Leadership in the Creative Business PDF

AS2002 LEADERSHIP IN THE CREATIVE BUSINESS Leadership is never easy: motivating people and juggling tasks (while keeping your sanity), making good decisio...

AS2002 LEADERSHIP IN THE CREATIVE BUSINESS Leadership is never easy: motivating people and juggling tasks (while keeping your sanity), making good decisions consistently, achieving deliverables with less burnout, resolving conflict before it gets out of hand, coordinating with different departments, motivating down lines, collaborating with different personalities and philosophies... all these can be a headache. This is why leaders are not born... they are trained. Because true leadership has nothing to do with a position or rank, but it’s a responsibility and an obligation. Everyone has the potential, but not all have the capacity and sincere desire to lead people who trust us and the company that believes in us.” (Ding, 2019) The Character of a Creative Leader A business owner is also a business leader. More than having the capacity to start a business, more than having lots of strategy and ideas to make the business blossom, what will matter first is your character as a leader. It’s because you cannot achieve success in your business if you do not have the right character towards what you do. Sometimes, a business fails not because they lack customers or ran out of funds; it’s because they fail to have the right leader who has the right character and right heart to lead. Here are some leadership principles every business owner should possess. 1. Knows How to Lead Himself Self-leadership is challenging to do because it involves self-discipline wherein none of us will never perfect. The secret to self-discipline is your determination to succeed and achieve your goals. As future creative leaders, practice how to discipline yourselves. In the real world, if you have a meeting, you cannot afford to be late. How can you practice self-discipline on that? Sleep early, wake up, leave early. You can practice it now, even if you are still studying. If know-how to discipline yourself, then soon, your future staff will also follow your discipline because they see it in you. Creative members need creative leaders they can look up to. Model the kind of leader that you want to have. The ultimate measure of an effective leader is how he/she effectively leads him/herself. A leader cannot expect his/her followers to improve if the improvement is not seen in him/her. Improvement starts within. Commitment to self-improvement makes it easier to influence people to follow the lead. Example: Michael runs a video production house for five (5) years now. He oversees the operation from pre-production to post-production. He makes sure that he equips himself first by learning new techniques in video production before he trains his staff. Whenever he calls for a staff meeting at 8:00 AM, he makes sure that he is 30 mins. early. His staff was encouraged by his punctuality and dedication to his craft so, they are also trying not to be complacent with what they know but to seek self-improvement too as simple as learning a new skill that they can apply to their work. 2. Intentional A creative leader is intentional in guiding his people but allows them to grow on their own. It is showing his people how to do it and allowing them to do it in their creative way to achieve the same result. Leading people intentionally involves being transparent in what direction the company is heading and walking closely alongside them. Example: 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 1 of 15  AS2002 John owns a digital printing business. Every first and last Monday of the month, he schedules a “Learning Lab” session for his staff that allows them to share their ideas to improve the business better, facilitates learning by asking one of his staff to share new skills that they’ve acquired. Every 3 months, he facilitates training to his employees like how to use the new equipment, new printing styles, and the like after his training he challenges his staff to apply what they learned and present an output. Every four (4) months, they have a company General Assembly (GA) to keep updated with what’s happening with their business. If they have a new employee, he always places him/her beside his office so he can closely monitor his/her progress and personally train him/her. 3. Servant-Leader A total creative leader looks out for the well-being and best interest of his staff as much as he is concern about the business. Part of a company’s success is because of the people who work hard for the company and gave their very best. Failure to look after the well-being of the staff will affect the productivity of the company. Example: Jemerlyn owns an animation production company. She knows how demanding production is and can be sometimes stressful for her and her staff. She wants her creatives to be more efficient in what they do and still maintain a work-life balance. She created a rule that they would only work from Mondays to Fridays from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. If there’s a need for overtime, she imposed a strictly 1 hr. overtime only. She also told her creatives not to call and talk about work after 5:00 PM and on weekends so they can rest and save their energy for the next working day. 4. Looks Things in New Ways Creative leaders look at a solution from a bigger picture. It doesn’t settle to what is currently available, but rather, he/she create new ways and solving problems differently. He/she invents, imagines, innovates, has originality, resourceful, has a vision, and strives for progression. Example: Gab’s photography business is currently facing a crisis. There isn’t much client because events were canceled due to a calamity. Instead of settling for what they do, which is to get clients, shoot for events, and get paid, he thought of other ways to cope with the financial crisis of their business. He started to do maximize the benefits of online marketing by boosting their Facebook page and announcing their paid workshops, he also set-up a YouTube channel to monetize by gathering subscribers to watch his tutorial and learn from their best practices. He assigned his creatives to plan and create their workshops to share online. 5. Quick to Listen and Slow to Speak A creative leader knows how to listen to suggestions and constructively evaluate them. His/her evaluation doesn’t come from his perspective but a business perspective. He/she give encourage brainstorming and listen to different ideas of his/her staff that might help come up with a better solution. He/she also listens to other mentors who give counsel in running the business. He speaks professionally and is not harsh. Example: Cindy owns a web design and development company. She noticed one of her web developers is being habitually tardy, and he doesn’t beat the deadlines lately, which causes delays in their projects. She called him in the office to talk about his recent behavior personally. Cindy has all the right to get angry at her web developer, and she can even terminate him. Instead of responding that way, she asked his web developer, “What seems to be the problem?” “Is there anything that you want to share about why you have that work behavior recently?” “Is there any help that you need?” 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 2 of 15  AS2002 Managing for Creativity Part of leadership skill in an arts business is how well one can manage a pool of creative individuals in the organization. Project Coordination for Creatives It involves managing and organizing a certain project from start to finish. This is a crucial part of managing a creative business because if there is no proper coordination, the project is bound for failure. How Project Coordination Works 1. Get all details of the project first. Get all the necessary information from the client. For example, An Delegate Tasks animation studio has a client who Get the Project Create A for Each Details Committee asks to create a commercial using Committee animation, ask how they want it to turn out, what is their target market, when is the target date of release. Do not end the client Planning and meeting unless all the details are Evaluation Execution Brainstorm gathered. 2. Create an organizing committee for the project. There should be an assigned committee every time there is a project to maintain the organization and proper flow of the project. For example, a client asks a production house to create a corporate video for them. Assign a committee for video editing, another committee for sound design, then a committee for admin and finance, then another committee for camera operations. 3. Delegate the tasks for each committee. Orient on the process of communication between each committee. Ensure that each committee knows its functions. What is their role and how should they communicate with one another. 4. Plan and brainstorm on how the project should be executed and how it should look like once it’s done. It is to collaborate all the ideas and bring them to reality according to how they want the project to come out. This is the stage where everyone will create a concept for a certain project. 5. Execute the project. Put the concepts and ideas into action. 6. Once executed, the evaluation needs to be done. It is important to evaluate everything. What worked, what not, what needs for improvement, what needs to be continued, do you need to incorporate other ideas. So that in the next projects, your team will do better and will avoid mistakes that happened from the last project. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 3 of 15  AS2002 Reminder: Transparency is very important in client relations. Make sure that every step, every detail, revisions, improvement, changes, and challenges must be communicated to the client to keep their trust and to get their insights on the project as well. Example: Project: Palawan Tourism Video Client: Palawan Tourism Target Launch Date: December 12, 2020 Promote Palawan as a tourist destination It should have humor in the video Project Details It should sustain the audience attention within 10 seconds. Highlights Underground River, Food, Beaches and other outdoor adventure Planning and Research Permits and Legalities Client Relations Committee Admin and Finance Camera Operations Editing Testing and Delivery Thorough reseach about Palawan, tourist spots and food. Flow of the scenes in the video Produce scripts, shot list and story board Planning and Meet with camera operations team to do calibration Brainstorming regarding how it will be shot, angles and how it will be edited Coordinate with permits and legalities to ensure that permits and documents are secured prior to the shoot Execution Shooting Proper Testing and delivery committee will check the final video Evaluation and have it evaluated before showing to the clients 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 4 of 15  AS2002 Committee Planning and Permits and Client Relations Admin and Finance Research Legalities Script writing Secure location Update clients with Logistics Research about permits the progress Budget preparation Palawan Secure legal Follow-up clients Brainstorm and documents as regarding other plan the video flow needed needs for the video Location management Shot list Story board Camera Operations Editing Testing and Delivery Camera handling Cut-to-cut editing Testing of final during shoots Sound design output for any VFX revisions before showing to the Color grading client Motion graphics Time and Resource Management It is proper planning and allocating time and resources during a specific project to achieve effectiveness, efficiency, and productivity. How a leader manages the time and resources of the business will affect the productivity of the business. It can either cause delays, or it can make them more productive. How to Effectively Manage Time and Resources Time Management It is organizing what needs to be done on a certain project. Create A Task Do the most important task first followed by the least important. Plan Mark those completed tasks before proceeding to the next. Set Goals and Set what you want to achieve after the project, and why do you want to achieve it. Objectives Make sure to apply SMART goals. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable and Time-bound). Create a Set a deadline for every task. Not only will it challenge you to finish on time or ahead Schedule of time, but it will also help you do improve your self-discipline. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 5 of 15  AS2002 Resource Management Being transparent in everything that you do. Part of managing the company’s resources is tracking all the resources that you used, Accountability was not utilized, sending your accomplishment report for every task you finish because if you are not accountable for how you used the company’s resources, then it will be a waste of money for the company. Utilize the specific skill and ability of each member when delegating tasks. Use the right people with the right skills that you need for a specific project. Task Delegation For example, if you are working on a corporate video and you have a staff whose main forte is sound design and secondary is video editing, then tap him to do the sound design because it is his main forte. In that way, the task will be easier. Resource For every project or production, the team must check the availability of resources, list Management the materials or equipment needed, and how many. What kind of resources is not Plan being used? This will help the company in minimizing costs. Fostering Creative Collaboration Creative collaboration is encouraging people with different skills and abilities to engage with one another and to come up with one goal to achieve success in a project. Fostering collaboration in the business will strengthen the bond of the team resulting in a good working relationship. How to Foster Creative Collaboration 1. Goal Setting For an organization to succeed in every project, a goal must be set, and it should be clear with everyone to avoid miscommunication and so that everyone knows where your project or your company is heading. What needs to be achieved should be clear within the group so that everyone is on the same page. Goals need to be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound). Clear goals will avoid the tendency of miscommunication and division in the team. 2. Team Empowerment Work with strength than highlighting the weakness. It will be much easier to focus and utilize one’s strength first because it will save time, especially if there is a deadline to beat. The weakness can be corrected or can be coached along the way. It is utilizing each strength of the team member to achieve a certain goal in the business. To empower one another, you can conduct a team-building; you can do a personality test and discuss the result during meetings, or you can assign someone a certain task and challenge him/her to step up. Because when we say team empowerment, it is bringing out the best in your people. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 6 of 15  AS2002 One good idea to empower each other is through conducting a team building, do a personality test during a round table discussion to share their results. In that way, they can get to know more about themselves and each other. Challenge them to step up like, for example, ask them to conduct a workshop for their teammates. 3. Encourage Innovation Instill a “can-do” attitude among the team to motivate them to live up to those “can-do” expectations. It is encouraging, at the same time challenging your team member to think out of the box. Encourage brainstorming, ideation, question, and answer portion inside a non-judgmental and open environment. This must be done regularly. Coach and lead the people on how they can improve and overcome their struggles at work. Encourage everyone to learn new skills and share skills together. Monitoring Progress and Evaluation This is to track the performance of a team or a team member if expectations for a certain job has been met. This is also to ensure that resources are utilized in performing the task. How to Track Progress and Do Evaluation Set a goal Create Check for Areas for expectations to improvement reach the goals Monitor what was done or being done Check the result to achieve the goal Set a goal that should be achieved in a specific period. Apply Set a Goal SMART goals. Create Expectations to Reach the Goals Provide the criteria that the team member needs to meet. Monitor What was Done or Being Done to Check the progress of the team member while doing the work. Achieve the Goal Check the Result See what was done and if the expectations were met. Evaluate the work and look for what needs to be improved in Check Areas for Improvement terms of skills and behavior. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 7 of 15  AS2002 Example: Name: John Dela Cruz Project: Shampoo Commercial Part: Video Editor Project lead time: 3 Months Comments: Areas Performance Goals Expectations Progress Result for Improvement Ongoing Done Halfway Needs more time Start on through the When it can be accomplished: 1. Do cut-to-cut Sept. 7 deadline ___________________ editing. Done on Not yet Not met Sept. 25 started Ongoing Done Halfway Needs more time Start on through the When it can be accomplished: 2. Put sounds that Sept. 28 deadline ___________________ match the video. Done on Not yet Not met Oct. 16 started Ongoing Done Halfway Needs more time Start on through the When it can be accomplished: Oct. 19 3. Create visual effects. deadline ___________________ Done on Not yet Not met Nov. 6 started Ongoing Done Halfway Needs more time Start on through the When it can be accomplished: Nov. 9 4. Do the color grading deadline ___________________ Done on Not yet Not met Nov. 27 started Ongoing Done Halfway Needs more time Start on 5. Do the final editing through the When it can be accomplished: Nov. 30 and client deadline ___________________ Done on presentation Not yet Not met Dec. 18 started Performance Enhancement Strategies Realistically Assess Abilities - Learn to determine if the team member has the physical ability, competence, and knowledge to perform at the level of the organization. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 8 of 15  AS2002 Example: Name: John Dela Cruz Position: Video Editor Skills Checklist Proficiency Comments Software Adobe Photoshop Mastered Intermediate Basic Not Familiar Adobe Premiere Mastered Intermediate Basic Not Familiar Adobe After Effects Mastered Intermediate Basic Not Familiar Cinema 4D Mastered Intermediate Basic Not Familiar Final Cut Pro Mastered Intermediate Basic Not Familiar Video Editing Skills Music Sense Proficient Needs improvement Color Correction Knowledge Proficient Needs improvement Sense of Pacing and Timing Proficient Needs improvement Pays Attention to Details Proficient Needs improvement Knowledge of Video Proficient Production and Needs improvement Communication Camera Operations Proficient Knowledge Needs improvement Visualize Success - Train the mind to imagine success. This is teaching the brain the process of a particular skill or activity. This helps gain confidence in executing specific behavior towards the work. This is also helpful in mapping success. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 9 of 15  AS2002 Example: One of the staff of a production company was asked by the owner to handle a big project, which is an advocacy video for an NGO. Since it was the staff’s first time, he was nervous and was about to reject the task, but the owner keeps on challenging him and encourage him that he can do it. Here is what the staff did: He set the goal – His goal was to finish the video in three months with only two client revisions. He pictures the scene by doing a mood board and thinking every day that the success of the production will happen and thinking positively that this will be accomplished within a specific time. Develop a Pre-competition Routine - The routine allows an individual to have consistency in the performance and preparation. This will be a guide to an individual step by step toward reaching the performance standard that was set. It’s creating a schedule for your tasks. Example of a Pre-competition Routine Project: Motion Graphic Animation Deadline: August 15, 2020 Arrive at 7:30 AM for the 8:00 AM Work Research for the latest presets and trends in motion graphics (1hr.) Have an online tutorial for skills upgrade (2hrs.) Do phase 1 of the project Lunch Continue phase 1 of the project Consult phase 1 to the boss for revision before proceeding to phase 2 Factors that Make or Break a Creative Leader There are other characteristics that when a business leader lacks or failed to possess, the tendency is the business and its people will be at risk. Here are other traits that can make or break a creative business leader. 1. Having Integrity - It is being honest, fulfilling your commitments, and doing what you are preaching. The information must be shared openly. A team needs to know the stand of their leader at all times. 2. Having Transparency - It is 100 % authenticity. Communicating openly to the team what is going on, what the plans are, what the challenges are, what needs to be done. It is providing the facts to the team so it can be managed appropriately. It is being open to your challenges as a leader and sharing what you are currently doing to overcome those. 3. Being Inspirational - Creative leaders inspire people to be better at their craft and encourages them to be more than just they are. They are challenging the team to set and attain goals, yet giving them enough support, tools, and training to achieve the targets. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 10 of 15  AS2002 4. Being Innovative - A creative leader always seeks out to improve in his craft. It’s always looking for new and unique ways to solve a problem. He/she recognizes the suggestions and ideas of others to develop ideas to reality. 5. Empowering - It is delegating responsibility and authority to the team. It is knowing each one’s capabilities and expertise so you can provide them developmental opportunities to achieve greater things. Building a Great Creative Team Teamwork makes dream work. A huge factor in business success next to having the right leader is having the right people to do the job and eventually nurture them to be part of that business success. 1. Reward, Recognize, and Celebrate Collaborative Behavior Appreciate the team whenever there is an accomplishment. Apply the E.A.R. principle. Encourage team members to keep up their good work Affirm each one on where they are good at. Remind each one of their significant part in the team to encourage them always to do better. Attaching performance rewards and bonuses to collaborative efforts sends the right message to team members about the values that are driving the business. (Campbell, 2017) If team members are appreciated and well-taken care of, then they are more inspired to do the job better. 2. Communicate The roles and responsibilities of every team member should be discussed for clear understanding so everyone can work effectively. An organizational chart will help everyone to see the structure of the organization. Expectations for each task needs to be clear so that the team members will be able to strategize how to achieve it. Establish an open-door policy wherein everyone is encouraged to be vocal on their thoughts and insights. 3. Get the Right People Technical Skills. A team member should have the right skills that will fit the company. For example, if a video production business needs someone who can do color grading, then check what software are they using, for how long they’ve been doing the job. Ask for a portfolio or give a technical test for that specific skill. Culture Fit. This means creating a job description and check if the person’s qualification matches with what’s on the description. Look for people who share your company values. Check the personality and character of the person by asking them challenging personal questions to see how they respond to the situation because it will give an overview of how they will behave at work. Flexibility. The right person for the job is willing to go out of his/her comfort zone. Someone willing to level up his/her skill and not just staying on what they know. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 11 of 15  AS2002 4. Use a Skills Matrix Having a skills matrix will ensure your team is versatile in handling any project assigned to them. It will also help identify the skill gap that needs to fill either through giving additional training or hiring someone with that specific skill. Example: 5. Invest in People Development This means investing in the development of the core skills and technical skills of the team member. Not only it will be beneficial for their growth as an individual, but it would also help the organization Example: Sending the team to a conference, training, or seminar. Having a once a week workshop and there will be one team member who will facilitate. Scheduled mentoring or coaching. Strategic Planning The definition of strategic planning is a process of decisions made by an organization to set goals and to outline a course of action to achieve those goals, to grow the business, and to help the business be profitable. (Strategic planning. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/strategic-planning) Strategic planning is essential for each project or each organization because it will help a creative entrepreneur in coming up with the actions that need to be done to achieve business goals and to grow the business eventually. Strategic Planning Models Model 1 - This is the most basic strategic model for new organizations. This is more on strategic planning for just the organization and less on the client-side. What is the Identify specific Action Plan to Monitor and Purpose and approaches achieve the update plan Why? and strategies strategy 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 12 of 15  AS2002 Example: Agenda: New Product Offerings To gain more clients Why? To be still be marketable Offer what's currently trending in the Strategies industry Invest in new equipment Action Plan Get training for the new industry skills Launch it by end of this year Results will of the sales for new products Update will begin 3 months after launch Model 2 - Issue-based strategic planning. This is the enhancement of Model 1 and a much deeper way of strategic planning. The difference is that Model 2 discusses SWOT analysis, considers the budget, and also includes the mission, vision, and values of not only the company but of the client. Wherein in strategic Model 1, it is more on the strategic plan for just the organization and less on the client-side. Review the mission, Identify issues and vision or values of SWOT Analysis goals the company or the client Develop Action Plans Budgeting Execute and Monitor 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 13 of 15  AS2002 Example: Project: New Milk Brand Advertisement Video Client: Milk Company Ad Slogan: “Mura pero siksik sa bitamina” Strength Weakness Opportunity Threats The milk company is well- Other milk brands have Sustaining audience The audience might not known better catchy attention by creating a patronize the product advertisement videos unique scene in the video because the The slogan is unique advertisement might not No celebrity is involved in Create remarkable jingle be catchy for them. this project, others have Goals: Create an advertisement video for the new milk brand and catch the audience’s attention. Increase sales of the milk by showing the advertisement video. Client-Side: The client does not want to get celebrity endorsers for the milk brand. They just want to get models who will endorse the brand in the video. The client will be selling the milk in a cheaper brand but has quality and rich in vitamins. Action Plans: Do casting for the video Create a scene that will be remarkable for the audience Do studies of milk commercials for reference and inspiration Budgeting: Workaround the client’s budget of P900,000. The budget allocated for Location, talent fee, permits, production design Monitoring: The report will be done after 2 weeks of airing the advertisement References Christ’s Commission Foundation, Inc. Total Leader. Brown, J. (2007). Your competitive edge. OMF Literature. Ding, A. (2019). Adrian Ding. Facebook.com. Retrieved 6 April 2020, from https://www.facebook.com/adrianding.mi/photos/leadership-is-never- easy-motivating-people-and-juggling-tasks-while-keeping-your/1240409699477526/. Veyrat, P. (2015). Know all about the strategic planning process model. Hello. 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Retrieved 13 April 2020, from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/leadership-can-make-break-organization-linda-obrien/ Weber, J. 7 Tips To Building a Successful Creative Team. Filestage.io. Retrieved 13 April 2020, from https://filestage.io/blog/creative-team/. Cohen, H. (2019). 10 Traits of a Stellar In-House Creative Team (And How to Nurture Them). Workamajig. Retrieved 13 April 2020, from https://www.workamajig.com/blog/in-house-creative-team-traits. 02 Handout 1 *Property of STI Page 15 of 15