(Fab) four management insights from the Beatles

• Main Author: Aure, Patrick Adriel H.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2020
• Subjects: Beatles; Rock musicians—Great Britain; Management; Disruptive technologies; Music Business
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/9184
• Institution: De La Salle University

One of the life's best pleasures is discovering The Beatles for the first time. The sheer volume of hits and hidden gems of the original Fab Four's discography will delight casual listeners and music aficionados for many hours. As a music fan, I marvel at the quality of the songs they were able to produce in less than a decade. Imagine, for some artists having one memorable hit is already a dream. But for The Beatles, they have done it at least ten times over! As a management scholar, what is most fascinating to me is the dynamics of John, Paul, George, and Ringo as a band of creatives and performers. Various Beatles writers have documented how there are many challenges in the band's journey together. There were times when certain band members would leave the band temporarily amid high tensions. But there were also times of being able to capture lightnings in bottles through songs with mass appeal or even experimental pieces that paved the way for other bands and genres to explore. We could really say that The Beatles is a great example of what disruptive innovation and music industry dominance mean. Thus, inspired by their story, I share four insights I uncovered from listening to their records, reading their biographies, and watching their documentaries.