Knowledge Worker

Peter Drucker spoke about what it meant to be a knowledge worker. One must analyze information, think critically, focus on detail, make connections, evaluate conflicts and priorities etc. This is extremely relevant to my field of working in the film and television industry. It is not a clear-cut field, where if following certain protocols a film or show will ultimately be successful. It largely depends on communication and working with a large number of people who are all specialized in their craft yet must be able to connect with those in other specialties to produce a good end result. “Information flows in multiple directions rather than cascading from senior leadership down through multiple levels of management to front-line people” (Bloomberg Business Week). All people on a production set have a function and they must all not only take care of their role, but work with those around them to provide continuity. A director cannot simply work alone and direct an entire film without the input from others and knowledge of the other workers’ roles. He must know how a camera works and work with the camera man to determine shots for each scene and must be with him physically on set working together to achieve the wanted shots.

The entertainment field is a creative one and one that largely relies on people working together. All members must analyze the information they are given to do their job correctly, they then must meet with the other members of the crew to go over the information to ensure not only is it done correctly but that it is the best choice for the shoot. “Information democracy encourages sharing over hoarding and sparks collaboration across functions and business units” (BloombergBusiness Week). This plays into evaluating conflicts and priorities because their will always be a conflict whether it’s with material or between cast members, crewmembers or cast and crew. This is why it’s important to prioritize which conflicts must be solved and or compromised.  

Productions work exclusively in several teams, from their own in their department to the entire production, consistently looking to produce new ideas, which comes from all the different crewmembers. This process starts from the very beginning when the script is selected by a director or Production Company and then the cast and crew must be selected and then they all work together to make decisions about locations and props and the shooting schedule and the types of shots and special effects that are going to be used. There is never a right or wrong answer so it is extremely important for everyone to know just as much about everyone else’s’ job on the set as their own.

Drucker’s idea has since been revitalized, “Where the knowledge worker knows how to manage an office, an insight worker understands how and why the business works” (Bigthink.com). This is the direction that business people see us heading in with the extensive development of our technology. We have moved from not only managing our business in a smart way, but digging deeper to fully understand how the business and industry work and why it works that way. Entertainment is probably the most difficult to understand in this aspect. There is a typical way and format at making a film, yet there are always exceptions to the rule, which makes it even more difficult to understanding why it works this way. An actor will never truly know why they were hired for a role over someone else and a producer and director will never know why a film they put so much effort into did poorly over one they spent have the time and budget on.

It is these uncertainties in the entertainment field that make it necessary to be a knowledge worker and learn as much as you can from those around you. You may not be hired for the job you are qualified to do and so you must know enough to perform other tasks to assist others and make your own contribution to the project.

Sources:

Erickson, M. (14, October 2011). Goodbye, Knowledge Workers. Hello, Insight Workers! Big Think.
         Retrieved from http://bigthink.com/think-tank/goodbye-knowledge-workers-hello-insight
         workers

Rosen, E. (11, January 2011). Every Worker Is a Knowledge Worker.
         BloombergBusinessweek: Companies & Industries. Retrieved from
         http://www.businessweek.com/managing/conten/jan2011/ca20110110_985915.htm