Cirque Du Soleil Case

A Geocentric approach to global staffing was followed by Cirque, which was a single international identity and recruited people from all over the world. Creativity & ability were given preference over nationality. The staff at Cirque is culturally diverse and geographically spread out. The management at the top is worried as the situation may become a fragmented organisational structure. The artists at Cirque come from different background like sports, gymnastics, and acrobatics.

To avoid the fragmentation and dissolution of Organisational structure company should come up with the following Human Resource Plan.

• Inter- Cultural Awareness- The company recruits artists from all over the world. A Canadian artist has a completely different culture from Chinese artist. The company should train the employees and give knowledge about cultures of different countries. This will help a Canadian to know what to expect from a Chinese and a Chinese would know what to expect from a Canadian. Cirque should manage cultural diversity to avoid clashes through the development of a cultural awareness programme and provide career development for retiring performance artists to stay within the organisation. Inter- cultural competence should be looked in as a necessary skill in the artist selection.
• Experienced artists- Cirque managers should recruit artists with direct experience i.e. those artists that have been working in touring life as an artists. This will prevent time and money for training the new artists and also this will add value to the shows at cirque.
• Compensation- Artists at tour should be given compensation like after a particular number of shows the company sponsors travel ticket to the artist so that he can meet his family and friends. This will also help to improve the performance of individual artists as the artists when returns would be fresh with his mind and emotionally strong.
• Internal Communication- Internal communication is responsible for effective communication among participants within an organization. The artists at cirque always complain about the communication gap between them and the headquarters. Internal communication would help better understanding of what the artists need from cirque and what cirque need from artists.
• Awards & Promotions- The artists should be awarded on a periodic basis. This will make the artists passionate towards their work and will give them a reason to give their best.
• Different Roles- At Cirque employees were getting bored of doing the same work daily. They wanted to execute different roles in an organisation.
• Behavioural Code of Conduct- Though it was difficult for Cirque to implement behavioural code of conduct as the artists were stressed out during the tour, the company should implement it and make it compulsory for every employee associated with the company to follow.
• Passion- Employees at Cirque should be encouraged to watch shows of the Cirque. This will encourage them for the work they do and will make them proud. This will generate enthusiasm and passion among employees.
• Headquarters Problem- The problem at headquarters was that they were not able to synchronize with the touring group. When the artists used to have a show employee at headquarters used to leave for their homes and there was no proper communication. Artists had a thought that the headquarters is distant from them and there is nobody to listen them.

Introduction

A Cirque show is a unique live performance of traditional circus, opera, and theatre, with lavish costumes, astonishing sets, original music, and high-tech special effects. The result is an almost indescribable freshness and beauty. The company’s commitment to excellence and innovation has made Cirque both the global standard of live entertainment and the place for talented individuals from around the world to perfect their skills. Cirque employs more than 3,500 individuals from 40 different countries. The 700 performers work in the most gruelling and intimate situations, with their lives depending on one another. The astounding performance they achieve on stage result from hours of planning, practice, and painstaking attention to detail among artists from diverse cultures who speak 25 different languages. They are supported by musicians, costume and set designers, engineers, technicians, and stage hands. Cirque du Soleil requires people with a wide variety of skills recruited from a wide variety of backgrounds. The company literally searches the globe for talent. To find performers, Cirque works closely with Olympic coaches and teams to help athletes consider a career with Cirque after their competitive years are over, rather than luring talent away from countries that have made huge investments in athletes. In this way, the company enjoys a huge advantage in the athletic community, a worldwide source of great talent.