The Results-Oriented Entertainment Workplace

Entertainment jobs, whether acting, refereeing or set design, are involved in a lot of detail. When entertainment people are so engrossed in the details of their jobs, it's easy for them, for anyone actually, to lose sight of the job's major contribution.

A Results-Oriented Entertainment Job Description is different from a traditional job description because it focuses an employee on the several job results that answer the question: What results must this entertainment job accomplish for the organization?

Entertainment Job Standards added to job expectations tighten management controls by clarifying how well and when results must be accomplished.

Entertainment Job Objectives establish management and employee plans by highlighting important current and future results needed.

Job-specific Entertainment Employee Management Forms maintain consistent and legally sound management actions by basing manager-employee interactions on job results.

The Purpose of Entertainment Jobs

Stated in a results-oriented, three-line style, entertainment jobs--

PRESENT ENTERTAINMENT OR INFORMATION by

understanding audience desires; assembling entertainers with skills and talents; training and rehearsing; preparing sets and settings; delivering content and actions.

Types of Entertainment Jobs

The obvious "on stage" entertainment jobs present talent to an audience. These would include actors, musicians, gaming dealers, disk jockeys and athletes. Behind the scenes jobs build sets, design and sew costumers, find and coach talent, operate facilities, and organize, direct and promote productions.

And, of course, somebody has to manage and supervise the entertainment people and processes.

Entertainment Job Management Tools

Here are actual job examples of how entertainment job actions can be focused on results and kept on track using each of our job management tools:

Results-Oriented Entertainment Job Descriptions form the foundation of all job management tools. Our uniquely structured job descriptions focus on the result to be accomplished first and prominently, followed by the duties performed in order to accomplish the result. For example,

RECOMMENDS ENTERTAINMENT ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Entertainment Job Standards sharpen employee attention and management control by defining and communicating how well the entertainment results must be accomplished and what benchmarks will be used to measure job results. For example, for the job result above, the job standards might be:

• Entertainment situations are correctly understood.
• All options are identified and evaluated.
• Entertainment recommendations are ready when needed.

Entertainment Job Objectives point the direction for employee actions by focusing job efforts on current and future entertainment issues. Job objectives are written in the three-line, results-oriented structure. For example, for the job result above, a job objective might be:

SPEED-UP DECISION MAKING by

reducing time to deliver entertainment recommendations by 10% by (date).

Entertainment Employee Management Forms tied specifically to each entertainment job description are more helpful (and legal) than generic forms used for all different kinds of jobs. Job-specific forms are used to state job qualifications, guide job interview questions, orient new employees, plan job training, and appraise job performance.

Entertainment Job Qualifications are stated in the same terms used in the job description. They are not translated into generic (typically behavioral) terms. For example:

RECOMMENDS ENTERTAINMENT ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Entertainment Job Interview guide questions are inserted directly below each job result in the job description: For example:

• "What specific job responsibilities have you had in this area?"
• "Where did you have these job responsibilities?"
• "When did you have these job responsibilities?"
• "How did you go about accomplishing these responsibilities?"
• "What accomplishment in this area gave you the most pride?"
• "In this area, what were some of your biggest challenges?"
• "How did you overcome the challenges?"

The Entertainment Job Orientation guide reformats the job description sequence so that job explanations, policies, protocols, processes, and procedures are logical and complete and can easily be checked off. For example:

RECOMMENDS ENTERTAINMENT ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

The manager might say: "Here's the procedure and format we use to analyze and present entertainment recommendations."

The Entertainment Job Training plan guides a thorough examination of actual job knowledge, skills, and abilities as described in the job description that need improvement or that might be enhanced. For example:

RECOMMENDS ENTERTAINMENT ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

The manager might say: "Analytical skills would be improved by enrolling in a statistical analysis class."

The Entertainment Job Performance Appraisal guide is a job-specific form. It is not a universal form used for all jobs. The guide adds an appraisal scale below each job result in the job description so that attention can be drawn to each job requirement and expectation. For example:

RECOMMENDS ENTERTAINMENT ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

__ Great! Just want we wanted.
__ We have a problem.
__ Improvement is needed.
__ Much, much more than we asked for.

Comments: _________________

Entertainment Résumé Template

Potential employers want to know what a job applicant has accomplished in his/her entertainment work career. They don't want to be bored with minor details. Our Résumé Template provides:

• an outline to help assemble personal background information.
• a Results-Oriented Job Description to provide the entertainment job language-focused on results-needed to write an effective résumé.
• Entertainment Job Objectives to orient thinking in terms of accomplishments.
• instructions on how to use a Results-Oriented Entertainment Job Description and Entertainment Job Objectives to express job accomplishments.

Use the entertainment job description responsibility statement as a base:

RECOMMENDS ENTERTAINMENT ACTIONS by

analyzing system controls.

Select the entertainment job objective that fits your experience:

REDUCE COSTS 10% by

improving entertainment processes.

Combine the two into a résumé statement:

Reduced costs 10% by analyzing, identifying, and recommending new entertainment system controls.

Entertainment Career Links

U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Gaming Services Occupations

What gaming workers do on the job, working conditions, training and education needed for gaming services jobs, earnings, expected job prospects.

University of California, Berkeley, Career Center, Arts & Entertainment

Information and resources for choosing a major to exploring different career options to finding internships to looking for part-time and full-time employment to preparing for graduate school.

Out In Television & Film, Career Center

Collection of sites that cater exclusively or primarily to job seekers who wish to work in the entertainment industry; often these sites will have categories and postings for positions and companies familiar to those already working in the industry.

Career Prospects in Virginia, Entertainment Marketing and Management

Skills and knowledge, job outlook, specializations, preferred education, earnings, where jobs are, links.

about.com, Film, Television and Theatre

Jobs, selected reading, related articles.

Emory University, Goizueta Business Library, Careers in Media & Entertainment - Television

Media and entertainment career information, industry directories, industry information, journal articles, trade associations, web sites.

Emory University, Goizueta Business Library, Careers in Sports

A variety of sports and recreation industry career web sites.

U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Athletes, Coaches, Umpires, and Related Workers

Information about the training and education needed for jobs in sports, earnings, expected job prospects, what athletes, coaches, umpires, and related workers do on the job, and working conditions.