Socio-economic documentaries: going global on DVD

A great many researchers have already studied the corporate world in situ, but in general, the resulting reports or scientific articles have been too indigestible to create any real interest in the world of business and entrepreneurship. « It’s true that I’ve always thought it a great pity that our studies only result in academic literature that does not always give a faithful account of what we really saw in the workplace », says Bernard Ganne, sociologist and director of research at CNRS (the national research centre) in Lyon. To remedy this, Professor Ganne hit on the idea of using video! Armed with a camera, he chose documentary form to explain the results of his research. In collaboration with his colleague Jean-Paul Pénard, Bernard Ganne has already made 7 films on corporate development and globalisation.

« The camera gives us greater access to the workplace and allows us to work in more depth. Images have the advantage of taking people by the hand and leading them into the company. They can see and understand what is happening. It is an apprenticeship in decoding situations, which is what sociology is all about ». An easier method of study? Better research thanks to a more thorough investigation of the subject? Professor Ganne and Jean-Paul Pénard’s educational VHS and DVD sets are, in any case, tools for analysis and discussion that are perfectly adapted to professionals. They are intended for companies that would like to go global since they give concrete examples of the development of certain SMEs over what is sometimes a very long and crucial period of their existence.

The route to globalisation
Bernard Ganne’s first study began in 1986 and ended in 2001. Three films were made during this period retracing the development of the family business of Canson and Montgolfier (in Annonay, France), a company that is now part of the Arjo Wiggins Group. « I began studying Canson, the paper producer, at a time when it was losing a significant proportion of its market share. I then saw how the recruitment of a new management team made the company more flexible by introducing a participatory style of management » says Ganne. The research team then brought out a first film on the subject of flexibility entitled, « Rumeur d’atelier : vous avez dit flexible ? », that won a prize at the Cinéma du réal Festival in 1993. A second film, « Appartenance (Belonging) » came out in 1996, relating the transformations Canson underwent from 1950 to 1990, using sequences filmed from 1986 onwards. In 1997, Canson, now a flexible entity, set up a branch in China. A good enough excuse for Bernard Ganne and his film director to leave, camera at the ready, to seek out the company in Asia. This became the subject of a third documentary, « Annonay-Qingdao: chronique d’une globalisation », which came out in 2001 and concluded the Canson saga (available from Autres Regards).

From 2000 to 2003, Bernard Ganne’s participation in a European program on SMEs and globalisation resulted in the release last March, of a DVD entitled « Aller à l’international : chemins de PME européennes ». Made up of three films, the documentary launched the collection on globalisation, « Entreprise dans la mondialisation » distributed by Banlieues Media (www.banlieues-media.com). « In this DVD, we took three examples of an SME, from three different countries, one German, one French, and one Italian. We thought the question of nationality would be very important and show major differences in their approach to globalisation, but in fact, despite being from three very different business sectors, they had many points in common. Firstly, and this is an important ground rule when going global, they are all highly innovative and positioned in specialist markets. Secondly, they have a pragmatic approach to development and adapted their company to achieve their ends. Finally, and this is a characteristic of SMEs, they were a mixture of project and pragmatism. They knew where they wanted to go, but not which path to take. They identified the route as they went along and then adapted to it. I think this is a key lesson in globalisation. To go global, a company must seize opportunities. It must have a project and know how to cope with uncertainty in order to carve out a path for itself because there is no pre-defined method for success. »

The highlighting of difficulties western companies may encounter when launching themselves onto the international stage, and in particular onto Asian markets, has become a recurring theme in the films of Bernard Ganne and Jean-Paul Pénard. « What interests me above all is to see how SMEs react, because they are very different organisations to the big groups. Moreover, I would like to know what the effects of globalisation have been on the way these small companies are organised in France. And then I would like to learn more about the Chinese players themselves ». The next documentaries by Professor Ganne should provide the answers. Scheduled for the summer of 2006, « Clic et déclic : s’implanter en Chine et au Japon » will tell the story of the arrival in Asia of a French subcontractor in the automobile industry with 1,500 employees. Lastly, in the autumn of 2006, two films featuring a veterinary company in Asia « Tribulation d’une entreprise en Chine » and « S’accorder au Japon » (working titles - Ed.) are due to be released.