The Art of Seduction; How skills affect the search process for a suitable business partner by the creative entrepreneur
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2017
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en
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Due to the abolition of subsidies, the creative industries are in dire straits. Independent creatives now have to gradually transform into entrepreneurs. In Arnhem, ArteZ has initiated the Bridging the Gap project. They have been training the creative entrepreneurs’ skills and prepare them for a potential business partnership. The idea is that a partnership will enable them to earn a living with their creative businesses.
So far however, they have neither scientific evidence nor practical proof of which skills or competences the creative entrepreneurs actually need to find a suited business partner. The goal of this research is to determine the role of skills in the search for a suited business partner within the field of creative entrepreneurs. The main research question is: How do key skills influence the search process for a suitable business partner within the field of creative entrepreneurship?
First the relevant skills had to be identified. Literature indicates that there are seven types of skills that influence the search process: Alliance Experience, credibility, social skills, sales, symbolic action skills, Trust, empathy and flexibility (TEF) and business skills. Second, the concept of the creative entrepreneur had to be defined. A creative entrepreneur is an entrepreneur active within one or more of the creative industries and produces one or more categories of creative products. Finally, the three step of the search process had to be identified. Sensing opportunities, seizing the opportunities and transforming the business so it is ready for a partnership.
After the literary research, this research has used in-depth interviews. Supported by observations and document analysis, these interviews determined which skills the creative entrepreneurs possess that contribute to the search process and how creative entrepreneurs successfully work together with a business partner.
During the first step of the search process, the creative entrepreneurs start by analysing their own business. They now better know what to look for in a business partner, since they know what weaknesses to compensate for. Unfortunately almost all of the respondents lack the alliance experience that helps them with the selection of a suitable partner. Business skills also play an important role. They are needed to define realistic goals and conduct market research.
During the second stage the creative entrepreneurs need to approach potential partners. They essentially have two options: Social skills and sales. They could also add symbolic action skills. Half of the respondents only possess social skills, which results in sales and partnerships with their acquaintances. Some creative entrepreneurs lack both social and sales skills. This is a difficult situation, as they either need money to hire an independent agent or need the network to find one. As they do not possess the
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social or sales skills to find this agent, this creates a downwards spiral. The ones that do possess these skills still need entrepreneurial traits like pro-activeness and risk taking to convince a potential partner.
During the final stage trust, empathy and flexibility skills play the biggest role. It is time to enter into negotiations. The creative entrepreneur needs to identify, comprehend and accept ideas that might differ from their own. This is especially hard for most creative entrepreneurs, because they do not want to give up their artistic freedom. This is why conflict management skills and compromises are essential at this stage. The ones that see the importance of a partner and are willing to compromise, are the most successful.
This research has provided a new framework by which the search process of the creative entrepreneurs can be analysed. Further research could more closely examine creative entrepreneurs abroad and look at the differences between specific creative industries. The model might be applicable to other industries like the tech industry. One could also explore the trainability of certain skills and conduct large scale quantitative research to weigh and prioritize the skills. Finally the negotiation process could be more closely examined.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen