Introduction
Paul Burns said that the secret to success in a changing environment is not only based on the capability to achieve cost-efficiency but the ability to be “adaptable, flexible, speedy, creative, innovative and opportunistic” (Burns, 2008, p.1). Burns also made the clarification that the presence of these qualities means that the businessman is ready to act in an entrepreneurial manner (Burns, 2008, p.1).
Through this statement, Burns made it clear that an entrepreneur behaves differently from an ordinary businessman. A businessman that attempts to solve a problem within the events industry must listen to this advice.
It must be made clear that speed and adaptability are two characteristics that are usually found in small firms or in organizations that employ only a handful of people. Large organizations can claim belief in speed and adaptability but in truth it is extremely difficult to subscribe to these principles.
An established business with hundreds and thousands of employees and millions of pounds in operating expense cannot change their business model at the drop of a hat.
The focus will be on creativity in order to provide innovative solutions to problems. Innovation is a hallmark of successful entrepreneurship. There is no need to elaborate on the fact that giant corporations in the 21st century started as small firms with an innovative solution to a particular problem. The founders saw a way to meet the needs of potential customers.
Consider for instance the creation of an affordable vehicle by the first British automaker or the establishment of a telecom infrastructure by the predecessors of the first British telecom company. The same thing can be said of recent successes by Microsoft and Google. The business brains behind their success were able to develop innovative products and strategies that attracted the patronage of clients.
Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Innovation is not only needed in the beginning phase of a company’s evolution. Innovation is needed on a regular basis because it is a key to sustainable growth. It is an important ingredient in an established corporation and a vital component for a struggling firm.
It can be argued that once an organization stops developing innovative strategies, then, that is the point the organization begins to decline as a business enterprise. A business organization that is hesitant to deal with requirements to produce innovative solutions may find itself obsolete in a few years. Consider for instance the business that provided beepers and typewriters.
There is a need to continually invest in people and sources of information that will allow the creation of innovative solutions. According to a commentary on successful business models, innovation was seen as a survival imperative (Seebode & Harkin, 2009, p.1). Business leaders must keep in mind that present success can never be an assurance of future success.
An organization can never rely on its present assets and current business practices in order to remain relevant for many years to come. A business organization cannot prevent bankruptcy even if it employs a strict method of reducing expenditures. Thus, a successful entrepreneur understands the meaning of risk as well as how to take risks in order to gain a competitive advantage over its competitors.
Successful business leaders proved that they were able to take risks. Those who were celebrated in the annals of business history made their mark because they were unwilling to play it safe. Risk management is the reason why businessmen call their creation a business venture.
An armchair analyst loves the idea of innovation. Leaders are enamoured with the idea of innovative strategies but only a few are willing to pay the price. There is a steep price to pay in order to develop creative solutions to a particular problem. If a business leader is unwilling to pay the price, then, innovative strategies will forever elude his grasp.
Many business leaders are hesitant because they are not willing to deal with the risks involved. But the leader who is ready to break away from the competition must become familiar with the risk management process. The risk management process is comprised of the following components:
- risk analysis;
- risk identification;
- risk description;
- risk estimation;
- risk evaluation;
- risk reporting;
- decision (The Institute of Risk Management, 2002, p.4).
It can be argued that the most critical component is risk evaluation because the result of the evaluation weighs heavily on the final decision. At this stage in the risk management process the business leader must compare the estimated risks against risk criteria. The risk criteria “may include associated costs and benefits, legal requirements, socio-economic and environmental process” (The Institute of Risk Management, 2002, p.4).
Creative solutions are uncommon because aside from the need to take risks there is also the need for strong leaders who are willing to take the road less travelled. Most of the time, the path towards creative solutions is riddled with criticisms and setbacks.
A strong leader is needed, one with the will to innovate and sometimes the strength to defy the status quo (Tidd & Bessant, 2009, p.100). If there is no one who has the strength of character to go through this painful process, then, creative solutions will not emerge.
Aside from strong leadership, another important requirement is the creation of an atmosphere ready for change. Without this feature in place, “creativity, learning, and interaction will never happen and these are key ingredients to innovation” (Tidd & Bessant, 2009, p.100).
In this regard it is imperative to identify key personnel within the group that can be considered as resource persons and leaders that can rally a team to generate creative ideas and implement the same (Tidd & Bessant, 2009, p.100). The end result is teamwork that is geared towards the development of creative solutions.
A culture biased towards creative solutions must be maintained at all times. It is useless to aspire for creativity and then after a year or so revert back to the old way of doing things. The momentum must be maintained on a consistent basis. It will require commitment from the leaders and the team members. A culture of creativity must be developed from the rank and file employees up to the highest levels of leadership.
The business leaders must also be mindful of the fact that creative solutions must not only be limited within the confines of the organization. Creative solutions must have an external focus (Tidd & Bessant, 2009, p.100). It requires the evaluation of various stakeholders.
Creative solutions must not only be a wining solution for the team but for consumers, suppliers, and the community. A creative solution is ineffective if it violates the rights of others and if it harms the environment. Creative solutions that pass these tests can be considered as innovations.
In order to put the discussion in proper perspective there is a need to point out that creative solutions have empowered the economy. In the case of the United Kingdom the emergence of entrepreneurs that uses creativity as the main component of their business model has resulted in a label known as creative industries. The following commentary highlights the impact of this new brand of entrepreneurship:
The creative industries are now of considerable social and economic significance with the United Kingdom. UK government statistic indicate that the creative industries generated revenues of £112.5 billion in 2000, employed almost 1.9 million people in 2003, constituted 8 percent of gross value-added to the economy, and had grown at a rate of 6 percent per annum between 1997 and 2003 (Henry, 2007, p.61).
The first thing that comes to mind when it comes to creative industries are entrepreneurs that are under the umbrella of advertising, mass media communication, and artistic pursuits. However, entrepreneurs can be considered as part of the creative industry if they fulfil the following conditions:
The development of creative product, service or experience, which meets a recognized market need or stimulates an opportunity, attracting a specific audience who interact with it in acts of symbolic exchange. It can also be seen in the creation of a business process which generates and captures commercial value in the symbolic and economic interaction between the business and customer.
It is also manifested in the innovative use of technology in engaging communicating and interacting in creative discourse with customers. Finally, it is the process of managing the creative enterprise as a social organization in which distinctive culture, language, behaviour and work style interact in support of the identity, product and process (Henry, 2007, p.64).
In this particular report the part of the definition that requires greater scrutiny is the assertion that entrepreneurs considered to be part of the creative industry are those that are able to develop “innovative use of technology in engaging communicating and interacting in creative discourse with customers” (Henry, 2007, p.64).
Thus, it can be argued that a solution to the problems faced by the events industry can be considered a part of the creative industry if the entrepreneur can demonstrate the innovative use of technology in communication and delivery of a particular service.
Events Industry
The events industry can be simplified in terms of professional event planning. In this simplified version, the event specialist “gets hired by organizations or individuals to plan and execute special events form conferences, parties, fundraisers, galas, company product launches and staff seminars to weddings, bar/bat mitzvahs, and anniversaries” (Malouf, 2012, p.28).
This simple definition can be expanded to include the special events industry that is now seen as a “sophisticated field that today often requires professional credentials on top of organizational and creative talents, practical industry experience, and the passion and drive to succeed in the business” (Malouf, 2012, p.28).
The requirements listed above provide an opening for those who aspire to develop an effective business model to solve problems in this particular industry.
Before going any further it is critical to point out that the foundation of the business model is not creativity per se but a clear understanding of business enterprise theory. According to a commentary made regarding this topic, “The motive of business is pecuniary gain; the method is essentially purchase and sale. The aim and usual outcome is an accumulation of wealth.
Men whose aim is not increase of possessions do not go into business” (Veblen, 2005, p.16). Thus, the entrepreneur must go into business with the end-goal of making money. It is only when this issue has been settled that creativity and innovative solutions come into play. Creativity is not the ultimate goal but the means to an end.
Identification of a Problem
In the overview of the events industry it was discovered that there are exacting standards such as “organizational and creative talents, practical industry experience, and the passion and drive to succeed” (Malouf, 2012, p.28).
Based on these requirements it can be argued that aside from practical experience, an event planner must demonstrate proficiency when it comes to effective management of workers and other resources.
Thus, a support industry can be created to deal with this need. An entrepreneur can develop a business model that provides training services in order to prepare an aspiring event planner to master the skills required by the profession.
Based on this definition it can be argued that there is a need for a training centre that will produce specialists to deal with operational requirements, safety issues, back-office functions and logistics. There is a need for a training centre that will help learners understand the use of cutting-edge technology in order to deal with these issues.
There is a need for a training program that helps train students on how to use teleconferencing, state-of-the art radios, portable communication devices, and standard office equipment that are essential tools in the events industry. There is also a need to enhance the training program to include topics regarding project management.
The training centre has to focus on the use of project management principles to produce specialists in the events industry. The entrepreneur who will finance and build the training centre must realize that the issues in the events industry are similar o that of project management such as operations, safety, back-office functions, and logistics.
For example, the ultimate goal of project management is to ensure that a particular goal is achieved. It is the systematic approach to the accomplishment of a particular goal. Project management clarifies a particular outcome. Project management has a specific life-cycle.
It is different from the management of a typical enterprise. It is different from the management of a store or office. But it deals with the movement of equipment, installation of equipment, and other logistical problems.
It is not a typical workload or job that has to be performed or accomplished (Gray & Larson, 2008). An event planner is like a project manager because the type of output expected is not measured using typical standards of productivity. Take for example the work required in a factory.
A factory manager is hired to determine if the system works or not. In contrast to project management, there is a process that begins with the definition of the task and ends when the task is completed. Once a specific outcome has been achieved then the work of the project management is completed.
Before the training centre can be established there is a need to clarify the behaviour outcome of the students. The training centre must emphasize the expected skills set of a project manager.
A project manager is a leader (Lock, 2007). The leadership quality must include the capability to motivate team members. However, a project manager must go beyond the role of a coach because aside from the need to motivate, the project manager must also be adept in terms of managing time and other resources.
The project manager understands the meaning of constraints and knows how to deal with these problems (Shelly & Rosenblatt, 2011).
The project manager is also adept in the identification of the various stakeholders that will be affected by a particular project. There various factors can conspire to stop a project from being completed. The project manager knows how to deal with government agencies, social groups, and the community.
A project manager has a bird’s eye-view of the entire project and yet at the same time he is knowledgeable about the details of the project. He is aware of the step-by-step process as stipulated in the design of the project.
At the same time the project manager tries to balance budget, work constraints and the temperament of the workers. In the whole duration of the project the project manager knows how to make key adjustments (Westland, 2006). Even a perfectly developed plan cannot predict all the obstacles that the project will encounter along the way.
Business Opportunity
The creative industry is an important part of the UK economy. Thus, an entrepreneur with a creative solution can expect to have a profitable business enterprise. The focus of the report is to analyse the events industry and determine if an entrepreneur can develop a business model to solve some of its problems.
An overview of the events industry provided the revelation that there is a need for a specialist to deal with issues like operations, safety, back-office functions, and logistics.
A specialist in the events industry must possess the following characteristics: “organizational and creative talents, practical industry experience, and the passion and drive to succeed” (Malouf, 2012, p.28). There is therefore a need to develop a training centre to produce this type of leader.
In the course of the discussion it was mentioned that this specialist is someone that must possess the same skills as a project manager.
But after probing deeper into the skills-set of a project manager it was discovered that that the training program must cover different types of learning activities. It was also pointed out that the specialist is not only a coach but also a manager. There is a need to learn how to deal with people as well as to manage resources.
From a business standpoint an entrepreneur can develop a training centre that can be considered as a creative solution that will address a major problem in the events industry. The lack of leaders in this field can hamper the growth of the industry. The training centre can help address this problem.
However, there is still no way to determine how to develop the correct training program that can produce this so-called specialist. The discussion on the qualities of a project manager can be a guide but it requires further investigation to prove if this is feasible.
It can be argued that a creative solution to this particular problem can generate a profitable business enterprise for the entrepreneur. However, there are many things to consider. Part of the social cost is the need for the entrepreneur to learn more about the events industry.
There is no other way to achieve this goal other than to acquire practical experience. Thus, before this creative solution can be developed, the aspiring entrepreneur must attempt to work in the organization that is part of the events industry.
Conclusion
The events industry is faced with a problem. There is a need to develop specialists that can deal with operations, safety, back-office functions, and logistics. An effective entrepreneur can look into this problem and develop a creative solution. The solution for this particular problem requires an innovative way to produce a specialist in the events industry.
The difficulty lies in the fact that the skills needed are not usually taught in a typical school. Thus, it can be considered as a creative solution. However, the entrepreneur must dig deeper and learn more about the events industry and the skills required of a specialist before he can develop an appropriate training program.
References
Burns, P 2008, Corporate entrepreneurship, Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
Gray, C, & Larson, E 2008, Project management: the managerial process, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Lock, D 2007, Project management, Gower Publishing, Vermont.
Malouf, L 2012, Events exposed: managing and designing special events, John Wiley & Sons, New Jersey.
Seebode, D, & Harkin, G 2009, Radical innovations at Philips lighting. Web.
Shelly, G, Rosenblatt, H 2012, Systems analysis and design. Cengage Learning, Ohio.
The Institute of Risk Management 2002, A risk management standard, The National Forum for Risk Management, London.
Tidd, J, & Bessant, J 2009, Managing innovation, integrating technological, market & organizational, John Wiley & Sons, New Jersey.
Veblen, T 2005, The theory of business enterprise, Cosimo Books, New York.
Westland, J 2006, The project management life cycle: a complete step-by-step methodology for planning, executing and closing the project successfully, Kogan Page, Philadelphia.