Producing a
Blockbuster
By STEVE COATS |
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Besides a long overdue family vacation, the arrival
of summer signals something else of great anticipation for many
people - the blockbuster movies arriving at the theaters. Somehow
every year, a couple of these films rise up and actually deliver
on all the hoopla and buzz surrounding them.
Although the plots or story lines are incredibly
different, real blockbusters do share some things in common? For
starters, they don't just please or satisfy, they frequently leave
the audience breathless! They make or solidify careers of the people
involved. And of course, they make a bundle of money at the box
office (as well as generate enormous sales of related merchandise
and music products.)
But, producing a blockbuster is not for the faint
of heart. Although a few might seem like a slam-dunk from the beginning,
most require an enormous investment of money and time, involve something
never done before - be it dazzling technology, location, or staging
- and are filled with contentious re-writes, edits, artistic clashes
and so forth. And after months and months of perpetual problems,
draining work schedules and unforgiving deadlines, the movie must
light up the box office within 72 hours in order to be a winner.
According to what you read, almost every movie
studio needs a blockbuster every so often to survive in the long
run. And so does every other kind of business enterprise. Although
they usually have more than 3 days to determine success, the trials
of a creating a blockbuster in any business are quite similar to
those in the movie industry.
I have recently heard a number of executives comment
about the need for some real breakthroughs in their businesses.
Perhaps this need is now more paramount, given the struggles companies
are facing in light of the current economic downtown. But here is
the paradox. For all their banter about how desperately they want
blockbusters, much of the effort in their organizations remains
directed on incremental, smaller scale improvements.
Is that the case in your organization? Why do
you suppose this paradox occurs?
What Stalls Blockbuster Efforts
Over time, we have uncovered several reasons for
this troubling inconsistency, including:
Most of the big breakthroughs involve a
leap of faith to some degree. Sometimes there is just not enough
quantifiable research to build an airtight business case. The assumptions
being considered are very reasonable, but there is always the haunting
question of, "what if we are wrong?" There can be both
a real financial cost and a reputation cost (personal and organizational)
when the idea does not live up to expectations. Blockbusters are
risky business.
Blockbusters usually take a lot of time
and effort to design, debug and implement. And they frequently have
impact across several organizational divisions. As they gain momentum,
more and more people want to ensure their own special wants and
needs are included. Does that ever make things interesting, especially
when those needs are based on ego or position power.
In too many cases, people are actually
punished when they propose a bold idea. If the idea is seen as too
unconventional or different, the person associated with it may be
labeled as a crackpot who does not understand how the company really
makes money. Granted, being labeled like this is usually not the
best thing for one's career, but there is another punishment that
might even be worse. The person with the courage to put forth a
bold new initiative is told, "Great idea, go make it happen.
But make sure you still get your regular job done." Since
people are virtually overwhelmed by the staggering targets of their
regular jobs, why would they possibly want to take on more - especially
when the additional work is so risky and often loaded with political
landmines?
The lion's share of emphasis is
on immediate business results. CEO's hear the migraine inducing,
constant pounding of quarterly earnings expectations, and the importance
of that message gets communicated very clearly throughout the organization.
More often than not, the compensation and rewards people receive
are almost entirely tied to how well they deliver on the numbers
right now. In general, people are neither equipped to think about
nor given any real incentive to apply much effort on future big-ticket
ideas.
Given all these risks and difficulties, it is
easy to understand the discrepancy between talk and action. In fact,
most organizations do not lack great ideas, they suffer from the
lack of people stepping up as leaders to combat these very real
factors working against them. So, if you are really serious about
generating blockbuster ideas on a continuing basis, you are going
to have to take on that challenge. You will have to find ways to
get more and more people inspired to think about, and willing to
commit themselves to the tremendous effort needed to bring those
exhilarating opportunities to life. You will have to provide some
courageous leadership.
Keep in mind that leaders are responsible for
delivering today's results AND creating the opportunities that ensure
fulfillment of tomorrow's expectations. That is a very tall order,
since meeting today's numbers is more than a full time job for most.
There are some senior executives who would love to be able to sacrifice
earnings for a quarter or two in order to invest in future profits
for the long haul. Unfortunately that is just not acceptable these
days. Success as a leader is based on uninterrupted growth - today
and tomorrow, as unrealistic as that may sometimes seem.
Creating the Right Environment
So how can you begin to break through the dilemma
that seems to pit the focus on incremental improvements for today's
results against the blockbusters needed for tomorrow? How can you
change an environment that tends to foster smaller thinking to one
that promotes the development of grand thoughts, and execution on
them? Following are some of the things that, as a leader, you can
do to make some real and sustainable progress.
First, you must examine your own beliefs
about the importance of breakthrough ideas. Your company may have
a proven track record of constant incremental improvement, and you
might believe that strategy will continue to serve you long into
the future. You may be right. But also consider that while you are
continuing to constantly improve the quality and production efficiency
of your phonograph, a competitor is inventing the CD player.
Because of the risk associated with blockbusters,
you may have a tendency to stay safe with predominately cost cutting
ideas or rather tentative, incremental ventures into new arenas.
After all, there is an expression, "pioneers get the arrows
and settlers get the land," which can make you think twice
about the perils of trying something that has never been tried before.
But always remember, you cannot grow your company to meet the expectations
of tomorrow if your ways of thinking stay the size of yesterday.
Broaden you mind about unconventional ways
to dramatically grow your business. You might be holding back the
next "Harry Potter" because it doesn't mesh with your
view of the world. You will need to engage in the leadership practice
of possibility thinking, or you might pull the plug too quickly,
simply because "the company has never done anything like this
before."
Keep in mind that a blockbuster can come in a
variety of shapes and sizes. It can be a revolutionary new product
or a process technology breakthrough. It can be a new way of servicing
current customers, or a better method of connecting with your suppliers.
It can even be a new way of thinking about things.
But do not believe that a blockbuster must be
unusually complicated or high tech to succeed. Notebook computers
and wonder drugs might fit that description, but how about chopped
lettuce in a bag, which is reported to be about a billion and a
half dollar industry these days. And what would the sales of dental
floss be, without the simple plastic container that allows you to
cut it at just the right length?
Examine who you think is most responsible
for or capable of creating blockbusters. Some companies have very
formal R&D organizations, staffed with very talented and specialized
people, who have been hired specifically to produce product or service
breakthroughs. Others might have evolved a culture of corporate-wide
innovation with ambitious targets like 50% of revenue coming from
products less than 4 years old. In these organizations ideas of
all kinds are the lifeblood of the business, and an individual in
almost any position might be viewed as potential sources for a blockbuster.
Do you basically believe blockbusters can only
come from senior management, R&D people, or other technical
specialists? Or do you view every person in your company, regardless
of position or title, as a key contributor to your future? Think
about it. To what extent do you view your own people as having the
"idea potential," to dramatically change your own business
or an entire industry for that matter?
You must create a process for bold ideas
to get created and surfaced. One company with whom we are familiar
had a corporate mantra about stimulating breakthrough ideas. Trouble
was, few could figure out all the random twists, turns, and appropriate
political blessings required to ever get an idea advanced. Compare
that with another company's approach, where they have monthly sessions
that allow people to get together and work for a few days on building
the cases for some great ideas. Those opportunities are then presented
to key executives, who listen, challenge and coach the idea teams
on how to best proceed in getting the ideas implemented.
Do people in your organization know how to get
their ideas heard? And what kind of coaching or advice are they
able to get from you or others, so they are fully equipped to advance
their ideas onward and upward?
You have to treat breakthrough ideas, and
their creators differently from the day to day, continuous improvement
ideas. There are too many managers today echoing the slogan, "don't
bring me half-baked ideas, bring me solutions." That may be
fine with cost cutting suggestions or relative simple problems,
but it rarely works for blockbuster opportunities.
So what do people do in these situations, when
they have a promising premise, but need some time and help to flush
it out? Some might form an informal skunk work group and work on
it in their spare time (assuming they have any), while others may
continue to merely dabble at it until they just lose interest or
a competitor does it first. A few might even quit their jobs and
pursue their blockbuster on their own terms. But they certainly
won't take it to their boss - and why should they.
How many great ideas in your own company do you
think have been suppressed or walked out the door because of the
"half-baked" attitude? Breakthrough ideas always encounter
a number of barriers before they can prove themselves. Don't you
be another one. Instead, help people get better prepared to overcome
the tough ones that already exist.
Be committed to building a pipeline of
breakthrough ideas. You need to examine the kinds of ideas that
are most frequently being addressed today. Are you receiving some
really eye-popping ideas, or are the majority more of a "super-sized"
incremental improvement? Are they truly growth oriented in nature
or additional ways to cut costs? Do the ideas create real value,
or merely the illusion of value?
Since relatively few real blockbuster ideas can
actually turn into raging triumphs, a pipeline will give you those
much needed options, increasing your changes of success. With a
constant flow of big ideas, you will be able to figure out which
ones will best enable you to capture to the territories of new market
share or profitability, while avoiding a large number of those arrows!
Being Personally Involved
We expect leaders to set the example, so let me
close with a couple of thoughts about your own personal involvement
in a blockbuster. Hopefully you will find these helpful as you pursue
your own daring idea, or as advice to other people as they aggressively
strive to advance their own.
First, if you aspire to take on more responsibility
and lead larger organizations, do not hesitate to get behind something
that can make a big, big difference. Yes, a blockbuster is filled
with risk, but getting associated with a big idea is a very effective
way to get noticed in an organization of any size.
Next, you must be deeply passionate about the
idea, in order to have the resolve and stamina to overcome all the
barriers you will face. Don't blame other people if you are unprepared
to see it through to the end.
And finally, implementation is the ultimate measure
of success, not the brilliance of the idea itself. Having a blockbuster
idea, even when supported by a solid business case, means nothing
if it remains merely a dream.
So get ready for some tough leadership work,
because turning the dream into reality is the hard part. You will
have to convince the right people to stand with you. You'll have
to overcome the endless stream of brick walls and trap doors that
are waiting to derail you at any time. And somehow, you will have
get all the various pieces put together in just the right way, so
the idea can take root and become a smashing success in everyone's
eyes.
Copyright 2002 International Leadership Associates
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