A joint project of the Cannes Lions Festival & the Berlin School of Creative Leadership

June 14-19 in Berlin
June 21-26 in Cannes

Guiding Principles

"On The Road To Creative Excellence What Is Your Leadership Strategy?

Successful leaders in advertising and communication, those who influence and dominate the high end output of this industry, do not focus just on the ,idea-business‘. They differentiate. They focus on an idea of their own guiding their work, making it fresh, special, different.

Examples inclide ,baked in‘, by Alex Bogusky of CP+B and John Winsor, or ,Irreverence‘, by Sir John Hegarty of BBH, or ,Disruption‘, by Jean-Marie Dru of TBWA.

Success and fame begins with a differentiating, inspiring idea within the idea business, leading to proprietary expertises and processes.

„Complexity of communication and its businesses is growing each day, challenging a company’s leader(s) to guide an organziation to a competitive place, lead clients and partners, lead product excellence, lead people, lead yourself and to lead the industry.

To do this successfully you do not need to be a ,born leader‘. You can grow into one. If you embrace complexity, learn analysis and strategy, get confident in decision-making, and acquire the skills to create alignment and implementation, people will trust your expertise and leadership falls into place.“

-- Michael Conrad, President, Berlin School of Creative Leadership

Course Descriptions and Summary

Please note: Programme is subject to change. Industry speakers in Cannes will be updated as they are confirmed to appear.

Week One: Intensive Introduction to the Field of Leadership
Berlin, Monday, June 14 – Saturday, June 19

Week One provides a thorough introduction to the structural alignment framework for more effective leadership and greater organizational impact.  This cutting-edge model moves beyond conventional approaches based in charisma or vision to one grounded in sustainable analysis of complexity.  
Participants study real-world examples through lectures, interactive case discussions, and small group exercises.  Throughout the first week, participants work in teams to examine aspects of current advertising industry leadership and organizational practice.  
Together, the class sessions and team exercises provide an essential foundation for capitalizing on the resources of Cannes Lions in the second week.  
Week One also affords substantive preparation for the presentations to be given at the end of the course by individual participants proposing how they plan to build greater creative excellence in their own agencies.


DAY 1, Monday, June 14
Introduction to the Strategy-Structure-Design Leadership Framework
Professor Doug Guthrie
(9-12:30) Strategy & Competition: Concepts and Cases
(1:30-5) The Case of Contemporary Advertising

The opening session uses interactive discussions and case analyses to introduce participants to a powerful framework for leadership and to demonstrate how to apply the framework in the analysis of organizational, leadership and strategic problems in contemporary advertising.  
As throughout the program, emphasis is also on developing appropriate solutions to the problems analyzed and on building action-oriented insights for individual plans for advancing creative excellence.

DAY 2, Tuesday, June 15
Organizational Design, Culture and Alignment
Professor Doug Guthrie
(9-12:30) Organizational Culture
(1:30-5) Structure and Culture in Advertising Agencies Today

Participants deepen their understanding of the structural alignment model and how to understand and evaluate organization design more effectively.  
In particular, the session emphasizes how the analysis of organizational complexity enables the development of appropriate solutions and successful change.  
Additional focus is given to examining leadership skills proven to build a culture that is a true competitive advantage.

DAY 3, Wednesday, June 16
Leadership and Organizational Design – Pt. 1
Professor Doug Guthrie
(9-12:30) Teamwork Exercise: Culture and Leadership
(1:30-5) Leadership and Organizational Success

This session begins a focus on organization-level issues and problems and how leaders can think more effectively about organizational design, develop and adopt better strategies, and understand how their decision-making affects the culture of the organization.  
Participants work together intensively in teams to better understand the dynamics of organizations and their cultures.

DAY 4, Thursday, June 17
Leadership and Organizational Design – Pt. 2:
Professor Doug Guthrie
(9-12:30) Leadership: The Keys to Building a Culture of Creativity and Success
(1:30-5)  Team Presentations: Culture and Leadership

Participants continue to explore organization-level issues and how leaders can better understand, evaluate and address organizational design and dynamics.  
Teams make presentations about organizational design and culture and how, with effective leadership, these can enable improved performance and organizational change.

DAY 5, Friday, June 18
Decision-making for Impact
Professor Robert Weisz
(9-12:30) The Decision-making Process
(1:30-5) Adapting Leadership Styles to Situations and People

Successful analysis of complexity requires leaders to make difficult decisions and steer organizational change.  
Participants learn how to implement each one of the major decision-making processes: information, consultation, participation and delegation.  
They also become familiar with the rational model of decision-making, which allows close examination of key factors in situational management.

DAY 6, Saturday, June 19
Effective Change Management
Professor Robert Weisz
(9-12:30) Leading a Change Process
(1:30-5) Managing Transitions and Resistance to Change

By the end of this closing day of Week One, participants are able to analyze the complexity of organizational and leadership problems and to establish a diagnosis of the change process they plan to effect.  They also learn how to manage the organizational and human aspects of change – in their own teams, agencies or industry.

Week II: Cannes Lions as Global Classroom for Creative Leadership
Cannes, Monday, June 21 – Saturday, June 26

Week Two builds on the lessons of Week One in the intensely stimulating setting of Cannes Lions 2010.  Each day combines course lectures, discussions and group work with immersion in the rich and varied Cannes Lions program as a means to focus on three pressing leadership challenges: the rapidly changing advertising industry landscape, the transformation of media and technology, and managing creatives.
The consistent accessing of seminars, speakers and related sessions deepens classroom learnings and advances participants’ understanding of these challenges and their skills in addressing them.  
Special guests offer further insights to program participants. Some of the biggest names in the advertising industry and other special guest speakers will exclusively address the Cannes Creative Leaders group while in Cannes. We will announce the special industry speakers as they are confirmed.
Throughout the week, and supported by individual advisement, participants develop and refine their plans for leading their respective agencies’ to greater creative excellence.  The course concludes with these individual presentations and a group assessment of how they can generate real impact and produce a lasting culture of creativity and innovation.

DAY 7, Monday, June 21
Cannes Lions 2010 as Classroom
Professor David Slocum
(9-10:30) An Introduction to the Festival for Course Participants
(10:30-4) Festival Fieldwork: Seminar Attendance*
(4-6) Plenary De-briefing and Team Reports

The program resumes with an overview of the Cannes Lions festival programme and how participants can fully avail themselves of its exceptional learning opportunities through fieldwork.  
Participants will attend a common external seminar, report in teams on their analysis, and determine together how to maximize the value of their festival fieldwork throughout the remainder of the week.
(*=Festival Fieldwork involves both general festival programming and special speakers and sessions organized for the Cannes Lions Creative Leadership Course.)

DAY 8, Tuesday, June 22
Leadership and the Dynamic Industry Landscape
Professor David Slocum
(9-10:30) Aspects of Change in Advertising
(10:30-4:30) Festival Fieldwork*; Individual Advisement
(4:30-6) Individual Reports

Advertising industry leaders face an array of challenges including new business models, shifting client relationships, and changing consumers are among the pressing issues.  
Combining festival programme insights, classroom lessons, and their own experiences, participants analyze current changes and apply them to their individual plans for advancing creative excellence.

DAY 9, Wednesday, June 23
Media and Technology Today (and Tomorrow)
Professor David Slocum
(9-10:30) Advertising 2.0
(10:30-4:30) Festival Fieldwork*; Individual Advisement
(4:30-6) Individual Reports

This session gathers perspectives from across industries to provide a broad and deep understanding of the extraordinary changes underway in media technologies and platforms.  
Participants assess these ideas, identify opportunities, and incorporate relevant insights into their individual plans for enhancing creative excellence.

DAY 10, Thursday, June 24
Managing Creatives and Creativity
Professor David Slocum
(9-10:30) Creative Leadership Models
(10:30-4:30) Festival Fieldwork*; Individual Advisement
(4:30-6) Individual Reports

Creating sustainable cultures of creativity and innovation is among the greatest of leadership challenges – and opportunities.  
Participants closely examine successful models and assess their own skills for nurturing creativity in others and their organizations.

DAY 11, Friday, June 25
Putting It All Together
Professor David Slocum
(9-10:30) Revisiting Structural Alignment and Advertising
(10:30-4:30) Festival Fieldwork*
(4:30-6) Support Group Meetings; Individual Presentation Preparation

This session brings together the analytical frameworks studied in Week One with the practical knowledge and insights drawn from the sessions and fieldwork of Week Two.  
Participants refine their understanding of these lessons and practices as a basis for more effective leadership in the advertising industry.  They also incorporate the learnings into their individual plans for advancing creative excellence.

DAY 12, Saturday, June 26
Alignment for Creative Excellence
Professor David Slocum
(9-1) Individual Presentations & Group Feedback
(2-3:30) Program Summary & Planning for the Road Ahead

The final day features individual participant presentations of their plans for leading for creative excellence developed throughout the two-week course.  These address the organizational and leadership problems at their respective agencies.  Constructive group feedback follows and sharpens the plans in order for them to make immediate impact.  
The course concludes with a programme summary and plenary discussion of how to take skills honed in the course forward and advance creative excellence in participants’ agencies and the advertising industry.