I was given the opportunity work alongside the account management and creative team to understand day to day relationship management. I used research tools such as questionnaires and in depth interviews and appropriate methodologies for detailed analysis of the collected data. I secured excellent feedback with a Ist class grade (Distinction), for research methodology used and accuracy of report.
Relatório da OMS / Unicef / IBFAN sobre a situação do Código Internacional de...
London sbmg6010 a_ t 6_mnd_jul 12 term_1002105
1. EVALUATION
OF
MANAGEMENT APPROACH INFLUENCING
CREATIVITY THROUGH INTERNAL RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT– AN
EVALUATION STUDY OF THE APPROACH IN JWT CHENNAI
Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of
Bachelor of Arts (Hons.) in Business Management
Of
University of Wales, Trinity St. David
Submitted
by
Swetha Sureshbabu
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Dissertation supervisor: Mr. Richard Small
Module code : SBMG6010
Date : 15th October 2012
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Management dissertation
Declaration
I hereby declare that the dissertation entitled "Evaluation of Management approach
influencing creativity through internal relationship management – An evaluation
study of the approach in JWT Chennai ", submitted by me for the award of Degree of
Bachelor of Arts (Hons.) in Business Management, is a result of my own original work.
The data collected for studying theories and the organization are in the scope of research
objectives and appropriately referenced. The Interviews and questionnairesconducted were in
adherence to the University‟s ethical considerations, with prior consent from the Agency‟s
management. A letter of acknowledgment from the management has been included, for
perusal.
The project is carried out under the guidance of Mr. Richard Small, my supervisor. This work
has not been previously submitted for the award of any degree, diploma, or fellowship to any
University or Institution.
Swetha Sureshbabu
Date : 15th October 2012
Place : United Kingdom
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Acknowledgments
I thank the Almighty who gave me the strength in order to complete this project successfully.
I would like to thank the University Of Wales : Trinity St. David for giving me this research
opportunity , which has helped me to bring forth my convictions in writing.
I am also thankful to Mr. Richard Small, who has been my guide and helped coordinate my
projectwith ease.
I am also thankful to JWT, Chennai, which had graciously offered me the opportunity to
conduct my research. I am particularly thankful to Mr. M.L. Raghvan Vice president, JWT
Chennai and Mr. Kripaakar Christopher, Account director, JWT Chennai,who have closely
helped me in the completion of this study. I am indebted to the employees of JWT, Chennai
who provided me their time and support, whilst participating in the research.
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Abstract
This dissertation intends to understand the role of relationship management in an advertising
agency and how the management thereby influences the creative process, in the real world
scenario. The research was conducted at JWT Chennai. The research objectives were to
determine the management approach to creativity; the relationship between the creative and
account departments and the management‟s ability in supporting this relationship.
For the purpose of understanding the industrial perceptions, qualitative interviews were
conducted to understand the major themes of the research question. This modelled the
quantitative research questionnaires, which were administered at JWT Chennai to test its
relevance and fulfil the research objectives.
The relevance of the research question in the practical scenario was determined and helped in
deducing the hypothesis. The research also pointed out the influence of agency culture and
value on the management approach, which influenced the creative process by supporting the
dynamic internal relationships.
This dissertation report has made use of thematic framework analysis and frequency tables to
analyse the qualitative research findings and also made use of bar charts and pie diagrams
while analysing the quantitative research findings.
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Table of Contents
1)
A)
2)
3)
4)
RESEARCH QUESTION: ......................................................................................................................... 8
A) HYPOTHESIS: ........................................................................................................................................................... 8
B) RESEARCH OBJECTIVES ......................................................................................................................................... 8
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
F)
G)
H)
LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................................................................... 8
MANAGEMENT APPROACH.................................................................................................................................... 9
THE CREATIVE ENTERPRISE: THE ADVERTISING AGENCY .............................................................................. 9
SIGNIFICANCE OF CREATIVE MANAGEMENT APPROACHES............................................................................ 10
THE CREATIVE HUMAN CAPITAL: ..................................................................................................................... 12
THE ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE: ................................................................................................................................ 13
CREATIVE VS/& ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: THE RELATIONSHIP DILEMMA .................................................. 14
AGENCY CULTURE AND VALUES: ....................................................................................................................... 14
CURRENT ISSUES IN ADVERTISING .................................................................................................................... 15
METHODOLOGY....................................................................................................................................16
PRIMARY DATA TYPES ....................................................................................................................................... 16
Qualitative research analysis .................................................................................................................................. 16
Quantitative research analysis ............................................................................................................................... 17
B) SECONDARY DATA TYPES.................................................................................................................................... 18
C) ETHICAL CONSIDERATION .................................................................................................................................. 18
D) RECORD OF MEETINGS ........................................................................................................................................ 19
A)
5)
A)
B)
6)
7)
INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................... 7
AD AGENCY BACKGROUND .................................................................................................................................... 8
QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................... 20
INTERVIEW DESIGN: ........................................................................................................................................... 20
KEY THEMES: ........................................................................................................................................................ 20
Creative ideation and creative independence ................................................................................................. 20
Relationship between the accounts and the creative department ........................................................ 21
The management’s approach towards this relationship ........................................................................... 22
EXTENSION OF HYPOTHESIS: .......................................................................................................... 24
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
F)
G)
QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................ 25
QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN .................................................................................................................................... 25
QUESTIONS 1-4.................................................................................................................................................... 25
QUESTION 5 -6 ..................................................................................................................................................... 26
QUESTION 7-10................................................................................................................................................... 26
QUESTION 11 ....................................................................................................................................................... 26
QUESTIONS 12 ..................................................................................................................................................... 27
SAMPLE A: THE ACCOUNT DEPT. VS. SAMPLE B: THE CREATIVE DEPT. .................................................. 27
8)
FINAL ANALYSIS ...................................................................................................................................28
Factors influencing the creative process ........................................................................................................... 28
Relationship between the creative and account department .................................................................. 28
Management approach to support internal relationships ........................................................................ 29
Culture and value of the agency ............................................................................................................................ 30
9)
CONCLUSION .......................................................................................................................................... 31
10)
BIBLIOGRAPHY ..................................................................................................................................34
11)
APPENDICES ........................................................................................................................................ 38
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List of Figures
FIGURE 1: MANAGEMENT APPROACH FORMULATION, ADAPTED FROM BODDY (2002)………………………………………….. 09
FIGURE 2 : THE ACCOUNT DEPARTMENT VICIOUS CYCLE ADAPTED FROM SOLOMON (2008)…………………………………...13
FIGURE 3 : QUALITATIVE RESEARCH ANALYSIS | FREQUENCY TABLE ............................................................................................... 23
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1) Introduction
An advertising agency is identified as a creative enterprise for it‟s pivotal element of
creativity.(Greffe, 2006). Creativity here guides the personnel in creating communication
campaign „suitable‟ to the need of the clients. Considering this aspect, the creativity here
therefore is bounded by the rationalities of the client demands, market requirements, brand
requirement and obligations, competitors and marketing objectives(Bell, 1992)(Zinkhan,
1993)&(Nachum, 1996). Thus the „commercial‟ creatives have lesser freedom when
compared to other types of creative personnel.(Stein, 1991)
However such constraints on creativity imposed by the rationales of commercial working,
will stress and frustrate the working of the creatives(Stein, 1991). The creatives who yearn
for this freedom of expression at the same time require governance and direction to enhance
the creative process(Krohe, 1996). All advertising agencies work with different functional
departments, primarily divided into two departments:
creatives and account
department(Kover & Goldberg, 1995). Their attitudes and characteristic traits are radically
different from each other and inevitable to respective job roles(Bell, 1992). All these factors
lead to the existence of a dynamic relationship between the creative and the non-creative
individuals; those who create the communication content and those who impose the client
requirements and marketing constraints, respectively.
Organisations, which base their existence on the creative capabilities of its personnel, have to
manage their talents effectively with a management style that best capitalise the creative
potential of its employees(Stein, 1991). This also involves efficient relationship management,
which will support the dynamic environment in the agency. When creative and non-creative
individuals work together, their interactions and conflicts stimulate creativity. The
management has to provide an environment conducive to the sustenance of such a strenuous
scenario, sometimes even an adhocracy(Kover & Goldberg, 1995). This depends on
management practices and choices, which influence the course of this „internal‟ relationship
&(Bilton, 2012).Thus the management plays a pivotal role in influencing the quality of the
creative content through appropriate relationship management practices.
A lot of research has been done to understand management approaches in creative
enterprises, relationship management and its influence on the creative process. The works of
Bilton (2012), Stein (1991),& Kover & Goldberg (1995) have emphasised the importance of
management approach&intervention, influencing the creative process1. Similarly Hackley &
Kover, (2007)& Krohe (1996) have empasised the need for the management to support the
relationship between the creative and the account departments. However, the works of Krohe
(1996), Solomon (2008) & So(2005) is more specific in describing the way the management
supports the relationship between its internal departments, thereby influencing creativity.
This study intends to find the relevance of this concept in the real world scenario by testing it
within an ad agency context.
1The initial proposal made for the dissertation focused only on the management approach within an agency (See appendix
1). This proposal was however slightly modified to accommodate the in depth understanding of relationship management
and its influence on the creative process, upon consultation with supervisor.
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a) Ad agency Background
JWT is one of the most affluent advertising agencies in the world with branches in over 200
cities across 9 countries. It houses more than 100,000 marketing professionals producing
award worthy marketing content, acknowledged by leading awarding bodies such as Cannes
and Young Guns. Started as an advertising brokerage company in 1864, JWT has grown to
become the „4th largest full service agency‟(Gennaro, 2009)(Bell, 1992). Stephen King, who
was part of JWT London, set forth the foundation of the account planning process, which has
become one of the essentials of advertising. This enabled JWT to make its everlasting
contribution to the advertising sector.(JWT, 2007)&(VIC Brand, 2002)
JWT Chennai, a valuable entity of JWT‟s Indian Operations , is the host company in which
this study has been conducted. Chennai, owing to its location has a very diverse population
comprising cultures and people from across India. Similarly the agency, true to its location
has a diverse work force, bringing together a mix of vibrant cultures and diversity under the
same roof. JWT Chennai was the first agency in India to have won a Cannes‟s Gold Lion
(Film category) and has been accredited for several internationally acknowledged marketing
campaigns. JWT(2012) &(The Times of India, 2009)
2) Research Question:
How the management approach influences creativity, by supporting the relationship of
the creative and account departments, at JWT Chennai?
a) Hypothesis:
The management’s relationship management approach influences creativity.
b) Research Objectives
As mentioned, earlier research has provided the theoretical understanding of the concepts of
management approach in creative enterprises and internal relationship management. However
this study will test the practicality of this concept by understanding the approaches and the
identities of the agency personnel and test the hypothesis within the ad agency. Employee
perceptions are recorded to anlyse and deduct the relavance of the hypothesis. Owing to the
vastness of the subjects of creative management approach and relationship management, their
influence of creativity is to be tested with the following research objectives within JWT‟s
context.
What is the role of management, creative and acount departments on the creative process?
What is the relationship between the creative and the account department?
How does the management support this relationship?
3) Literature review
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a) Management Approach
The management process, in general constitutes the basic human activity of running our
lives.. Within the business context, „management‟ involves helping the organisation to
„survive‟ and „sustain‟ in a competitive environment. It involves identifying opportunities
and governing resources efficiently, to fulfil objectives, thereby yielding beneficiary results.
Thus the management approach in an organisation is crucial not only to its continued
presence in the market but also to its performance and success. (Boddy, 2002)
With respect to performance, Human capital management is one of the major factors of
success in an organisation. Organisations have increasingly understood the relevance of
efficient human capital management in gaining competitive advantage. However, many
organisations are yet to understand the importance of employee management and its strategic
influence as a great asset to the company. (Mullins, 2005)
Thus in the modern context, organisations have new models and approaches of management
to adhere to, keeping in mind the varied factors contributing to the success of the
organisation.
The essential
nature of the
managerial
work
The context
which the
activities of
management
takes place
The manner in
which
responsibilties
and duties of
management
are excercised
The actual
process of
management
and execution
of work
Measure of
organisation
performance
and
effecitveness
Figure 2: Management approach formulation, Adapted from Boddy (2002)
Based on the above considerations, an organisation will be able to formulate its own unique
approach with which it employs resources to gain competitive advantage. Several approaches
such as the classical approaches of Bureaucracy and scientific management(Boddy, 2002),
the human relations approach, contingency approach, systems approach, post
modernism(Mullins, 2005), etc. have been identified and research has been done extensively
to model the organisational setup,suitable to each approach.These approachesgive managers
the essential guidelines for management practices. However, with respect to a creative
enterprise, several other considerations are to be taken into account.
b) The Creative enterprise: The Advertising agency
Creative enterprises are companies that harness the talent, skill and creativity of individuals
to potentially create wealth and job opportunities by utilizing intellectual property. This
definition of creative enterprises states the emphasis on personnel management as the means
to the entire framework in creative industries. Here the increase in performance deals with the
expertise showed by the creative personnel in these enterprises.(Greffe, 2006)
As a creative enterprise, the two challenges to be met are uncertainty and turbulence. While
uncertainty reflects the risk factors involved with intangible products (creativity and ideas),
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turbulence refers to the dynamic and spontaneous process of ideating and innovation. Thus
managing these challenges effectively is crucial to the success of the organisation.
Besides these challenges, creative enterprises face furthermore issues to deal with which are
taken into consideration while formulating the management model. These are
New technological advancements
Effective management of intellectual property
Effectual strategies and revenue models
Standardization and quality control of internal operations
Competition and demands of stakeholders
The above challenges maybe argued to be the issues faced by any industry. However,
creative enterprises, unlike other industries, innovate and produce intangible products
such as intellectual property. Furthermore the employee attitude within a creative
enterprise is much different from a traditional organisation. As mentioned before, the
turbulent nature within the organisation is largely contributed by the employee
attitude and behaviour. Thus managing this behaviour of the humancapital, is the
primary difference between traditional and creative enterprises.(Greffe,
2006)&(Townley et al., 2009)
c) Significance of creative management approaches
According to Mullins (2005) idea factories aka creative enterprises should have an
organisational structure, which is fluid with, limited formalised relationships.
However, as the size of the organisation increases, the structure evolves into a
formalised structure.
But creativity and structure are socially equated to be opposites of each other.
Furthermore, structure is assumed to curb creative spontaneity. Thus it is important to
understand how creative processes are structurally managed.
Bilton (2012), explains that in the early 1960s advertising agencies worked on the
basis of the heroic model of creativity which emphasised the significance of
individualistic creativity. The process of innovation and ideation held an upper hand
over actual application and development of ideas. It glorified the specific heroic
creative‟s individual work rather than encouraging the collaborative, convergent and
shared creative efforts. However, the creative industry especially, advertising
agencies slowly moved on to the structural model of management owing to the
requirements of the creative economy. It emphasised on the need for shared creative
practises and the benefits of creative „networking‟.
Pazarzi (2007), while defining a network model for TV advertising production
processes, has pointed out how the networking model in an ad agency influences the
outcome of the advertising process on the whole.She points out that within an
advertising creation network(a temporary project team comprising different firms
involved in the advertisement production) the ad agency bears the centrality of
functions. Here the account department , the planning department and the creative
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department have to work hand in hand to act as the bridge that connects the two
distant points of the network: the product selling corporate giant and the working
ethics of Audio visual teams creating the ad. She cites that this networking model
within an advertsing creation network is more relevant to the administration of the ad
agency when compared to any other firm, participating in the ad creation process.
Though this article provides an insight of only one of the functions of an ad agency, it
gives the understanding of how networking management structures influence the
success of processes within an agency.
Hirschman (1989) designed the ‘role’ model which collaborates the efforts of the
various staff or „roles‟ within the agency, helping in putting together an
advertisement. According to her, the concepts of role perception , authorship and
communication goals of the art director , copy writer , brand manager, account
executive and agency producer, model the working within that agency. While the
account servicing team works to reduce risks , the creative department will always
intend to maximise the impact of the advertisement. Similarily the creative team has
an inherent sense of ownership of the creative idea while the servicing team do not
associate itself with such emotions inspite of their financial and managerial
contributions. Such individualistic perceptions of these distintive roles, allows
advertising to be managed effieciently as a team.
Another proficient model identified by Ensor et al. (2001), is the knowledge
management model. While pointing out the need for a knowledge management
approach in any form of creative enterprise , the article points out how advertising
agencies in the UK are organised in a way that encourages free flow of information.
Thiscontributes to the creative working environment. The article also points out that
the flat organsational structure, the creative element of the organisational structure,
the involvment of the senior management , team based projects etc.. have provided
the dimensions necessary for effective knowledge management. Several other factors
such asbuilding, recruitment, mentoring and age profile of employees have been
identified which makes this model effective and practical.
Despite such structural management models, creativity cannot be managed through a
pre-concieved structure. According to Byrne et al. (2009) the creative process is
dynamic and ill defined. Thus the leader of the firm cannot rely on a structure for
delegation of work and direction of the ad agency. He/she is expected to induce a
structure which provides the work environment for innovation. Since the benefits of a
structured process, are well defined, creative leadership must steer clear of
beauracracy and mechanistic structure. However, it should capitalise on the
opportunities and resourcres made available in the agency. In this article, the author
lays emphasis of creative leadership to „manage‟ the process of innovation.
On the other hand, Hackley & Tiwsakul, (2008) state that ad agencies are beuracratic
with extensive paperwork and system procedures. However, they act like polymorphs
since these procedures are extremely flexible and implemented objectively when
accounted for, in reality. They also state that „manage‟ is too sophisticated a term to
describe the organisation of the percieved chaotic creatives and the risk inhibiting
account department. Thus they conclude by defining the management approach to be
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hybrid with best practices within the industry , defined by “operational techniques and
process rather than management style”(Hackley & Tiwsakul, 2008)
This gives us the perspective of the human capital within creative enterprises like ad
agencies. As Shirley (1997) describes, management control and performance go hand
in hand. She describes that creative work environment has to be fun, motivating and
stimulating at the same time yield expected performance. For this she rules out the
extreme states of anarchy and slavery as both could induce an unfavourable work
environment , where in productivity will be minimised with possible resistance and
revolt. This can be attributed to the industry wide sterotype that creative people
require to be bound by a loose management rope to ensure its consisteny in
performance. However if the employess are „managed‟ through team working , the
performance ratio has been proved toformidably increase.
From the above discussed models, we infer that the management of the human capital
will influence the primary working within creative enterprises. However , it involves
a certain level of expertise, with industry wide presumption that agencies have to be
managed differently.(Bilton, 2012)
d) The Creative humancapital:
According to Townley et al., (2009) the labour market in a creative enterprise is over
supplied. The creative population have the inherent skills to innovate and are not
motivated „just‟ by incentives and rewards. However, mentoring and providing
rewards and acknowledgment of expertise also contribute to elevated motivation and
performance within the creative enterprise(Greffe, 2006). Owing to this over
saturation of the labour market, attracting the right skilled labour and „managing them
effectively is the key to success in a creative enterprise like ad agencies. (Byrne et al.,
2009)
Further the image and identity with which creatives are attributed with, is a general
stereotype supported by both academics and media alike. They have to put up with the
quirky workaholic macho image, working long hours and maintaining coolness.
(Hackley & Kover, 2007). In the marketing context, creativity is increasingly viewed
as a technical output of „creative‟ professionals.
However, the identities of these professionals are taken for granted and mostly
assumed than confirmed with reality. Hackley & Kover (2007) explainsthe perception
of ad agency creative representativesfinding bureaucracy pointless and preferring a
more flexible structure. In advertising, most of the creative work is done to fulfil their
own ideals, which therefore contradicts the values of their respective agencies. In the
majority of cases, creative department almost always have some friction with the
account department. But it points out, that these contradictions and frictions have
eventually institutionalised, creating that environment where in such „trouble‟ is
required for innovation and creativity. (Hackley & Kover, 2007)
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Creative people in advertising agencies believe that they know much more about
advertising than their clients and the account department. Bearing this in mind, the
conflicts and friction that arise, can be skilfully directed towards the creative process.
This will also be influenced by the flexibility of the organisational structure that is
adopted.(Kover & Goldberg, 1995) The creative department truly believe in working
for themselves. As mentioned earlier, mentoring and rewarding may motivate the
creative process but do not necessarily influence the process on the whole. They are
driven by their own sense of achievement and prefer acknowledgement and
appreciation of their work, to be the best reward.(Hackley & Kover, 2007)&(Bilton,
2012)
e) The Account executive:
The account executive team or the „client servicing team‟ are the people who bridge
the gap between the clients and the creative department. They instruct the creative
team to come up with ideas, which would fulfil the requirements of a particular client.
They work around the initial idea of client and draft a creative brief, with some
revisions to the initial idea. This provides the impetus for the creative process in the
creative department. From there on, they co-ordinate the working of the creative and
clients, through a series of continual changes and make over, till a consensus is
reached.(Pazarzi, 2007)
In addition to this, budgeting and scheduling are other important internal processes,
which account executives attentively consider. Working within an approved schedule
and budgeting gives the agency the basis for their campaign design process. If these
processes are overlooked, it will disregard the integrity of the product and message,
required to be promoted. Furthermore, it would lead to the formulation of agency bad
practice, which would undermine the credibility of the agency.(Solomon, 2008)
The account manager being the in-house representative of the client, works to satisfy
the marketing, sales and promotional needs of the client.In spite of being constantly
accused for working on the opposite side (the clients), an account executive has the
distinctive requirement of satisfying client needs successfully but also keep the
agency‟s interest intact.(Moeran, 2008).
However, the general framework identified below, describes the primary working of
an account executive. From this it‟s understood that the working of the account
executive team is a vicious circle of maintaining trust as the foundation of a great
relationship leading in turn, to great work.(Solomon, 2008)
While
many
mechanistic
responsibilities and duties can be
identified to describe the job role
of an account executive, this
framework has pointed out the
necessity
for
productive
relationship and trust both
Relationship
Great Work
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Trust
Figure 3 : The Account Department Vicious cycle Adapted
from Solomon (2008)
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internally and externally for„great work‟ output.
f) Creative Vs/&Account executives: the Relationship Dilemma
The description of the creative and account executive department gives the overview
of the working of the respective department. However their relationship has an
adverse effect on the performance of the agency.(Moeran, 2009)(Pazarzi, 2007)(Stein,
1991)&(Townley et al., 2009)
In most agencies, an “account team” is the group of advertising personnel with
different expertise coming together to meet the promotional needs of aparticular
client. This team may include both the account executives and the creative
department‟s copy writer, art directors etc.. It is this conflicting area of expertise that
causes friction within agency. (Moeran, 2008)
Other advertising personnel always question the balancing act put up by the account
executives. They argue that the executives work towards the satiation of the clients
need while disregarding the interest of the agency. Creative directors always implore
the account executives to present their idea without censorship, to clients. This is
brought out in popular culture through a scene from the TV series MADMEN :
“You‟ve got to spend more time selling my ideas to the client than trying to sell their
ideas to me.” This funny yet meaningful quote brings out the creative team‟s
exasperation to find ways to make the account team, presenttheir original ideas to the
clients. (RadioInfo News, n.d.)
However, this relationship has become characteristic to the advertising industry.
Agencies not only continue to survive in this dilemma but also successful. Some
agencies have processes of subgrouping, dual teams of creative director and
copywriter for a single account and project deadlines etc.. Each agency has their own
set of processes, which help them support the relationship between the different
departments within the agency.(Moeran, 2009).
The management approach within an agency clearly contributes to the relationship
between the advertising personnel. The agency however, handles a particular
approach to fulfil its objectives, primarily to enhance the creative process. While
some opt for an adhocracy with a flexible combination of authority and
negotiation(Kover & Goldberg, 1995), some resort to autonomy, through the
adherence of strategic objectives (Mullen, 1995). Thus the management approach,
personnel relationship and creative process enhancement are all interconnected.
g) Agency culture and values:
Another factor, which influences the aspects of management approach and
relationships, is the values and culture of the agency. The culture of the agency also
determines client relationship and plays a pivotal role in attracting clients.(Rojek,
2009). Clients are prone to forge contract with agencies, which have values such as
team work, honesty, open creativity, truth telling & simple organisational structures
as they believe that this contributes to improved efficiency(Krueger, 1998). Since
organisations in general differ in their organisational culture, the same case applies to
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agencies as well. The culture of a particular agency determines its management
practices, strategic decision, budget control etc. Thus the management is guided by
the culture of the agency in order to direct its course in every aspect of the business
.(Jugenheimer & Kelley, 2009). Furthermore, potential employees who share the
same personal values to the values upheld by the agency, are bound to join the
specific agency, thereby making agency culture a strong factor in attracting talent in
the industry.(Lockhart, 2011)
h) Current issues in advertising
With the continual instability of the economy worldwide, the advertising agency is
one of the many industries deeply affected.(Consterdine, 2009). This is due to the
marketing budget cutbacks of corporate companies to survive in the economic
downfall. Thus agencies rely on long standing relationships with their clients that
provide them with financial benefit and security. However, agencies now face the
threat of being replaced.According toSo (2005), relationship with clients can be
strengthened through extensive work performance. Clients are slowly edging away
from socialising and personal connection and prefer to foster relationships based on
the agencies capability to effectively satisfy their needs. Maintaining the best interest
of both the agency and client with respect to performance has become the way
forward to aid both parties achieve their objectives.
(So, 2005)
In spite of cut backs on advertising expenditure owing to recession, PPAI report
points out how companies can prove to be successful by keeping their advertising
spend intact. The report also points out that the economic downturn could be the right
time to over take industry rivals, if creative opportunities are identified. This has lead
to a 0.6% increase in profits for companies, which had maintained their ad spends.
(Consterdine, 2009)
This shows that ad industry is now witnessing a competitive environment purely
based on increased performance. This performance is defined by agencies identifying
efficient creative processes and opportunities. Therefore, there is an increased
necessity for the advertising management to enhance the creative process. The
relationship between the account and the creative department has a notable effect on
the creative process, as proven through research. This report intends to identify the
relevance of this relationship and also how the management contributes to this
collaboration between the creative and account department.
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4) Methodology
A research study can either be inductive or deductive; Inductive research leads to
generating theory while deductive research leads to testing theory. This dissertation is
designed to be a deductive research, thereby testing the relevance of earlier studied
theories. (Kothari, 2004)
The data collected for research purposes are classified into two types: primary data
and secondary data.
a) Primary Data Types
Primary data is collected for the very first time, to meet the purpose of a specific
research. This data is more reliable and convenient as it is first hand information
collected through techniques and tools to suit the convenience of the researcher. The
quality of the data collected, however depends upon the right choice of data collection
techniques and also the measures taken by the researcher to influence the accuracy of
the responses. This can be done through making the participants, aware about the
purpose and relevance of the study.
- The primary data collected in this study has been subjected to both qualitative and
quantitativeanalysis for the purpose of testing the hypothesis.
Qualitative research analysis
Qualitative research analysis involves the measurement of qualitative phenomena.
The data analysed here, is descriptive and generally expressed though words. This is
the most preferred form of research when dealing with human behaviour. Human
emotions, attitudes and perceptions influencing behaviour, are factors that cannot be
quantified. Hence, qualitative research techniques and tools are used to analyse and
measure the „quality‟ of these entities, which influence the outcome of the research.
-
In this study, Qualitative research is conducted by the collections of
datathrough structured interviews. This helps to understand the industry wide
perception of the general themes of this study: management approach, internal
relationships and the creative process. The interview is conducted outside the
host company in order to determine the industrial stereotypes about the
identified themes.(Kothari, 2004)
-
Structured interviews: An interview is a techniquein which the researcher asks
a set of predetermined questions with same set of words and order of
questions. These questions are listed in an interview schedule, which is put
together based on the themes and research objectives of the study.
Theadvantage of this technique is that it enhances comparative analysis due to
the uniformity of data generally acquired. In this study, the hypothesis is
already supported by the literature review. Therefore the questions were
framed in order to test the relevance of those theories and establish the
industrial stereotypes of the identified themes.(Kumar, 2005) (See appendix 5)
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-
Sampling: The sample questioned in the process were determined with the
helped of simple random sampling. Simple random sampling is the concept
where every element of the population has the probability of getting into a
sample with an equal probability of getting chosen within the sample. Here the
sample comprised individuals from the advertising industry and this sampling
method was chosen in order to get an overallindustrial overview of the
concepts, which arise in this study.(Kothari, 2004)
-
Thematic framework analysis & frequency tables: The data thus collected was
subjected to thematic framework analysis (See appendix 6) a qualitative
research tool which helps the researcher to collect all the data and then sort
them based on the common ground of key these and issues. Being dynamic
and flexible techniques it helped in taking all the responses into account for
the analysis and helped identify themes, which further modelled the
quantitative research. Also a frequency table (see Figure 3) was complied to
understand the recurrence of topics and issues. It also helped identify new
themes, which widened the scope of the research.(Arson, 1994)&(Srivastava
& Thomson, 2009)
Quantitative research analysis
Quantitative research analysis on the other hand, involves the measurement of
numerical data, which can be easily quantified and accounted. This kind of research is
more suitable to present data that influences the outcome of the research through scale
level and volume of the data categories. (Kothari, 2004)
-
Quantitative research is conducted through the collection of datawithclosed
ended questionnaires administered in the Ad agency. This helped to record the
employee perceptions of the management approach to creativity and internal
relationships. It also intended to analyse new themes, which were realised in
the process of the qualitative interviews conducted earlier.
-
Closed ended questionnaire: With the help of the themes and issues identified
from the qualitative analysis, the questionnaire is designed with close-ended
questions (See appendix 7) . A questionnaire is a written list of questions,
which are self-administered by the respondents themselves.(Kumar, 2005)
However the accuracy of the responses depends upon the clarity of the
questions. This is important due to the self-administering of the questionnaire.
With respect to close-ended questions, the responses are limited to a set of pre
determined probable choices. However, these choices should be based on
sound evidence supporting the probable answers. In this study, the themes
identified from the qualitative analysis, have provided the basis for the
possible responses in the questionnaires. Furthermore, through administering a
close-endedquestionnaire, it has been possible to quantify and represent the
data. (Reja et al., 2003)
-
Sampling: The sampling technique employed here is quota sampling (See
appendix 8 table A), which is a non-random sampling method. Here the
population is divided into specific mutually exclusive sub groups and the
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selection is left to the discretion of the researcher. Since this method is
independent ofa sampling frame, the questionnaires can be administered easily
avoiding errors. In this study 10 marketing professionals from the creative and
10 marketing professionals from the account department at JWT have
participated. (Crawford, 1997)
-
Bar charts and pie diagrams: These tools have been used for representing the
data collected. They give a pictorial representation of numerical data collected
and helps present the data statistically. With respect to this study, bar charts
and pie diagrams have been used to present the quantified results from the
questionnaires administered at JWT.(Kothari, 2004)
b) Secondary data types
Secondary data on the other hand is the data, which has been collected earlier for
other research or any other purpose but also satisfies the needs of the specific
research. Though this type of data may provide the researcher with academic insights
and perspectives of other individuals, it is not generally relied on, as a primary source
of evidence in the research context. However, this also depends upon the topic of the
research as some studies may require primary „documentary‟ evidences to support
their research findings. One of the most important considerations, which influences
secondary data collection is the availability of the resources and the permission to
divulge and present the data obtained. Often documentary involving organisational
practices and culture are kept confidential and restrictions are laid upon its
reproduction and utilisation for analysis. Also other forms of secondary data, like
market reports, company analyses etc. are difficult and expensive to acquire.(Kothari,
2004)&(Kumar, 2005)
In this research, secondary data collected are in the form of writtendocumentary,
which gives an overview of the employee structure and work environment within the
agency. This is obtained through the agency‟s official website and a few news
articles. However, the secondary data used in this study is very limited in scope and
hence, has a negligible influence on the outcome of the study.
c) Ethical consideration
Interviews were conducted with prior permission acquired in person.The context and
relevance of the study has been explained to the respondents in order ensure the
accuracy of the responses.
The questionnaires have been administered in the agency only after acquiring
permission from the heads of the internal departments. The analysis of this data has
been done only after seeking permission to the executive head of the agency.
Confidentiality of the information collected has been maintained at all levels. As the
report is deductive in nature, it doesn‟t criticize the approach adopted at JWT and
only analyses the perception of the employees. In spite of these employees preferred
anonymity. Some staff had also hesitated in disclosing information through the
questionnaires. In these cases, time was taken to explain the context of the research
and ensure their co-operation in the data collection process.2
2However, the transcript of the interviews and questionnaires are available upon request.
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The University‟s ethical code as specified, has been adhered at all levels of the data
collection process. The ethical form provided by the university has been filled out and
attached to the appendix. (See appendix 3)
d) Record of meetings
The record of meeting with the supervisor to co-ordinate the working of the
dissertation study has been complied and included in the appendix for perusal. (See
appendix 4).
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5) Qualitative analysis
a) Interview Design:
The interviews were conducted based on three themes closely associated with the
research objectives:
Creative ideation and creative independence
Relationship between the accounts and creative department
The management‟s approach towards this relationship
The questions were framed in such a way so as to understand the co-relation between
each of these themes and the overall industrial perception of these themes. With the
help of thematic framework analysis, the tabulations (See appendix 6) the co-relation
between each of these themes have been established.
b) Key themes:
Creative ideation and creative independence
The first set of questions was framed in order to understand the basis of the creative
process, the creative independence and the limitations to the independence exercised.
Furthermore the questions were also framed to understand the account department‟s
influence on the process of creativity and independence. The answers to these
questions aided the research to bridge the gap between creativity and the account
department‟s influence on creativity.
The interviews have helped to understand the creative process, which begins with the
drafting of the creative brief, the basis of the client requirements. This shows the
importance of the account department‟s capability in drafting an effective brief, which
is also the first form of communication between the agency and the client. The
respondents also pointed out that an effective brief is faced with lesser queries by the
creative team.
About the creative independence, the respondents agreed that the creative department
is given room for innovation keeping in mind the client requirements. This window
by itself is considered as an obstacle for the creative process. Apart from this, the
brand image, brand guidelines, budgeting and time schedules, local trends, regional
restrictions, regulatory bodies are some of the restrictions, which are to be taken under
consideration.
Further the respondents also elaborated on time restriction as one of the main
considerations in the creative process. Though some believe that time schedules do
affect negatively, it isessential as the creative process is an on-going process. Without
deadlines, the creatives will continue to innovate and might take days, weeks or even
months to crack ideas. One of the respondents also pointed out that without schedules,
the ideas, cracked at its own pace, are old fashioned at times and hence, unusable
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Even though extra time can help creatives to experiment with the brief, without time
schedules work wouldn‟t get done.
The respondents also explained how the creative process is affected by the account
department‟s involvement. As explained earlier, a good brief wouldn‟t warrant many
queries and so the drafting of a good brief lies depends on the account department‟s
capability. Furthermore, the account department is over confident about the client
requirements. They would rathersell the brief to the creative than convince the clients
to look into a presentation, much different from the client‟s brief. Their role in the
agency is indispensable as the respondents agree that the account department leverage
the values of the clients in the agency.
Relationship between the accounts and the creative department
With the first set of questions establishing the link between creative process and the
account department‟s involvement in the process, the second set of questions intend to
understand the relationship between these departments. It also intends to understand
how this relationship affects the creative process.
The respondents unanimously agreed that there is some form of friction that always
exists between the account and the creative department. They agree that in most
advertising agencies, the friction is maintained at a healthy level but at times,
situations and personal agendas lead to an unhealthy environment. This can be
attributed to the different priorities that each of these departments adheres to. While
the account department concentrates on the sales and bringing revenue to the agency,
the creatives prioritise on putting forth award worthy and notable work forward.
While they work to meet „only‟ the client requirements, the creatives share the same
value along with a personal longing for achievement and acknowledgment.
On questioning about its necessity in the industry, some of the respondents agreed
that the existing healthy friction between the account and the creative departments
helps most agencies to get work done. However, some of the respondents believed
that if the relationship moves to smoother grounds, the quality of workcould improve.
All respondents agreed in unison that the relationship does affect the quality of work
both positively and negatively. Some pointed out that if the friction existing were
healthy, the ego clashes thus arising would help contribute to the creative process.
However, the negative influence of such a relationship will break apart the unity of
the agency thereby resulting in poor performance.
On asking about personal preference, the respondents had mixed views between
continuing in the same dynamic culture and a smooth collaborative culture. However,
majority of them agreed that a smooth and collaborative environment gives
employees the state of mind to perform efficiently in their respective functions. Even
the respondents who preferred to have a competitive friction with their counterparts in
the other department, stress on the need for an over all collaborative environment for
better output of work.
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The management’s approach towards this relationship
Finally the third set of question intends to perceive the management‟s involvement
and approach in handling this relationship between the account and creative
departments.Most of them agreed that in most agencies, the top management tries to
inculcate a smooth relationship irrespective of the inevitable friction. Whatever be the
form of friction, the management, almost in all cases comes up with practices and
rituals to maintain a collaborative environment. However, some of the respondents
described how some agencies do not influence the existing relationship between the
departments. They force them indirectly to work together, imploring them to cast
aside their difference and work together as a single unit.
On questioning about their perception of the management‟s „relationship‟ preference,
all respondents agreed that the management always prefers a smooth and
collaborative environment. Depending on the „culture‟ and „orientation‟ of the
agency, the management might leave the „healthy competition‟ intact as the positive
consequence of this type of friction, improves the quality of work in most cases.
However, with respect to the overall working culture, the management will always
support a collaborative relationship. They persistently try to overcome the reality in
spite of industry known fact that „friction‟ is inevitable. They continue in their efforts
in order to eliminate a negative working environment, which could hinder the creative
process and the functioning of the agency.
As seen in theFigure 3, with respect to the above-identified themes, the respondents
have frequently brought up the following topics:
With respect to the 1st theme, the importance of the creative brief and the different
barriers to creativity such as time scheduling, budgeting, client pressure, brand image
and guidelines were topics, which recurred frequently. The account department‟s
involvement in the creative process, their attitude towards work and the need for
coordination with creative department, were other issues, which were brought up
frequently.
In the 2nd theme, issues such as the need for a smooth collaborative team improving
the creative process and a general competitive environment with equal amount of
healthy friction and collaboration, were raised by four in five of the respondents.
Another equally resonating issue was that of healthy competition improving the
quality of work in specific scenarios.
In the final theme, the most important topics, which were brought up, by four in five
of the respondents were the management‟s need to smoothen the relationship between
the departments and also their insistence of making these departments work together
forcefully. Other important issues raised by 60% of the respondents were the
management‟s preference for a collaborative relationship between departments and
how this relationship instils a healthy work environment. Apart from these issues,
there was also another interesting issue, which was voiced by 2 of the respondents:
the management‟s insistence of healthy friction. This was contrary to their own
responses about the management‟s stance with respect to relationships.
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Management dissertation
Topics which arose
Creative ideation and
creative
Independence
Importance of creative brief
Frequency
(total no. of respondents)
5
Account Department‟s Involvement
3
-
Brand guidelines and image
5
-
Time
schedules
Significance
-
Consumer perceptions
4
-
Client requirements – time and money
5
-
Account Dept.‟s Refusal to new ideas
4
-
Sales oriented vision of account dept..
4
-
Need for coordination of time schedules
4
and budgeting with the creative process
-
Need for a collaborative relationship.
Relationship
between accounts
and
creative
department
and
Healthy
competition
improves quality.
budgeting- 4
3
„sometimes‟ 3
Smooth
collaborative
team
work 4
„generally‟ improve quality of work
-
Ideal 50 : 50 – mixed relationship 4
preferences (smooth / friction).
Management’s
approach to this
relationship
-
Ad agency‟s management preference for 4
smooth relationships,
-
Need for management to smoothen
4
relationships within agency.
-
Agency‟s preference for healthy „friction‟
-
Management forcing departments to work 2
together.
Smooth
collaborative
relationship 3
required for healthy work environment.
4
Figure 4 : Qualitative research analysis | Frequency table
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6) Extension of Hypothesis:
From the qualitative analysis the issues raised and topics discussed, brought up a few
other considerations and has increased the scope of the hypothesis.
The creative department of the agency ideates the creative content. However, the
interviews have thrown light on the account department‟s involvement in the creative
process. Despite being sales oriented, the account department has a major contribution
to the creative process; through drafting the creative brief and their continued
involvement, posing the considerations of the clients to the creatives from time to
time. Also the respondent‟s call for coordinated working of time schedules and
budgeting, shows the major problem areas causingdisruption to both the relationship
and the creative process.
The notion of advertising personnel surviving off the rivalry among its core
departments is weakened by 80% of the responses showing, that a collaborative
environment improves the quality of work. Also the contrary notions of both
collaborative team work and „healthy‟ friction improving the quality of
work,emphasises on the need for a balance in this dynamic relationship. It‟s evident
that advertising personnel in general prefer a collaborative environment for the over
all working with occasional difference of opinion, boosting the competitive morale.
The rivalry here becomes healthy contributing to the creative process but doesn‟t
create animosity. The interviews also pointed out the advertising personnel‟s
awareness on the consequences of unhealthy rivalry.
In spite of the inevitable friction existing among departments, in most agencies the
management tries to enforce a smooth and collaborative environment. This points out
the management‟s perception of the relationship and what they believe would
contribute to the creative process. Two in five of the respondents had supported the
existing friction, earlier. However, 80% of the respondents have agreed that the
management‟s preferred smooth relationship has almost always contributed to better
out put of work. This supports the hypothesis that management‟s approach in
handling the relationship between the core departments, influences creativity.
The contrary responses of most agencies preferring a smooth relationship and some
agencies preferring a dynamic rivalryhave raised new considerations. The aspects of
orientation and culture of the agency to which each of the respondents belong, have
been reflected in their responses. Most of the respondents agreed on striking a balance
betweensmooth collaboration and competitive friction.But two in five of them
strongly believed that the „played down‟ animosity is required to get the work done.
This is strongly suggestive of the culture existing within their respective agency. The
management ordains the culture of any organisation and this shows how it can
influence the perceptions of its employees and thus the creative process in the whole.
The qualitative analysis has not only supported the hypothesis of this paper but has
brought to light a few other considerations, which has widened the scope of the
hypothesis. To further support the hypothesis, a quantitative analysis had been
conducted and is being presented as follows
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7) Quantitative Analysis
a) Questionnaire design
Based on the data collected from the qualitative open-ended interview, the hypothesis
has further been tested by conducting a closed ended questionnaire with the
employees of a reputed ad agency.
The questionnaire comprised a mix of scaled, multiple choice and yes/no questions in
order to get straightforward and accurate data, which could further analysed.
The questionnaire like the qualitative interview is also based on the three themes
associated with the research question. However, it has also taken into account an
additional element about the „culture‟ of the ad agency. With the help of bar charts
and pie charts, the results of the questionnaire are presented in appendix 8, which has
aided in the final analysis.
The questionnaires intends to clarify the data acquired through the qualitative analysis
and understand the perception of the three identified themes within the context of a
specific ad agency.
b) Questions 1-4
The questions 1-4 intended to understand the agency‟s personnel‟s relationship and
attitude towards their counterparts in the other departments. In 1st and 2nd question
the respondents were asked to rate their current and desired future relationship affinity
with their counterparts in the other department. From appendix 8 Table B about 40%
of the respondents have rated their current relationship at a scale 3 out of 4 with 30 %
of them rating it 4 out of 4. In context to the 2nd question, appendix 8 Table C has
pointed out that 65% of all respondents intend to build a highly cordial relationship,
rating at a high 4. 35 % of them want to build a fairly cordial relationship with only
10% wanting a slightly detached relationship.
Question 3 intended to understand the definition of the relationships within the
agency, which its employees related to. Almost all the respondents (90%) agreed in
having a co-operative relationship with their counterparts, however with occasional
difference of opinion. Only 5% believed that the agency had an uncooperative
relationship model with rarity in collaboration and consensus.(See Appendix 8 Table
D)
Question 4 intended to understand the personal preference of relationship affinity
required within the departments to improve the creative process. Evidently 50% of the
respondents wanted a smooth collaborative relationship with their peers; 25 % wanted
friction to exist for better work out put while 25% believe in an ideal balance between
both scenarios.(See Appendix 8 Table E)
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c) Question 5 -6
Questions 5 and 6 were framed in order to analyse the employee perception of the
management practices with respect to the relationship management context.
When asked about their perception about the relationship management practice of the
top management in the agency, 50% of the respondents believed that the management
lets the departments work independently maintaining the friction only with respect to
work but otherwise encouraging a collaborative work environment. Also 40% of the
respondents acknowledged the management‟s practise to collaborate the working of
the department at all times.
Question 6 was framed to understand whether the employees of the agency supported
the management practice. When asked to rate the efficiency of the internal
relationship management process, half of the respondents believed that a good process
was in place with room for further improvement. Only 30 % believed that a bad
process was in place with only a few management practices being productive.
(See Appendix 8 Table G&H )
d) Question 7-10
On identifying the barriers to creativity from the qualitative analysis, the respondents
were asked to rate to what extent each of these specific barriers was emphasised by
the management and also to what extent it influenced the creative process. Budgeting
and time schedules have been identified to be the top most considerations, influencing
the creative process.
With respect to budgeting, 75% of the respondents believed that it was emphasised
considerably, rating it at 3 on a scale of 4; also 75% of the respondents believed that
this has a quite an influence on the creative , again rating it at 3 on a scale of 4.(See
Appendix 8 Table I & J)
With respect to Time constraints,65% of the respondents believed it is considerable
emphasised by the management (rating at 3 on a scale of 4). However, 80% of all
respondents pointed out that time constraints heavily affected the creative process,
with the rest 20 % pointing out the considerable influence of time schedules. (See
Appendix 8 Table K & L)
e) Question 11
This question was framed summing all the considerations from the previous questions
into one; with all the relationship management practices put into place , do the
employees find the team meeting with their peers from the other departments,
productive. For this 75% of the employees believe that their agency practices have
lead to productivity in their team meeting. Only 25 % disagree and support the
inefficiency of the relationship management practices. (See appendix 8 table M)
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f) Questions 12
The qualitative analysis identified new themesabout the culture and value of the
agency influencing the relationship and thus the creative process. Thus questions 12
were framed to understand the perception of this aspect among the employees.
When asked whether the relationship management reflected the culture of agency,
65% of the respondents agreed with only 35 % disagreeing to the concept. (See
Appendix 8 Table N)
g) Sample A:The Account Dept. Vs. Sample B: The Creative Dept.
The respondents were divided into two samples based on the department they
belonged to. Though the results in percentage were given in totality taking both the
departments into account, the sampling helped in giving a new dimension to certain
aspects of the questionnaire.
With respect to question 4, the personal preference of the type of relationship within
the agency revealed that among the respondents who chose between options a and c
(friction & ideal balance between both), 60 % belonged to the creative
department.(See Appendix 8 Table F)
Also with respect to question 12, among the 65% who wanted a client oriented
agency,all the respondents from Sample A chose a client oriented agency while 3 out
10 respondents from sample B also wanted a client oriented agency. This is surprising
as sample B represents employees belonging to the creative department. (See
Appendix 8 Table N)
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8) Final Analysis
Factors influencing the creative process
From the quantitative analysis, the factors that influence the creative process at JWT
have been identified. The descriptions of the creative process, jotted down the
sequential activities that are followed in the process of creative ideation.
From this analysis, it is evident that the creative process at JWT is deeply influenced
by factors such as budgeting and time scheduling, with 75% and 80% of the
employees vouching for its influence on creativity, respectively. (See appendix 8 table
J & K). The qualitative analysis has also pointed out the predominant barriers to
creativity: Budgeting and time scheduling. Though other factors such as regional,
cultural barriers, advertising governing regulations, client pressure, brand guidelines
& market needs have been pointed out (see figure 3), budgeting and time scheduling
had recurred in the discussion among all participants.(See appendix 6).
While discussing the influence of these factors on the creative process, the qualitative
analysis also pointed out the account department‟s influence in monitoring and
ensuring that these factors are adhered by the creative. Furthermore, the account
department is crucial to the creative process in drafting the creative brief. (See
appendix 6). In the quantitative analysis, this view is supported by the employee
perception at JWT; 75% and 65% of the employees believe that the management
enforces budgeting and time scheduling „considerably‟ (See appendix 8 Table I & L).
The account department enforces time scheduling and budgeting within the agency.
This becomes the duty of the account department and the management relies heavily
on its working to enforce these regulations.(Solomon, 2008)&(Pazarzi, 2007). This
also points out how the management coordinates the working of the account
department which in turn influence the creative department‟s work out put. The
management even establishes a flexible environment, an adhocracy wherein the
creative department is given a flexible yet controlled environment, which is bounded
by authority and negotiation(Kover & Goldberg, 1995). The account department
again enforces these processes(Moeran, 2009)&(Greffe, 2006).
The management‟s approach at JWT influencing the creative process supports these
theories. Considering the tables I & L (appendix 8), it is evident that the management
has a considerable influence on the creative process. The qualitative research has
emphasised the account department‟s involvement in coordinating the efficiency of
these factors. (see appendix 6). Thus it can be deducted that the management at JWT
enforces regulations and influences the creative process by encouraging the account
department to coordinate with the creative department, closely.
Relationship between the creative and account department
At JWT Chennai, the employees generally tend to have and also want a smooth and
collaborative relationship with the other internal department (See appendix 8, Tables
B & C). When asked about their preference of work environment scenario, 50% of the
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employee wanted a smooth and collaborative work environment and another 25%
wanting a balanced environment of „healthy friction‟ engaged within a collaborative
environment (See appendix 8 Table E )..
Though another 25% of the employees preferred friction, this can be negligible since
60% of the employees who chose between friction and „ideal‟ balance, belonged to
the creative department (See appendix 8 Table F). The creative personnel are in
general known for their macho and rebellious nature, which is reflected in their
choices and decision-making.(Hackley & Kover, 2007). This can be attributed
towards their choice of having an element of friction within the agency.
Through the qualitative analysis, it is evident that the industry is divided in its
relationship preference within agencies. While some believe that friction is necessary,
others believe that a smooth and collaborative environment is essential for better work
output. Some others feel that friction, if engaged within a collaborative environment,
would result in outstanding output of work. (See appendix 6).
Also the qualitative analysis has established the influence of these relationships on the
creative process. The individuals who support „healthy‟ friction believe that the ego
boost and competitive scenario improves the quality of work while those who
encourage a smooth relationship, point out the necessity of a collaborative work
environment. This in turn results in a large number of people preferring a
collaborative environment which minimise conflict but keep the competitive friction
intact, in order to get work done. (See figure 3 & Appendix 6)
This supports the theory propounded by Krohe, (1996) who points out how the
interactions between the internal departments result in conflict and keeping this to a
minimum, will stimulate the creative process. Hirschman (1989) in his work on role
based management approach, points out that the attitudes and indenties of the creative
and non creative separate them. The relationship between these cross functional teams
is essential for the working of the organisation(Hackley & Kover, 2007).
The relationship between the creative and account departments within JWT Chennai,
is clearly smooth and collaborative which also engages the difference of oppinion
arising between these departments, in a healthy environment. This is evident from
table D (see appendix 8),which points out that 90% of all employees descibed the
internal relationship within the agency to be„ co-operattive with occasion differnce of
opinion‟. This is therefore in adherance to the theories presented above. Thus at JWT
Chennai , the account and creative departments work in a Smooth and collaborative
environment, thriving off the ocassional conflict to generate quality work, in
adherance to client and market requirements.
Management approach to support internal relationships
Finally from the quantitative research, the management‟s approach to relationship
management at JWT is perceived to be the following: The management collaborates
our working while maintaining minimum friction within the departments, for creative
wellness. 50 % of the employees believed that the management maintained the
friction at minimum level but collaborated the smooth working of the departments
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over all. 40% believed that the management wanted a smooth and collaborative
environment throughout, with no room for friction. (See appendix 7 & 8, Table G).
The qualitative research has also identified themes addressing the management
measures and practices to internal relationship management. Respondents recurrently
raised issues about the need for the management to support the internal relationships.
While some mentioned that management persistently tries to smoothen and
collaborate the working of the internal departments, some managements force their
personnel to work together, trying to minimise the eminent conflicts in the course of
their working. (See figure 3 and appendix 5). The quantitative research established
that in JWT, 50% of employees believe that the measures taken by the management to
support the relationship is „ a good process with room for improvement‟ while 30 %
believe that the processes in place, has to „necessarily‟ improve for efficient
performance. (See appendix 8 Table H)
The management has its own set policies and rituals to enhance and support the
relationship between the creative and account department. These processes help to
structure the relationship management practices within the agency(Moeran, 2009).
The different management approaches adopted to manage the creative enterprise, is
mostly comprised of practices, which determine the course of the relationship
between the creative and the non-creative. Adhocracy (Kover & Goldberg, 1995),
autonomy(Mullen, 1995) and other forms of management approach do not manage
the relationship between the chaos (creative) and order (client services), but comprise
operational techniques which determine the course of the relationship and hence the
performance of the agency.(Hackley & Tiwsakul, 2008). From this it can be
understood that the management at JWT engages in an approach, which maintains
collaborative working of its internal departments and minimises the arising conflicts.
Culture and value of the agency
The qualitative research has established that the top management in different agencies
have different perceptions to internal relationship management. This is evident from
the mixed responses, which were recorded during the interviews. It is also pointed out
that the basis of the responses differed due to the values and culture of the
organisation which the respondents belonged to. In general the management is
generally seen to encourage a collaborative work environment with or without
friction. This depends upon the culture of the organisation too. In some cases, the
management doesn‟t involve itself in the internal relationship management and this
can be attributed to the positive consequence of conflict within ad agencies. (See
Figure 3 and appendix 5).
At JWT, the employees wanting a collaborative workspace with minimised conflict,
reflects the culture and the values upheld by the agency. When asked if the
relationship management supported by the top management reflects the culture of
JWT, 65% of employees agreed to the notion. (See appendix 8 Table N). When asked
about their eagerness to look forward to team meeting with their peers in the „other‟
department, 75% of the employees agreed to look forward to such meetings. This
showed that the culture of JWT, which intends to strike a balance between friction
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and order, is existent and works efficiently within the agency. (See appendix 8 table
M).
The culture of ad agencies determines the value perception and performance, as it
ordains the practices, which result in work output. This in turn helps in maintaining
strong „external relationships‟ and also foster „internal relationships‟, by retaining
talent.(Lockhart, 2011)&(Krueger, 1998). The management, which works to improve
performance, adheres to the agency culture guiding the strategic processes and
relationship management practices. The management therefore pays careful attention
to maintaining the values and culture, intact(Jugenheimer & Kelley, 2009).From this,
it is understood that the management by supporting the internal relationships, also
upholds the culture and values of the organisations. Thus the management approach is
reflective of these values and culture.
JWT being the 4th largest full service agency with operations spanning 200 cities, has
a very diverse work force. The organisational culture, emphasising on quality and
teamwork is exercised through out all branches, with certain limitation posed by
regional constraints. However, the relationship management practices employed and
fostered by the top management have always resulted in quality work out put. Thus
the management approach to relationship management can also be assumed to be the
management‟s way of upholding the agency‟s values and culture.(VIC Brand,
2002)&(JWT, 2012)
Thus from the final analysis, the following conclusion are made:
The management approach at JWT influences the creative process by enabling
the account department to closely co-ordinate with the creative department
and enforce regulations through strong reliance on the working of the account
department.
The relationship between the account and the creative department at JWT
Chennai is that of a smooth and collaborative work environment with
minimised conflict, which gives the dynamic momentum to improve the
creative process.
The management at JWT supports this relationship by having process and
systems governing the internal relationship management.
The management prefers to maintain the smooth work environment and
maintain friction to a minimum to improve the quality of work, by exploiting
the positive consequences of „Healthy‟ friction.
The management approach to internal relationship and creativity at JWT
Chennai is reflective of the culture and values of the agency.
9) Conclusion
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The management approach in any organisation gives the scope and direction for the
organisation objectives. With respect to a creative enterprise, traditional management
approaches do not suffice due to the pivotal element of creativity. This trait,
areflective of a human characteristic, points out the behavioural element of such
enterprises. These enterprises, which rely on the capitalisation of human talent and
creativity, are thus managed differently.
There is a need to manage this creativity as a creative enterprise consists of both
creative and non creative (account department) individuals, who vary in their
characteristic traits and attitudes. Thus managing their relationship also becomes
crucial to the performance of the creative enterprise.
With varied literature and research conducted on the same topic, this dissertation
paper intended to analyse the relevance of this topic in the real world. The study was
structured to test the hypothesis in an ad agency and analyse the findings to deduct its
relevance in a practical scenario. JWT Chennai, being one of the renowned agencies
of the world, provided the right platform for this research with its diverse work force
and rich organisational culture. In addition to this, qualitative research was done by
conducting interviews in order to deduce the industry wide perceptions on
management approach to creativity and internal relationship management.
From the qualitative analysis, the themes identified and recurred in the discussions,
tested the relevance of the research objectives. However, it also pointed out another
important factor, which influence all the three aspects of this research: the agency
culture. This helped in modelling the quantitative research, which involved in drafting
a questionnaire based on the themes identified from the qualitative research. This
further helped in analysing the employee perception on each of the identified themes,
which in turn helped to fulfil the research objectives. The data, which were quantified
with the help of bar charts and pie diagrams, provided statistical presentation
pertaining to the key themes.
From the final analysis of the literature, qualitative and quantitative research findings,
it is understood that management approach within an ad agency influences the
creative process by supporting the relationship between its core internal departments
and this has been practically proven by studying it within an ad agency. However, this
report has also identified that the relationship between the core departments and the
management‟sapproach influencing the creative process, is influenced heavily by the
values and culture of the agency.
There is no standard form of creative management approach or generalised orientation
of internal relationship, as these factors are reflective on the culture of the agency.
The various types of management approaches identified and explained in the literature
review, point out how different each management approach is, to another. The culture
of the agency greatly influences the creative process. Thus the management approach
to internal relationship management, influencing the creative process, is a reflection
of its values and culture.
Thus in this dissertation report, the research question has been analysed in the real life
scenario and new themes have also been identified which has widened the scope of
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The initial proposal without any modification, approved by the university, is
attached as follows:
University of Wales Trinity St.David
Management Dissertation
SBMG6010
A1 : Dissertation Proposal
Submission Deadline: 1st june 2012
Swetha Sureshbabu
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A study of the management approach adopted in the creative industry – a case of JWT
India
Introduction
This case intends to review the management approach, followed in a thriving the
creative industry, the advertising industry. This is done through taking the case of
JWT, a reputed global advertising agency. The research intends to fulfill the
following objectives and understand:
How the management approaches the employees?
How the employees perceive the management approach?
How the management influences the creativity
This research intends to fulfill the above-mentioned above objectives. This research
neither intends to review nor critically analyses the pros and cons of the adopted
approach.
Literature review
Creative enterprises are companies that harness the talent; skill and creativity of
individuals to potentially create wealth and job opportunities by utilizing intellectual
property. This definition of creative enterprises clearly states the emphasis on
personnel management as the means to the entire framework in creative industries.
Here the increase in performance deals with the expertise showed by the creative
personnel in these enterprises.(Greffe, 2006)
An effective management approach is required for the success and the sustainability
of any organization. Studying the approach of management adopted, helps us to
understand the future course of action for management and also helps it assess
opportunities. For this the management must have an effective approach that would
help achieve increased performance of their core resources. (Mullins, n.d.)
There are several different views to personnel management in context to creative
enterprises. Some theorist believe orthodox management of human resources through
training, development and reward management does not succeed in creative
enterprises. They argue that people with such innovative abilities take pride in their
work than pay attention to substantial income. However, the other theorists argue that
incentive and training adds to the creative process.(Greffe, 2006)
Shirley explains that every organization has a stable legitimate side and a „creative‟
dynamic and rebellious side. To survive the enterprise has to strike a balance of both
and must operate at the edge of chaos. If each side tries to overpower the other, the
company would tip toward chaos. (Shirley, 1997)
In the case of JWT, the company‟s structure is primarily divided into two, each
depicting the opposite ends of a pole. The creative are dynamic and chaotic while the
account servicing is structured and collaborative.
JWT is structured in such a way that it has a regional head quarters with offices at
various cities of the specific country. These head quarters house the executive heads
of the agency which supervise the working of their respective departments in the
subsidiary offices. (VIC Brand, 2002)
While all the internal departments such as HR are centralised, the city specific offices
have three major departments in addition to the administrative department. These are
the account services, account planning and creative departments. Like every other
advertising agency, the working primarily depends on the Creative, with inputs about
the consumerism from the account-planning team. The account services coordinate
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the working between the clients and the creative department in the agency. The
administrative unit supervises the operational costing and accounting for the
company‟s sales and purchases.
Based on this structure of JWT, creativity is greatly influenced by the working of
these departments together. Thus it is important to manage them in the most effective
and efficient way to maximize the creativity element of the agency.(The Economic
times, 2011)
Thus the issues addressed above primarily questions the relevance of:
The Management Approach
• How the management approaches the employees?
Influence on the Creative process
• How this approach affects creativity?
Employee perception
• How employess percieve the management approach?
Methodology
Major part of the data collected is Primary data through one-to-one interviews
conducted at one of the regional offices of JWT. Two sets of interviews are to be
1st set of interview with staff – helps assess employee perception
2nd set of interview with managers – helps assess management approach
conducted:
Each of these interviews intends to address the specific research objective as
mentioned. The interviews are structured and intend to span about 10-15 minutes.
In addition to this, Secondary data about the structure of the organisation,
management policies, professional details about executive heads and news articles
pertaining to the management approach adopted are also to be used for analysis.
The Qualitative analysis of the primary data and the secondary data will therefore
help us address the final research objective – assess the management influence on
creativity.
The research objective clearly points out the human element involved in the entire
process. This warrants an understanding of how the employees comply with the
management approach and how the management manages their subordinates thereby
influencing the creative process. A one-to-one structured interview is the best
methodology to be employed, as this will enable the investigator to understand the
relevance of the approach adopted in reality.
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