Media AMP Blog

Los Angeles, May 7–12, 2011 — The third module of IESE’s Advanced Management Program in Media and Entertainment (Media AMP) took place at the Paley Center for Media in Los Angeles, which is located right near Rodeo Drive and provided a truly upscale experience of Los Angeles, the movie and music recording capital of the world.

Hailing from over 10 different countries, many of the Media AMP participants took advantage of the fabulous, program-negotiated rates and camped out for the week at the famous, luxurious and well-located Wilshire Hotel of Pretty Woman fame.

Aside from sunny skies, gorgeous vistas from the Paley Center’s lovely roof deck, fabulous restaurants and shops, and celebrity sightings, we actually were able to tackle some great cases and learned a great deal in the process – through our wonderful faculty and through each other.  As the program has progressed and we have gotten to know each other better over the previous two modules, this time felt like we were all on a family trip together.  It was really fun.  Some shared rides in convertibles, others went roller blading, and then there were fun nights out together at Los Angeles hot spots.  Of course, there was a lot of studying, thinking and learning going on.

This third module focused on the nature of creative organizations and ways to exploit new opportunities. We studied cases that looked at companies that had and lacked creative cultures and innovation.  Led expertly by Prof. Paddy Miller, we discussed Producer David Putnam’s career, especially his time at the helm of Columbia Pictures.  We were visited in class by the former CEO of Polyphonic HMI, whose case we had studied and then we were able to get real feedback from him on what has happened since the case was written several years ago.  Entitled Innovation Architect, this course helped us take a fresh look at the value of teamwork, styles of effective and ineffective leadership and the importance of fostering an innovative culture in a company.  Under the thoughtful and experienced guidance of Prof. Jaume Ribera, we studied Management Operations.  We studied and discussed cases that looked at project management from the perspective of different industries and project sizes.

We learned about designing products and processes, Sigma Six, project life cycles, and perhaps one of the most interesting parts of the course was a field trip to Universal Studios Hollywood for a VIP tour of operations and behind the scenes, as well as a presentation by Larry Kurzweil, President and COO of Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal Parks & Resorts. This visit and presentation was part of the Media AMP Leadership Forums and fit in perfectly with what we were studying in Management Operations. Visiting a theme park of such a large scope – approximately 8 million people visit the park per year, with an average of 24,000 guests on the premises of the 420-acre Universal complex – was a firsthand experience of how the multi-billion dollar theme park industry works.  In an hour-long presentation to our Media AMP group of about 23 people, Kurzweil described his challenge after the 9-11 attacks and the plunge in tourism and attendance he and his company faced.

The third and final course, Corporate Finance, was masterfully led by Prof. Ahmad Rahnema.  In this five-class session, we looked at balance sheets and discussed how to assess them for loan potential or high risk.  He helped us develop and refine our finance intelligence.

During the week, we had two additional Leadership Forum installments.  One involved an audience with the cast of the popular TV series: Bones.  The other was an intimate, off-the-record Q&A session with one of Hollywood’s most successful and influential agents (founder of one of the largest agencies, United Talent Agency), Peter Benedek, who described how he went from practicing law to shepherding and managing some of the biggest stars and creative talents in Hollywood.  He described his daily work with us and also explained some of the challenges of being an agent, e.g. dealing with challenging personalities, perceiving when there is real talent in a person, etc.

The week finished off with a wonderful dinner at Asia de Cuba restaurant on Sunset Boulevard, which overlooks Hollywood.  It was a fun and lively evening as we enjoyed the Cuban fare.  Since every module seems to be better than the previous one, it’s hard to imagine what awaits when we convene for the final module back in NYC on June 13.  Can it get any better?