From 1957 to 1960, The Beatles appeared to have a
hierarchy structure, led by John Lennon. Lennon finalized
many decision making issues such as new outfits for the
band, who was able to participate in the band, and even
what the band would be named. For example, Lennon quickly
realized over the years that by working together, and
sharing with one another as a group, their band would be
at its best. Thus, transformation of a collaboration cycle
or group dynamics began. The Beatles clearly demonstrated
team work and group cohesion by presenting strong ties
they develop over many years. This also included Brian
Epstein (dutiful manager) and George Martin (trailblazing
producer) (www.danpontefract.com). The group clearly
showed consistent feedback and ideas as well as motivating
one another. For example, in the September issue of
“Innovation in Practice” it is stated, “One would sketch
an idea or a song fragment and take it to the other to
finish or improve; in some cases, two incomplete songs or
song ideas that each had and worked on individually would
be combined into a complete song.” Each individual member
of The Beatles knew their role in the group. Their
interactions, structured relations, and interdependent
relationships led The Beatles to become the greatest band
of all-time. Paul McCartney states, “We would say, ‘Try
it. Just try it for us. If it sounds crappy, OK, we’ll
lose it. But it might just sound good” (Innovations In
Practice). Overall, The Beatles deviated from the one man
band to become much more inspiring, collaborative,and
goal oriented. This was a result of relying on one
another, openness, and authenticity, which helped them to
produce creative and ground-breaking music.

Some may say The Beatles were creative individuals and
others may state that they were pure geniuses.
Consequently, The Beatles simply practiced team innovation
by using problem-to- solution and solution-to-problem
methodology known as two-way innovation. This means as a
group, they observed the problem, then created a solution.
For instance, The Beatles played in Liverpool for an hour
session but needed to get better venues. They proactively
cooperated to brainstorm, write, and produce songs, which
brought the group to new creative heights. “We got better
and more confident. In Liverpool we only ever did one hour
sessions and we only did our best numbers- the same ones,
over and over. In Hamburg we had to play for eight hours
so, we really had to find a new way of playing” (Tamer
Kattan, Smarter Harder). The group also envisioned
hypothetical solutions connected to worthy problems.
“Often one of the pair would add a middle eight or bridge
section to the other’s verse and chorus. Lennon called it
‘Writing eyeball-to-eyeball’ and ‘Playing into each
other’s noses’” (Innovation In Practice). The structured
methods, experimentation, and technology that were
improvised exemplified their ability to capitalize on hit
songs. John Lennon and Paul McCartney played seven years
together before making it to America as British icons.
Within those seven years, The Beatles played almost
continuously every night perfecting their performances.
“They played like this 7 nights a week! And as they got
better the 12:30 closing time was extended till 2 most
mornings – I gotta say this again, 7 days a week! 8 hours
a night” (Tamer Kattan, Smarter Harder). This expansion
led the group to reinventing themselves and adapting new
ways for a brighter future. “The Beatles they went to
Hamburg five times in less than two years. By the time the
Beatles actually did end up on American television, they
had performed live an estimated 1200 times” (Tamer Kattan,
Smarter Harder). Although the Beatles shared the same
music, they worked well composing creative songs by using
improvisation. They shared a great friendship but most
importantly “simply tried harder than any band before
them” (Tamer Kattan, Smarter Harder) and therefore, team
building was their ‘ticket to ride’(Danpontefract.com).

As is the case with any group, internal competition may
present itself unknowingly. The members of The Beatles had
a complex and dynamic structure. It may seem as though in
the early stages of the band, the group formed a positive
and cohesive unit. Each individual member brought their
unique personality to the group and thus created a
pleasant group dynamic. For example, Lennon and McCartney
were great songwriting duos. They encouraged one another
to write better songs and to take risks when needed, in
order to expand their creativity. This developed a
standard within the group and each member showcased their
talent and skills, leading to a creative output. “If
internal competition only is at work, then the sharing is
based on talent. The leader(s) of the band will usually
write more songs than those who are less talented. But the
sharing may also result from an agreement in order to
ensure that all members exert effort, even if some did not
compose. Usually, the sharing will be a combination of
both...” ( Ceulemans, Cedric, Nov. 6, 2009, Commerical
success of rock artists in the U.S.A. The role of internal
competition). Conversely, negative situations occur in
group settings as well. In the Beatles, each member soon
began to strive for their own goals instead of those of
the team. This created mixed motives for the group. For
example, “In 1970, The Beatles natural and ground-breaking
collaborative behaviors had all but disappeared in favor
of becoming individuals in an organization. They were no
longer a unified or cooperative team. They no longer
thought of themselves as equals, they viewed one another
as competitors” (Danpontefract.com). Additionally,
external competition created both positive and negative
reactions. With two infamous icons, Lennon and McCartney,
The Beatles had much favorable competition. “The
competition between the Beatles and Beach Boys was also
extremely important. In the Making of Sergeant Pepper
(1992), Paul McCartney admits that to him, ‘the single best
influence on Sergeant Pepper was the Beach Boys record Pet
Sounds’...” ( Ceulemans, Cedric, Nov. 6, 2009, Commerical
success of rock artists in the U.S.A. The role of internal
competition). When competition occurs not only within a
group but by external sources, members of a group portray
negative feedback. For instance, Greg Clydesdale states,
“One is the controlling aspect in which pressure to
achieve has a negative effect on motivation” (Clydesdale).
With pressures to achieve greatness and constant
competition amongst members within a group, creativity
ebbs and members lose motivation. This clearly shows how
external negative occurrences can affect any group. “The
late stages of The Beatles demonstrate how silos and
operating in a non-collaborative manner can actually
assist in a lower grade product or business results.”

THE BEATLES