Harvard Business School professor Anita Elberse has developed and teaches classes focused on the business of entertainment, sports and media. In 2014, she launched an executive education program called The Business of Entertainment, Media, and Sports, which aims to address executive challenges that occur in all three industries. Elberse and her colleagues stress the impact of big-bet investments. They also discuss how participants can better leverage their personal brands. This year’s program runs June 1-4.
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It is useful to hear the side of the talent. They are not just props; they are there to learn a ton about how they can best make decisions and how they can monetize their brand. The same goes for the executives. Many work on talent issues, but if you ask them ‘How often do you sit around with talent?,’ not many have that interaction. From both sides, being together in the room is quite useful.”
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Photo: COURTESY OF ANITA ELBERSE
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On the purpose of the program: It’s intended for people who work in those industries at a mid-level or senior level, or for those who aspire to work in those sectors. We have found that talent and athletes have found the program to be quite useful and that they often bring their agents or managers. The idea is that in four days they get a wide range of cases about media, entertainment and sports that we have developed. We discuss how you can best manage investment in talent and what talent can do to monetize their brand. It is a range of themes.
On the need for the program: I developed the course for MBA students on these topics and that was going really well, so I thought, Why not have an offering for executives? We have had not just [current] athletes; we have had a former basketball player [Jerry Stackhouse, NBA], and this year we have a successful musician registered. It is quite diverse. It is a very heavy schedule. They don’t come to Harvard to take a vacation. We give them four cases, more than an MBA student on an average day. We limit it to 70 people or so, but there is no exact number. It depends on who we think is right for the program and that we have a good mix.
On the areas of emphasis: One element that is key in my research is the notion of being willing to bet big on a blockbuster. There are very few who can be successful without being willing to make big bets. Many do the exact opposite, and that is a major theme. It is about monetizing and building brands of individuals. We look at the rising power of individual talent, whether it’s LeBron James or Beyoncé. Digital technology is a key focus, and we look at who is winning and losing in the new digital space and what you can do to your investment strategies.
