Fired for Creativity - Essay Example

In order to complete a case analysis on his story, initially, before answering six essay questions, this paper will first provide a summary of Lasseter’s experience from a management perspective. According to the Power and Politics in the Fall and Rise of John Lasseter, the creative man’s employment background, the early attraction to animation began in his freshman year of high school and only intensified when he began his formal education in the field. Upon being hired at Disney, Lasseter worked emphatically to progress the animation department to the ways of the future by introducing the idea of films based solely off computer-generated imaging.

While his intentions were honorable, Lasseter acknowledges that his drive may have created instances where he seemed like a loose cannon. After a particular meeting where Lasseter was allowed to create a test film to demonstrate the viability of using both hand drawn animation and computer generated imaging, he was immediately fired by a supervisor who did not care for him. This instance is where the case analysis can determine a clear problem with management style. The problem with what happened to Lasseter is that his employment termination was obviously personal in nature.

It seems ridiculous that an employee of a creative company could be terminated for simply being creative. Furthermore, Lasseter had no outstanding work infractions. For whatever personal reason that this studio head did not care for Lasseter, the employee was fired unjustly. Personal feelings must be worked out in a professional manner versus being dealt with professionally which can often go the wrong way, as we see in this example. Fortunately for Lasseter, this unjust retribution did not last as the young animator was hired by Steve Jobs and helped him in the creation and success of Disney’s Pixar and the outstanding films the company produced.

The analysis of this scenario demonstrates that while younger employees can find themselves at a disadvantage when it comes to dealing with their more tenured and older counterparts, there is always hope in the fact that someone else will see them and value their creativity. Questions 1-6 1. What forms of interpersonal power are evident in the case? Within the case of Lasseter and the studio head who did not care for him as a person, the types of interpersonal power being used are those of status and age.

As the older, more experienced employee, the studio head knew he had the upper hand in the situation as he had the more advanced job title to effectively be able to have Lasseter fired without due cause. 2. In what ways do the two faces of power appear in this case? The two faces of power in this case are first, the studio head who chose to have Lasseter unjustly fired. By simply using his power to make this happen, the studio head used the power of his position and office politics to have the young artist fired.

The second face of power in this case is that of Steve Jobs himself. The actions of Jobs allow him to act as the hero in this story as he is able to see the value in this employee and hire him back on for Pixar. 3. Does the firing of John Lasseter from Disney Studios and the events leading up to his firing demonstrate the ethical use of power? Explain