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Friday, January 14, 2022
Why Cirque Du Soleil’s CEO Believes Leadership Is A Two-Way Tightrope
www.forbes.com: Cirque du Soleil is likely an organization you’ve heard about. Maybe you have attended one of their dazzling shows in Las Vegas. However, you may not be as familiar with the company’s CEO, Daniel Lamarre. What an exemplar of leadership he provides.
4 comments:
Olivia Curry
said...
I think Lamarre’s point about leaders needing to be vulnerable if they want vulnerability from others is very true and a crucial part of making a great final production. When leaders lack vulnerability it can be hard to trust them, because it seems that they are not investing as much emotionally into the work as you are; you can’t expect an actor to give a vulnerable performance if their director shows no weakness or emotion. Lamarre also talks about the importance of letting ideas come through from anyone involved in the production, and while I do agree in the concept, it is important to me that if an idea comes from someone with less power that they are still credited or compensated in some way. I’m very happy that Cirque productions are back, although some Vegas shows have been permanently closed, and I hope to see a show soon to see if those leadership skills have helped everyone bounce back.
As a fan of Cirque du Soleil and the company’s many stunning productions, it was very interesting to read through the behind-the-scenes leadership processes and mindsets as I had very little knowledge about that prior to reading the article. Daniel Lamarre, the CEO of Cirque du Soleil, discussed his “step up, step back” attitude when it comes to leading the company and the importance of making sure creative ideas from employees are able to quickly reach and challenge leadership. I think this concept sounds fairly effective as it intends to ensure a rapid flow of creativity to constantly be generated without apprehension, something that is very needed in a company as eccentric as Cirque du Soleil. The emphasis on diversity not being so much talked about and overinflated but rather shown seamlessly through the employees themselves was also valuable; I found it somewhat helpful in minimizing the appearance of performativity of such practices.
Cirque du Soleil is a role model in the entertainment industry who companies and artists look up to and admire. I personally also have a huge respect for it despite only seeing it once when I was very very young. I can’t say much from the creativity and performing aspect because my memory of the show is far too distant and vague, but it doesn’t prevent me from acknowledging the fact that Daniel Lamarre, now Executive Vice-chairman of the company’s board, has provided many insightful tips on management here. Lamarre’s belief can sort of be summarised into 3 words – authenticity, trust, and vulnerability. He talks about being able to build this strong bonding relationship with employees where they can feel free and confident in sharing their ideas and opinions. And this bond is built on the basis of trust; the trust that everyone is equal and has equal say. Authenticity allows people to share their more sincere and original thoughts, which is supported by being vulnerable to each other. Lamarre also adds that vulnerability is also key to creativity, which is something I’ve never thought about before and truly inspiring for me as an artist.
This article explains the leadership beliefs of Cirque Du Soleil’s CEO Daniel Lamarre, and why those make sense when overseeing such an enormous team. The two values of Lamarre that stood out to me were one, the fact that he wants any of his employees to be able to pitch ideas and for them to feel that their ideas are valuable, and two, to be vulnerable. I agree that both standards are vital to being a good leader in that to be a good leader, you must have a team to lead who respect and trusts you. As a stage manager in the theatre industry, I also believe it is extremely important to create a relationship with, in my case, actors that I am working with as well and make sure that they feel comfortable coming to me with problems. It is implied that Lamarre thoroughly understands Cirque Du Soleil would not be what it is without the amazing talent, similarly, I have so much respect for actors and dancers because I know I could never do what they do and the show would not happen without them.
4 comments:
I think Lamarre’s point about leaders needing to be vulnerable if they want vulnerability from others is very true and a crucial part of making a great final production. When leaders lack vulnerability it can be hard to trust them, because it seems that they are not investing as much emotionally into the work as you are; you can’t expect an actor to give a vulnerable performance if their director shows no weakness or emotion. Lamarre also talks about the importance of letting ideas come through from anyone involved in the production, and while I do agree in the concept, it is important to me that if an idea comes from someone with less power that they are still credited or compensated in some way. I’m very happy that Cirque productions are back, although some Vegas shows have been permanently closed, and I hope to see a show soon to see if those leadership skills have helped everyone bounce back.
As a fan of Cirque du Soleil and the company’s many stunning productions, it was very interesting to read through the behind-the-scenes leadership processes and mindsets as I had very little knowledge about that prior to reading the article. Daniel Lamarre, the CEO of Cirque du Soleil, discussed his “step up, step back” attitude when it comes to leading the company and the importance of making sure creative ideas from employees are able to quickly reach and challenge leadership. I think this concept sounds fairly effective as it intends to ensure a rapid flow of creativity to constantly be generated without apprehension, something that is very needed in a company as eccentric as Cirque du Soleil. The emphasis on diversity not being so much talked about and overinflated but rather shown seamlessly through the employees themselves was also valuable; I found it somewhat helpful in minimizing the appearance of performativity of such practices.
Cirque du Soleil is a role model in the entertainment industry who companies and artists look up to and admire. I personally also have a huge respect for it despite only seeing it once when I was very very young. I can’t say much from the creativity and performing aspect because my memory of the show is far too distant and vague, but it doesn’t prevent me from acknowledging the fact that Daniel Lamarre, now Executive Vice-chairman of the company’s board, has provided many insightful tips on management here. Lamarre’s belief can sort of be summarised into 3 words – authenticity, trust, and vulnerability. He talks about being able to build this strong bonding relationship with employees where they can feel free and confident in sharing their ideas and opinions. And this bond is built on the basis of trust; the trust that everyone is equal and has equal say. Authenticity allows people to share their more sincere and original thoughts, which is supported by being vulnerable to each other. Lamarre also adds that vulnerability is also key to creativity, which is something I’ve never thought about before and truly inspiring for me as an artist.
This article explains the leadership beliefs of Cirque Du Soleil’s CEO Daniel Lamarre, and why those make sense when overseeing such an enormous team. The two values of Lamarre that stood out to me were one, the fact that he wants any of his employees to be able to pitch ideas and for them to feel that their ideas are valuable, and two, to be vulnerable. I agree that both standards are vital to being a good leader in that to be a good leader, you must have a team to lead who respect and trusts you. As a stage manager in the theatre industry, I also believe it is extremely important to create a relationship with, in my case, actors that I am working with as well and make sure that they feel comfortable coming to me with problems. It is implied that Lamarre thoroughly understands Cirque Du Soleil would not be what it is without the amazing talent, similarly, I have so much respect for actors and dancers because I know I could never do what they do and the show would not happen without them.
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