The Teamworking Experiment
29 mins, 1999 Manager Tony Spence used to be an autocratic bully. Now he’s trying to bring a new team-working approach to his firm. The idea is to give staff a feeling of ownership over their work. But the team-working experiment goes badly wrong when trust between Tony and his staff breaks down. This is… Read more »
Going Live
28 mins, 1994 A bakery swaps from its old information system to a new one — and runs into disaster. First they have to choose the system, then make sure it works. At last comes the day when the new system goes live – and it’s then that things really go wrong. Lack of training… Read more »
Empowering The People
25 mins, 1992 Can Japanese-style working practices succeed in Britain? This video looks at a factory which claims to have empowered its workforce and achieved world class productivity. Oxford Automotives Components, part of the Unipart Group, makes fuel tanks for cars. Once upon a time it ran itself like traditional British manufacturers and had traditional… Read more »
The Presentation
32 mins, 1998 You’ve got something to say, a case to argue, and an audience waiting to listen. But how do you make sure you put your points across? The video explores this question through a workshop in which three novice presenters address a critical audience. Robert rambles and mumbles. Sharon uses jargon and doesn’t… Read more »
Into The Fire
27 mins, 1992 The story of Brian and Linda on the perilous path to running their own business. We see them visit the bank and an investor to try to raise the money. We see them acquire their premises and hire their first member of staff. At last they start up – and everything goes… Read more »
Customer Care On Trial
25 mins, 1993 A secret camera explores what happens to a variety of customers in the real world. Includes examples of customers being treated with tact, incompetence and rudeness, both on the phone and face-to-face. NOTE: This is NOT a guide to giving customer care: it shows what happens in the real world and provides… Read more »
Managing The Money
32 mins, 1996 How does a firm plan and monitor its financial performance? This video looks at the experience of Linda and Brian who run a small business. How they first set up their business is told in the film Into The Fire. Now several years after setting up, Linda explains how their financial systems… Read more »
Making The Difference
20 mins, 1992 As more and more businesses become international, so the risk increases of cultural misunderstandings. And it’s not just a question of the language barrier: many other problems can arise. RESULTS V RELATIONSHIPS: In the west people believe in “getting down to business”; elsewhere it’s more important to first establish a relationship. TIME:… Read more »
Where Does All The Money Go?
33 mins, 1996 Money is the life-blood of a business. We look at how it works in one company – Avalon Travel, a holiday tour operator. We explore where the business got its initial start-up finance and describe the indirect and direct costs which it has to meet in order to stay in business. We… Read more »
Business Systems
28 mins, 1998 The video demonstrates how a firm’s information systems work through a lively, dramatised case study, set in the backstabbing world of the Comtex copier company. Systems examined include invoicing, email and customer database. Comtex boss Tony Spence wants “push-button” efficiency, but things don’t go to plan.
Direct Marketing & The Database
23 mins, 1995 The technology has changed but the principles of direct marketing are the same as 20 years ago. How do you maximise your spend on leaflets, postage and database management? What are the key success factors in direct marketing? This classic case study looks at how educational film makers TV Choice developed their… Read more »
Staying There
23 mins, 1991 Setting up a company is one thing – but how do you ensure it survives in the long term? Rose Toys, once a highly successful manufacturer of model trains, is in crisis. Sales of its traditional products are falling. Harold Rose, its founder, is on the verge of retirement, but is reluctant… Read more »