different job functions in a theater organization. The artistic teams are high performance ones which work towards successful collaboration (Zsambok and Klein, 2014). There is high degree of creativity in this kind of functions and the managers adopt an innovative approach in dealing with the teams. There are different kinds of artistic functions such as choreographer, music director, stage manager, set designer, lighting designer and sound designers.

The production function is concerned with the unifying vision for designing the different elements required in a stage play in a typical theater (Zsambok and Klein, 2014). This function allows the diverse elements like set designs, costumes and lighting functions so that the mutual goal is being accomplished (Brockett et al., 2016). It deals with the liaison between the Board of Directors and production team. The roles as well as the responsibilities of the key players in the team need to be understood well by the production manager. This function is responsible for attending the production meetings, technical reviews, first rehearsal and others (Zsambok and Klein, 2014). The production team is also responsible for overseeing of the technical items, pops, costumes and furnishings from and to the theatre.

The artistic functions at the Les Folies Bergere Theatre comprises of the creative force behind the shows and the different programme that are yet to be delivered by the audience (Zsambok and Klein, 2014). The artistic team is responsible for directing the production team. The artistic functions also comprise of the different “on-stage functions” such as scripting, prompting and different cues for the performers. The artistic director is also responsible for directing the light, scenery and sound actions (Zsambok and Klein, 2014). The artistic director is also responsible for having the artistic control over the production choices of the organizations and overall artistic vision (Catron and Shattuck, 2015). He is also responsible for selection of the materials that would be staged and it also includes the recruitment of the people (Zsambok and Klein, 2014). The artistic director’s works in close collaboration with the general manager of the theater so that there is artistic evaluation of the project and the various promotional, press materials and funding options (Catron and Shattuck, 2015).

The production team at the Les Folies Bergere Theatre comprises of the different production teams such as producer, company manager, stage crew, artistic director, stage management, fly men, orchestra, production team and the technical department. The role of the production manager at the Les Folies Bergere Theatre is to ensure the close collaboration of the artistic teams and the different technical support functions.

Understanding of two functions

The two important functions in the Figure 10.4 are the orchestra and the stage management. These two entities should work in close collaboration with each other. The stage manager is responsible for production, technical as well as various orchestra that would be performing in the event (Dorbian, 2013). The show calls as well as stage management moves should be known to the orchestra events since they would be responsible for managing the music based on the staged events. The stage manager is responsible for rotational scheduling of the employees including the orchestra members (Dorbian, 2013). He should be present at the backstage well in advance of the event commencement. He is also responsible for informing the orchestra regarding the necessary emergency changes that are made in the event. The stage manager also needs to inform the orchestra members regarding the archival recording as well as other media activities of the firm (Bond, 2013). He also needs to take care of the physical environment of the events so that the orchestra members perform in a safe environment which is conducive to the process of music making.

It is also important that the stage manager needs to manage as well as administer the activities of the orchestra on the stage of the event. It is also important to perform creation of stage plots, equipment rental, shell placement of orchestra, scheduling of crew class, orchestra rivals and others (Dorbian, 2013). This would not be possible if there is not coordination and cooperation among the stage management and the orchestra units. It is also important to safe transport as well as storage of the different symphony equipment so that the orchestra members can use it in an optimal manner. The stage manager is also responsible for coordinating the logistic arrangement which would support the marketing, development, education, public relations and the special events. The orchestra members should coordinate with the stage manager or stage in charge so that they get adequate dressing rooms as well as warm up areas that are in good condition (Dorbian, 2013). This would help them to prepare for the event and practice if they need to do so. This would also enhance their performance in the event and they would be able to impress the audience. Hence, it is important to understand as well as know the job role of each other and coordinate between themselves.

There can be five potential tension sources as well as conflict in the production team of Les Folies Bergere Theatre. The production unit is a highly complex entity in which there is a high probability of lack of communication between the team members. There may be inadequate passage of the information, which may result in chaos and confusion. One employee may not pass the information he knows to his fellow employees, which may result in deviation in the professional standards. There may be high degree of interpersonal conflicts between the different members of the production team. This situation may get acute when there are scarce resources which have least possibility of sharing (Tjosvold, Wong and Feng Chen, 2014). There can be disagreements over the simple arguments between the team members. There can be some members who can propose a particular style of production, while there are others, who may not follow that particular style. The cross-cultural team at the theater may pose serious issues for the management (Tjosvold, Wong and Feng Chen, 2014).

The different values as well as beliefs of the team members would be affected and this may prevent the employees to interact freely with each other. There are possibilities of non-acceptance of the backward classes, which may affect the team bonding. This type of conflict is known as relationship conflict in which the conflict arises due to differences in the values, personality and style of the employees (Tjosvold, Wong and Feng Chen, 2014). This type of conflict is always destructive since it reduces the overall productivity of the team. There is also the possibility task related conflict, in which the members of the team may disagree with the tasks allocated to them (Tjosvold, Wong and Feng Chen, 2014). If there are more number of members who are disagreeing on tasks, then the production function of the management would hamper. There can be conflicts of interests when the personal goals of the individuals don’t match with the goals of the organization.

There are several negative effects of arising conflicts in the organizations. There can be severe mental health concerns of the employees, which may subsequently reduce the productivity of the organization. This is because of the fact that the conflict between the members often causes less focus on the core goals of the organization (Tjosvold, Wong and Feng Chen, 2014). An increased level of conflict may also force efficient members to leave the organization. This may force the organization to recruit new members, which may involve subsequent cost and considerable time.

Conclusion

The management of an organization is one of the most important tasks of the organization. The organizing function of management is concerned with the accumulation of the organizational resources. This assignment focused on the case study of Les Folies Bergere Theatre. The team building aspect in the creative industries is assessed along with the level of difficulty. The issues associated with team building are discussed. The artistic and production functions are defined along with the names of such functions in the given case study organization. The two important functions in the Figure 10.4 are the orchestra and the stage management, which are explained in detail. The five potential sources of conflict for the given organization are discussed in detail along with the disadvantages associated with them.

References

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Basadur, M., Gelade, G. and Basadur, T., 2014. Creative problem-solving process styles, cognitive work demands, and organizational adaptability. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 50(1), pp.80-115.

Bond, D., 2013. Stage management: a gentle art. Routledge.

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Catron, L.E. and Shattuck, S., 2015. The Director's Vision: Play Direction from Analysis to Production. Waveland Press.

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Levi, D., 2015. Group dynamics for teams. Sage Publications.

Leyshon, A., Thrift, N., Crewe, L., French, S. and Webb, P., 2016. Leveraging affect: Mobilising enthusiasm and the co-production of the musical economy. The production and consumption of music in the digital age. London: Routledge, pp.248-62.

Salas, E., Shuffler, M.L., Thayer, A.L., Bedwell, W.L. and Lazzara, E.H., 2015. Understanding and improving teamwork in organizations: A scientifically based practical guide. Human Resource Management, 54(4), pp.599-622.

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