Power and Politics: TVN1

Organizational Setting and Background to the Problem

TVN is an independent television company holding the franchise for broadcasting to a

large section of the population in the north of England. It was awarded its franchise in 1981,
after the previous holders had been deemed by the Independent Broadcasting Authority not to
have supplied an adequate service. In particular the previous franchise holder - Instant Appeal
Entertainment Corporation - had failed to provide the required number of programmes with
local interest and had, with the exception of the period immediately prior to the award of the
franchise, resolutely filled the screens at both local and national level with chat shows and
entertainment spectaculars. Under the terms of the franchise TVN were mandated to rectify
these failings; they were required to create programmes of local interest and supply to the
network a balanced diet for viewers. Their franchise comes up for renewal in five years' time.

The senior management group - with whom we shall be particularly concerned in this
case study - consists of a number of people from the old franchise holder, Instant Appeal, and
a number brought in from other companies (including one from the BBC). The new managing
director, Neville Cottingham, a thrusting executive in his mid thirties, has no experience in
television, having been recruited by the chairman of TVN to 'give the company some
commercial flair'. The chairman also has little experience in television. Cottingham has brought
with him as confidant and industrial relations director one of his colleagues, Tom Beverley,
from his days at Snowdon Double Glazing. They have been in position for a couple of years,
the previous managing director having left to rejoin Instant Appeal in its film division. The
sales director, Tom Skidby, in his late fifties, man and boy with Instant Appeal, was one ofthe
original bidders for the franchise and is on the board ofTVN, as is Eric Walkington, a man of
similar age, again an original signatory for the franchise and currently finance director.
Walkington is also an Instant Appeal man, as is the director of programmes, Tony Dancer, who
was acting managing director for a period immediately prior to the advent of Neville
Cottingham. Dancer is a tall, spare individual with over 20 years' experience as a maker of
distinctive television films and a considerable reputation as a scheduler and commissioner of
productions. He too has a seat on the board and, as director of programmes, a considerable

1
Source: lain Mangham (1985). ‘Power and Politics: TVN’. In: Chris W. Clegg, Nigel J. Kemp & Karen Legge (Editors). Case studies in
organizational behaviour. London: Paul Chapman Publishing Limited, pp. 71-76.

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number of links both formal and informal with the watchdog of the industry - the Independent
Broadcasting Authority.

The Problem

The Basic Situation

TVN under its previous managment which, of course, included Dancer, had a reputation
for producing international packages - blockbusting megastar programmes full of glitter and
showbusiness bazzaz, costing scores of thousands of pounds and selling around the world. Its
turnover, although large by industry standards, was but a small part of the business of Instant
Appeal and its profits, which were proportionately large, accrued to the parent company. Little
of it was returned to TVN in the form of investment, but, on the other hand, little was demanded
of TVN in terms of cost control or efficient management. The new company stands alone and
both the chairman and Neville Cottingham are determined to render it efficient and effective.
To them this means controlling costs and ensuring that TVN enjoys a 'good reputation' with its
audiences, with its advertisers, with its employees, with the City and not least with the IBA .
This year it is on line to make substantial profits, partly as a result of Dancer's shrewd selection
of programmes (which brings in the advertising) and partly as a result of the efforts of the
chairman and the managing director to control costs.

The industry as a whole, and particularly the independent sector of it, has a reputation
for high spending. Since the government takes a slice of the profits by way of levy, many
employees have come to regard money spent on programmes (and upon their own contributions
to them) as in some sense not real - money which otherwise would go to the Exchequer. TVN's
association with Instant Appeal- the glamorous world of showbusiness - has reinforced this
tendency to treat funds with relatively little concern. Throughout TVN, at all levels, the culture
of Instant Appeal still prevails. This is particularly true of the Programme Department
(controlled by Tony Dancer) which spends millions of pounds annually. Productions regularly
run over budget - sometimes by as much as 200 or 300% - and there is a suspicion that very
little control is exercised over any programme maker by Dancer or any of his staff, although
the overall budget is more often met than not. The culture of the department is such that any
attempt at control would be labelled 'interference with creative freedom' and much resented.
Dancer himself epitomizes this approach and resolutely refuses to discuss the affairs of what
he takes to be his area of responsibility with Cottingham or with anyone else. He bases his

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refusal on the nature of his appointment (ratified by the IBA and requiring the incumbent of
such a position to be a suitable person and not subject to direction by others) and upon the fact
that Neville Cottingham, having little experience of television, is not in a position to say what
should or should not be done.

Cottingham regards the cavalier approach to expenditure as little short of 'immoral'. In

areas that he can control -largely those of direct operations such as engineering or publicity -
he has succeeded in reducing costs and in streamlining the operations of the company. Together
with his industrial relations director, Tom Beverley, he has confronted the unions over the
question of manning and special payments and, after a strike which closed the studios for some
weeks (and caused considerable annoyance to the programme makers), he succeeded in
imposing some industrial relations discipline on the floor. He has also instituted regular
communication meetings with staff at all levels and is, with the notable exceptions of the unions
and the programme makers, regarded as 'good news' by a considerable number of those
employed at TVN. It is, however, clear to many that his dictat does not extend to the programme
department. It is equally clear that he and Dancer are personally antagonistic.

Detailed Information on Problems

The head of engineering, Frank Selby, recruited from another independent TV company
and sympathetic towards Cottingham's aims, is not alone in seeing the complexity of issues
facing the managing director: 'He is faced with the problem of getting things right fast. Very
fast. And he doesn't know the industry well. Lots of neat management techniques, but
essentially he is a stranger to what goes on. A breath offresh air, highly energetic but, no doubt
about it, on a collision course with Dancer and those of his men who indulge their fantasies at
the company's expense. Trouble is, they have bloody good fantasies. They turn out good
programmes, but at a cost. Tony Dancer is a smart operator. I've a very healthy regard for him.
He's probably the most able programme director I've worked with, and when I say able I mean
in all sorts ofways. He's got a very good head on him. He is able to negotiate on behalf of the
company on all sorts of complex matters to do with networking and so on and he's got tons of
courage, and if he feels he must do something, he'll pursue it and pursue it and pursue it. Very
much his own man, though, and when you put him alongside Neville, a chap with a hell of a
track record elsewhere, tremendous rate of achievement, then there is going to be argument,

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conflict at a level which is higher than the healthy one which ought to exist. Because they both
want to do their own bloody thing. A trial of strength.'

Tom Beverley, the industrial relations director, sees things in a similar fashion: 'We've
got a number of characters around here who really do have their own individual styles,
classically Tony Dancer, very powerful personality, like Neville Cottingham in many senses,
got a tremendous ego, very selfish, power conscious, but a completely different way of
operating from Neville which he freely acknowledges - boasts about it. He likes to accumulate
as much information as he can possibly get and give away as little as he possibly can.
Information is power to him. He'll tell people what they need to know and then tell them what
to do. That's Tony's style. The creative bit, based on instinct and feel- if it's right, do it and pick
up the pieces afterwards or ignore them. Neville would be mortified to hear it and would deny
it, but he and Tony are similar in some characteristics, both driven by an urge to have their
ideas accepted, but Tony's way of operating is anathema to Neville who is much more open.
There are continual clashes between the pair of them and will continue to be and I fear for the
result of that because sooner or later there's bound to be a parting of the ways. Who goes and
where and when is another matter. The tragedy is that we need both of them to stay.'

Dancer recognizes the issue and reacts to it characteristically: 'It's not up to me to hold
people's hands. Neville's a big boy now. Ifhe does not like what I am doing it's up to him to do
something about it, not down to me to be running in and out of his office telling him every little
thing that's going on. If I am employed as the bloody programme controller, that's what I will
do - control the bloody programmes. I'm given an overall budget, I'm told I have to get it right
by the company and if they don't think I've got it right they can get rid of me. Don't play games.
Either they want me to do the bloody job or they want Neville to do it for me. Can't both do it,
particularly when one of us knows less than bugger all about it.'

Matters are brought to a head during a meeting of the Programme Committee. This
group has been brought together at the instigation of Neville to bring about better coordination
between the programme makers and those who supply the services. It has met on two previous
occasions and has a reputation for being the arena in which Tony and Neville offer mock
combat to each other. Neville, as perceived by Tony, seeking to 'pry' into programme matters
and Tony, as perceived by Neville, determined to exclude all from contact with what he takes
to be 'his patch'. The company is offering to the network a new late night programme which is
reputed to be 'adult', 'frank' or 'downright offensive' according to one's sensitivities. No one

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other than the lawyers and the programme makers have seen any of the recorded episodes, but
rumour is rife and has been picked up by the newspapers. Neville quotes from one of them:

'I gather from this that, quote "Slammmakes the News of the World and the Sun

look tame", unquote; that it quote "is taking on everyone, the Queen, the Royal

Family, the Prime Minister, the Opposition, the Judges, the Churches, the Unions

...", unquote.'

Tony twirling his pencil and lying back in his chair smiles and then begins to laugh
quietly.

'I don't know what it is that you find amusing in all of this, Tony. I was asked about
Slamm the other day by the Chairman and I had to tell him I knew nothing about it
other than it was over budget.'

It's not down to him to know about it. Nor you for that matter.'

‘Oh, so I have to learn about what TVN is doing from reading the newspaper, do I? Do
I? How the hell am I expected to cope with questions when I don't know the first thing
about what is going on? It sounds as though we are in for a rough ride on this one if
the leaks are anything to go on: "It is understood that the IBA has censored material
which it took to be antisemitic."’

'Untrue. Nothing antisemitic about it.'

'No censorship then?'

'Didn't say that. They took it to be antisemitic. It wasn't. Just a joke about pencil
sharpeners: They insisted it come out.'

'What else had to come out, Tony?'

'Look, where is this leading us, Neville? It's my job to deal with the IBA and I'm doing
it. Why don't we discuss something important like why it is when I hire freelance
producers they can't find a bloody desk to sit down at? Why it is that getting a typewriter
around here is like extracting a bloody tooth?'

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'I want to talk about programmes, Tony. As managing director I am responsible for this
company ... '

'And I am responsible for its programmes. If you want to talk about them, how about
talking about the awards we picked up last month? Two, better than any other
independent. Or the ratings, let's talk about the ratings. Three in the top seven last
month, that brings in the advertisers, doesn't it? Let's talk about that ...'

'What about Slamm, Tony, will that get an award? Will that be in the ratings?'

'Don't know. Like all programmes it's a risk and I'm paid to take them.'

'And I'm paid to know about them.'

'All you need to know you can get from The Sunday Times.'

Case Study Statements:

1. The primary cause of problems at TVN is a misalignment in culture, stemming from

the competing values of creative independence and commercial efficiency.
2. The absence of well-defined authority and integration between departments is the
primary cause of problems at TVN.
3. The problems at TVN are primarily caused by internal power dynamics between
senior management.
4. The primary cause of problems at TVN is the existence of different sources of
motivation within the senior management team.