Great creative leaders make everyone around them better. Bad ones make everyone bitter.
Not sure where Steve Conner falls in the equation. But he just joined the list of ex-creative honchos at Burrell Communications in Chicago.
The prominent Black advertising agency has been spinning a revolving door of Chief Creative Officers and Creative Directors in recent years.
Conner arrived in 2004 when iconic founder Tom Burrell decided to retire from the daily grind. Critics questioned Conner’s ability to handle the task from jump. His background included stints at New York shops. But he had never overseen a large staff with major brands like McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and Procter & Gamble. In fact, Conner is best known as a commercial director who also ran a creative boutique with obscure clients.
Along with co-CEOs McGhee Williams-Osse and Fay Ferguson, Conner sought to take the agency to the next level. The initial hype promised going beyond the Black Consumer Market to Mass Market Nirvana. But in the end, it seems that the only way to stay in the black is to stay in the Black.
It’s not the first time Burrell attempted to reach further than its core competency. Prior to Conner, the agency picked Mike Faems to run the creative department. Faems had spent the majority of his career co-leading the Chicago office of Y&R. What made Faems unique among the Burrell leaders? For starters, he’s White.
The hope was that he could help the company acquire the elusive mass market accounts. Insiders claim Faems not only failed to comprehend the Black-focused clients, but he appeared to be clueless on the White cultural tip too.
Bobbi Gassy preceded Faems on the revolutionary chart, boasting roots from South Africa and international creative credentials. The award-winning guru lasted barely one year.
Gassy’s predecessor was Alma Hopkins, a Burrell veteran of over 20 years. Like the men who followed her, Hopkins proved incapable of turning the agency into a premier creative powerhouse.
The confederacy of blunderers each brought clumsy rethinking, restarting and restructuring. A slew of creative directors, copywriters and art directors were hired, fired and retired. And a creative department was ultimately left dazed, decimated and demoralized.
Ad veteran Lewis Williams is slated to succeed Conner. Williams is a respected innovator who toiled at Burrell in the 1980s, eventually leaving for an extended tour of duty at Leo Burnett. He now returns to face the never-ending challenge of moving Burrell forward. Or in any positive direction, for that matter.
Let’s see if Williams manages to make everyone better.
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(Special thanks to the Chicago Mob for contributing to this essay.)
5 comments:
Sorry to upset you, ev.
But to clarify, mob figures are inside. And despite the dubious accolades, Conner is best known as a commercial director who also ran a creative boutique with obscure clients. Reinventing Dark & Lovely? Sorry, but that’s a dubious and obscure achievement in our segregated ad world. Plus, few published stories credit Conner with the Budweiser work. Director Stone is usually named as the true originator.
Never said the man wasn’t loved. But insiders and outsiders included plenty of lovers and haters. Like it or not, the haters won out in the end. Although the haters probably include folks who should have long ago been ousted from the agency — if not the business entirely.
I could drop some research to paint a different portrait. But what’s the point?
All the best, steve. I mean, ev.
this is amazing that such a dishonorable thing has occured Steve is and was the BOMB at BCG the problem is the management team do not know how the except responsibility for there mistakes and they listen to hearsay, other than finding the truth for themselves. Poor management point blank...I worked there when Steve was hired and I was let go right before Steve and believe me his vision was above and beyond excellent, he was hand picked by Tom Burrell so go figure !
I am a bit angry by how Steve is being labeled...he is a winner and he has major talent...team Burrell has a reputation as being sharks when it comes to there turnover ratio...they hire based on talent and awards, but then they fire you based on envy, insecurity and jealousy...I bet a billion dollars that in the last 2 1/2 years that if there HR files were opened on the people they let go...you will not be able to find any employee issues, they are lucky that they are an At-Will-Employer, because they would be Bankrupt paying out wrongful termination lawsuits if they were held to the META Policy and had to provide a Just Cause for termination...lol, they probably would be the EEOC top offender in violation of employees rights in the work place.
The man is talent. Real talent in a world of posers. You won't hear him bragging about his Gold Lion, just how to make a positive impact on this planet, and take big brands along for the ride. Watch, he'll make us all proud of the industry we're in. I would work with him again in a moment.
All of us creatives should spend more time cheering each other on than nipping at each others heels. Let's create, build, inspire and teach others to do the same.
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