16382: Make The Logo Different.

 

With Canva, you can quickly replace logos minutes before the client presentation. Perfect for hackneyed, lazy advertising agencies and consultants repurposing contrived pitch decks.

15822: First Dates, Meet Worst Dates Ever.

 

Advertising Age published a fluffer, er, fluff piece titled, “Win Your Next Pitch By Treating It Like A First Date.”

 

Um, this advice would not work well with certain White advertising agency executives. Certain White advertising agencies, however, have been known to overuse the suggested move. And does the stock photograph illustrating the content (depicted above) imply interracial dating…?

15194: NBA Dribbles And Passes Business To New Media And Advertising Shops.

MediaPost reported the NBA named Mediahub and Cartwright as its new media agency and advertising agency, respectively. In keeping with the recent NBA season, both firms likely “won” the business in shootouts with virtual agencies. And Goodby Silverstein & Partners probably cried foul on the appointments.

 

NBA Taps IPG’s Mediahub, WPP’s Cartwright

 

By Steve McClellan

 

The NBA has appointed Mediahub, part of IPG, as its new media agency. Spark Foundry, part of Publicis Media, did not defend the account.

 

The league spent an estimated $82 million on measured media in the U.S. last year, according to Kantar.

 

Separately the league appointed Cartwright, a new WPP-backed agency to lead creative efforts.

13528: BHM 2017—MSI.

The Museum of Science + Industry in Chicago salutes Black History Month with the Black Creativity Innovation Studio and Black Creativity Juried Art Exhibition. Hey, Blacks have a better chance of becoming scientists and artists versus advertising professionals.

13171: Belated 11th Anniversary.

On March 6th, MultiCultClassics celebrated 11 years of confronting common cultural cluelessness.

12755: Bromley Communications (1981-2015).

Advertising Age reported Ernest Bromley is closing his 34-year-old Latino advertising agency, effectively reducing the dismal diversity figures at Publicis—the White holding company that owns Bromley Communications—by about 40 minorities. Fortunately, the global loss is offset by the roughly 8,000 Indian employees acquired by Publicis in the recent Sapient purchase. Bromley announced he’s shuttering the shop to pursue a PhD in consumer behavior; however, sources believe the scenario is the result of “total market” shiftiness leading to total destruction of minority advertising agencies. There’s probably much truth to the opinions, as Ad Age estimated Bromley Communications’ revenue at under $10 million, despite the fact that its client roster includes General Mills brands such as Cheerios, Fiber One, Yoplait, Totino’s, Pillsbury and Progresso, as well as Western Union, the NBA and Enterprise Car Rental—which clearly shows the true value of crumbs.

Last week, MultiCultClassics noted how a 3.5-year-old White advertising agency received favorable press when announcing plans to cease operations—and its founder was already lining up “consulting” gigs with major clients. Meanwhile, the Bromley piece reads like an obituary for a 34-year-old minority advertising agency that was once the largest Latino shop in the U.S.—and its staffers are lining up at the unemployment office. ¡Ay, caramba!

U.S. Hispanic Market Pioneer Ernest Bromley Is Closing Shop

Publicis-Owned Agency’s General Mills Business Is Likely to Go to Saatchi and McCann’s Hispanic Shops

By Laurel Wentz

U.S. Hispanic ad agency Bromley Communications is closing its doors after 34 years, and Chairman-CEO Ernest Bromley is retiring from the agency business—and planning his next step, a PhD in consumer behavior.

Mr. Bromley said he broke the news to the agency’s 40 employees yesterday, and that clients have been informed and some could move to other Publicis Groupe agencies. (Publicis Groupe increased its stake in Bromley to 100% in 2012).

“My desire to go back to school and get a PhD has been in my head since I got my MBA in 1980,” said Mr. Bromley, who is 64. “I’m not going away. I’ll be very much in the cross-cultural multicultural space, from an academic bully pulpit. Now I can do the research clients won’t pay for. I started in research, and that’s how I want to end my career. I have a unique opportunity to do it now. Unfortunately I had to close the agency.”

Mr. Bromley was one of the early leaders in the U.S. Hispanic market, and a decade ago Bromley Communications was the biggest Hispanic agency. The shop is now No. 22 in the top Hispanic agency ranking in Ad Age’s Hispanic Fact Pack, with estimated revenue of less than $10 million.

Much of the agency’s revenue comes from a long list of General Mills brands, including Cheerios, Fiber One, Yoplait, Pillsbury, Totino’s, Pillsbury and Progresso. Agency execs said many of those brands are likely to go to Casanova Pendrill and Conill, the Hispanic shops for General Mills’ main creative agencies, Interpublic’s McCann Erickson and Publicis Groupe’s Saatchi & Saatchi. One agency exec said that independent shop Grupo Gallegos might also get one of the General Mills brands.

Bromley also handles Western Union, and just broke a campaign for its money transfers to Cuba in a series of TV spots shot in Cuba. It’s unclear where two other accounts, the NBA and car rental company Enterprise Holdings, will land.

Mr. Bromley said that when he broke the news to staffers yesterday “they were surprised a little bit” but that “old-timers” were aware of his long-term plans, although maybe not the timing.

Mr. Bromley came to the U.S. as a young man, after growing up in Mexico City with a Canadian father and a Puerto Rican mother. In 1981, he started one of the early U.S. Hispanic shops, Sosa & Associates, with Lionel Sosa. By 1994, the agency was Sosa, Bromley, Aguilar, Noble & Associates, and was part of the MacManus Group holding company. After several more partners and mergers, it morphed into Bromley Communications in 2000 under the Bcom3 holding company, which was purchased by Publicis Groupe in 2002.

He said the Bromley agency will close sometime between the end of July and late August, depending on how long it takes to wind things up, with a party on Aug. 1 when he’ll invite all Bromley’s alumni to celebrate the company’s legacy.

“It’s not like we’re bankrupt or anything,” he said. “We don’t want to leave any clients in the lurch.”

Mr. Bromley is full of plans, academic and otherwise. An avid cyclist, he’ll compete in the Vuelta Puerto Rico, a 375-mile, three-day bike race that passes through his mother’s hometown in Puerto Rico. And he’ll take his 95-year-old father fishing, another of his interests, along with wine collecting. He and his wife are also caring for her parents.

“I just had to do something for me, and for my family,” he said. “I’ve lived on an airplane for 34 years.”

He expects to start his PhD coursework next year followed by a dissertation, and is planning to narrow his choices down to a few top schools and go visit them to discuss admission.

“I’m used to pitching things,” he said.

12650: Hall Of Famer Spike Lee.

From Advertising Age…

Spike Lee on Clients, the Knicks and the Need for Change in Adland

Writer and Director Inducted into Advertising Hall of Fame

By Rance Crain

Let me set the stage: Spike Lee showed up for our interview dressed for the pages of GQ—rainbow-colored shoes, a grey coat with bright tie and white shirt, leopard-spotted glasses and a beret. If his vibe sent a signal of accessibility, it would be strictly on his own terms, I soon found out.

My interview got off to a less than auspicious start. “That’s not a current quote,” he said when I asked him about his observation that advertisers have to slip in the message because consumers don’t want ads to dictate to them.

His current thinking is “people seem to be conducive to branded content, long-form instead of the same old 30-second spots. And a lot of these branded pieces, you don’t even know who the company is until the credit comes at the end. I’ve done several of these for Chevrolet and Cadillac.”

But whether short-form or long-form, Spike—who was just inducted into American Advertising Federation’s Hall of Fame—said too many advertisers convince themselves they can reach black consumers with general advertising because they don’t know “the code.”

The code, he said, is about cultural references. “You have to live it, you have to be part of it, and not just say that you have a very famous African-American friend. That’s faking the funk to me.”

So what needs to be done to push change? “Well, it’s going to have to take people who get it, people who don’t want to stay stuck in the ‘Ozzie and Harriet’ world, that world is gone. … As they say in Brooklyn, ‘dun,’ d-u-n.”

DDB gets it. Otherwise it wouldn’t have made the deal to start Spike-DDB, Spike said. “But … as a whole, the advertising agencies have not gotten it.”

The creator of the iconic Mars Blackmon TV spots for Nike said the only world that gets it is sports, “because the bottom line is, you can play or you can’t play.”

I couldn’t resist—“Like the Knicks can’t play?”

“We’re not talking about that now,” he replied.

“I mean there are black and brown people who are presidents of NBA, and baseball, and other pro sports organizations, GMs, scouts, coaches,” he said. “It’s not perfect but ... they put Hollywood to shame, they put television to shame, and they put the advertising world to shame.”

He said Phil Knight was discouraged by many from using Michael Jordan as the face of Nike because it would deter white consumers from buying Nike products.

Wouldn’t you think people would learn a lesson from that, I asked, to which he replied: “You need to be asking the people who are the heads of agencies that question, not me.”

I pointed out that we have asked them, and they always say they’re trying. “You know that line is so tired. That’s from the 1960s,” Spike said, adding a two-word verdict on agency claims they can’t find enough black and Hispanic talent: “It’s bullshit.”

Spike is currently working on a movie called “Chiraq,” which contrasts the war zones in Iraq and Chicago. Mayor Rahm Emanuel, among others, is not thrilled with the title.

“Not talking about that,” he said.

How come?

“Because I don’t want to.”

Why?

“I don’t talk about stuff until it happens. It’s a jinx, bad luck, bad karma.”

I pressed on. I’m just trying to get a story here, I said.

“No, I understand. That is absolutely your job, and it is also my job not to answer questions I’m not going to answer.” b I changed the subject. What does Spike think of viral media?

“Now that’s a good question,” he said.

“I would say that social media has changed the whole world, and not just advertising. I mean, it gives anybody access to as many people as they can get themselves in front of. And I want to take this opportunity to thank my daughter and son who prodded me into the modern world with social media. My children where the ones who said, ‘Daddy, you need to have Facebook. You need to be on Instagram. And thank God they did that because I’m able to reach people that I would not have been able to reach.”

He said he has 800,000 followers on Twitter and 100,000 on Instagram. “It’s good to engage with the people who support you. I don’t read Twitter that much because Twitter can be a very hateful place.”

Spike said social media has expanded his audience to the point where he now has an e-commerce store, Spike’s Joint. And he uses social media to promote his appearances so he doesn’t have to pay for publicity.

I asked him what he was proudest of. “I’m going to answer that, sir, like a parent. I’m proud of everything I’ve done, you know? Some were more successful than others, but there’s nothing I’ve done that I’m gonna hide my head, anything like that. You’ve got to be proud of what you do whether people like it or not, you know, stand behind your work.”

Once in a while, clients can get in the way. “I don’t mind clients having input, I just wish that they would know what they’re talking about. I would say 90% of the people I’ve worked with are great, but that 10%, they’re just displaying their ignorance about camera or lighting or whatever it is and they just let it be a big show of force for position.”

Spike wouldn’t name any of the lousy clients, but he cited Nike, Pepsi, Chevy, Cadillac, Major League Baseball, NFL and the New York Knicks as among the best.

I asked him if the Knicks dismal performance this season made them a hopeless case. “No, there’s always hope,” Spike Lee said. “Do Cubs fans have hope? They haven’t won since 1908. They still have hope. Wrigley Field continues to sell out because fans believe “this is gonna be the year. That’s hope.”

Then I asked what the Knicks needed to do to improve next year. “You’ve got to ask Phil Jackson. He’s the president. I don’t have a say.”

Well, you should, I said.

“There should be peace on Earth, too,” he responded.

12647: UK Adland Homophobic?

Campaign asked, “Is the UK’s ad industry homophobic?” Gee, does the exclusivity escalate to sexclusivity?

Is the UK’s ad industry homophobic?

Adland gets regular flak for lacking sufficient ethnic diversity in its workforce and giving women a raw deal. But Dave Buonaguidi’s claim that it is also institutionally homophobic is new to the charge sheet. It is, after all, 17 years since Ogilvy & Mather and Unilever debuted a commercial for Impulse body spray that was the first to feature an overtly gay couple.

Today, major brands including McDonald’s and Coca-Cola direct campaigns towards the 3.7 million gay people in Britain who are worth between £70 billion and £80 billion to the economy. Moreover, the sight of Sal Romano, the closet gay art director in Mad Men, getting caught in a compromising situation with a bellboy doesn’t shock anybody as it would have done in the 60s.

But, according to Buonaguidi, Karmarama’s former creative chief, homophobia lives on in a lot of agencies where attitudes have not changed since the days of Mad Men. Is he right? Or has the industry lost what Scott Knox, the gay Marketing Agencies Association managing director, remembers as the “boys’ club mentality” that led to him being made to feel inferior during his agency days?

Agency chief

Damon Collins, founder, Joint

“The aggressively macho behaviour within our industry in the Thatcherite 80s dissipated at the dawn of the 90s with the arrival of the ‘new man’. That trend has continued and adland has turned into a much more tolerant place in recent years. Maybe Buonaguidi was setting out to be deliberately provocative. In my entire career, I’ve never worked in a place where gay people have had the piss taken out of them. Agencies want to hire the most talented staff irrespective of their sexual orientation. And the more diversity we have in agencies, the better we will be at engaging with a very broad range of people.”

Trade body

Karen Fraser, strategy director, Advertising Association

“I don’t know why Buonaguidi would make such a claim. It certainly doesn’t seem as though homophobia is an issue within the industry. The problem is that we don’t have the data. And that data would be hard to get. In Advertising Association surveys that have asked the public about representation in ads, we’ve found that LGBT issues are the most difficult for people to talk about. We as an industry find it difficult too. What’s more, the IPA census questionnaire doesn’t ask about sexual orientation. Nevertheless, it would be useful to know how reflective agencies are of the population as a whole.”

Agency chief

Sarah Todd, chief executive, Geometry Global UK

“As an industry, we’re not perfect in terms of diversity, but I was very surprised to hear us described as ‘institutionally’ homophobic. The fact is that we want the best talent to reach all the markets we need to talk to. And while we can’t ask people to disclose private information about their sexual orientation, we do need more role models to make sure people feel safe and secure. Changing the way we recruit could help. The system should be less interview-based and with more emphasis on psychometric testing and getting the right cultural fit. That we’re still talking about this issue means there’s still work to do.”

Agency activist

Andrew Barratt, founder, Ogilvy Pride UK; account executive, Ogilvy Public Relations

“Diversity has always been part of Ogilvy’s DNA. ‘In recruitment and promotion, we are fanatical in our hatred for all forms of prejudice,’ David Ogilvy said in 1968. Last year, we set up Ogilvy Pride, our LGBT and straight ally network. The introduction of the Glass Lion this year at Cannes, which recognises communications that address issues of inequality and prejudice, is further evidence of adland making progress in this area. That said, there is still work to be done. We need more senior role models to come out and for agencies to foster environments where people can be their authentic selves.”

12378: How Digital Impacts Ad Creativity.

Marketing Magazine published a perspective by fashion and textile designer Zandra Rhodes, where the author/artist questioned the ways that digital has adversely impacted creativity. The following excerpt warrants consideration and conversation:

Fashion is ever-changing. Ideas come from all different directions. But in the world of printed textiles, the computer age has transformed the speed both of creating the design and bringing the textile to its printed form.

Development time may have been halved, but the new digital designs are more obvious and they lack repeat ingenuity. As a result, students entering the world of textiles today, in my opinion, still have much to learn in the field of printed textiles.

I think the computer and the digital revolution has damaged creativity and drawing in textiles. It is too easy to lift photographs. It is too easy to mirror images to create repeats.

As a result, motifs today are merely repetitive. It is impossible to foresee in which direction creativity will head because the whole world is in a state of flux.

Gee, replace “fashion” and “textiles” with “advertising” and the statements still hold true. Indeed, regarding the advertising industry, digital has actually adversely impacted creativity on at least two fronts.

First, traditional advertising agencies have accelerated the creative process, abandoning craft for quicker delivery. Coupled with the commoditization of the industry fueled by holding companies—which in turn leads to a sea of generic shops—there is little difference between the offerings of A-level agencies and C-level agencies. Hell, traditional advertising agencies are even losing competitions against media agencies and below-the-line enterprises.

Second, digital agencies have entered the fray. What these firms lack in creativity—and they really lack creativity—they make up for with speed and digital savvy. In a standard pitch, the slower and digitally dumb traditional advertising agencies are now on par with digital agencies. Or more accurately, the work generated by traditional ad shops and digital shops is often equally mediocre.

Rhodes wrapped up by saying, “One thing is certain, the youth of the future will have new ideas of beauty that will not be the same as ours.” For the advertising industry, the new ideas of beauty will actually be measured in lowered expectations and satisfaction with uninspired shit.

Digital revolution has damaged creativity, says Zandra Rhodes

By Zandra Rhodes

Zandra Rhodes, the pioneering fashion and textile designer, believes computers and the digital revolution has “damaged creativity”, and uses other methods to find inspiration and stay at the cutting edge.

I am inspired by what I see around me, especially when I am lucky enough to travel and escape my regular environment. I find my daily surroundings, with the humdrum of everyday tasks, can hold me back and divert me away from design.

But when I travel and nobody can get hold of me, I feel I am free to allow my mind to wander and follow new paths.

With a high-profile career it is particularly important to find a means to hide away and be creative, to be in a space where my mind can be calm and unbothered, away from pressure.

I love to stroll around museums, pausing to draw in my sketchbook. When accompanied by my close friend, the artist and sculptor Andrew Logan, we stop together and he paints his watercolours as I sketch. To me, the things I see and capture in my sketchbook have a deeper meaning than a simple photo.

I then take photographs of my sketches, blow them up and put them on the walls in my studio. I live with them, and I find the creative inspiration hidden in them gradually comes out.

To me, it is very difficult to develop a creative idea. It takes time and it takes hiding away.

I experiment with shapes, making toiles to see how a new, unfinished textile print will perform and whether it will be effective.

My experience in set design and costume for the opera has widened my vision and enabled me to see clearly how a print can create a dramatic statement, with little alteration. Through time, it isn’t creativity that changes and shifts, but the way things are looked at.

Evolution of trends

Fashion is ever-changing. Ideas come from all different directions. But in the world of printed textiles, the computer age has transformed the speed both of creating the design and bringing the textile to its printed form.

Development time may have been halved, but the new digital designs are more obvious and they lack repeat ingenuity. As a result, students entering the world of textiles today, in my opinion, still have much to learn in the field of printed textiles.

I think the computer and the digital revolution has damaged creativity and drawing in textiles. It is too easy to lift photographs. It is too easy to mirror images to create repeats.

As a result, motifs today are merely repetitive. It is impossible to foresee in which direction creativity will head because the whole world is in a state of flux.

The language of creativity

Will hand-drawing disappear? Will it be more valued? Will these skills continue into the future or will they become a rare art form? Computers mean that there are now two languages. The one we create with our hands, and language that evolves from the computer.

Technology produces a different kind of art, and fashion drawings will become two different things — from those who can draw and those who create strange, computerised images.

Creativity will evolve on two levels — artistic and “space age”. In the US, the language we create with our hands is already being heavily eroded as computers become a way of life.

Students do not have the same co-ordination between the hand and brain. So in the future, it will be a different kind of art.

My revolution initially was in large printed textiles being and forming the finished shape of the whole garment.

But in future, creative influences will come from the East — from China and the areas that surround her, just as when Japan opened up in the early 70s, inspiring the Issey Miyake shape and pleating revolution.

One thing is certain, the youth of the future will have new ideas of beauty that will not be the same as ours.

12298: Check Your IQ—Invisible Quiz.

Artist/Writer/Recovering Adman Lowell Thompson has a new post at his Mad Invisible Men & Women blog: Mad Invisible Quiz. Test your cultural competency of the advertising industry today.

12036: Delayed WTF 29—Lévy’s Lunacy.

MultiCultClassics is often occupied with real work. As a result, a handful of events occur without the expected blog commentary. This limited series—Delayed WTF—seeks to make belated amends for the absence of malice.

The news that Publicis acquired digital agency Nurun for $125 million inspired a quick examination of an interview with Publicis CEO Maurice Lévy that Campaign published in July.

Still smarting from the proposed marriage gone awry with Omnicom, Lévy remarked, “I have some good memories and some bad memories, and I’m moving ahead now and building the future. We are all moving into the future. We are fierce competitors. Everyone wants to kill the other one. We will do our best to win market share and develop something new, strong, different.”

There are a few red flags flapping in lovelorn Lévy’s words. For roughly a year, Lévy and Omnicom CEO John Wren boasted that Publicis Omnicom Groupe would represent a totally fresh enterprise designed to compete with entities such as Google versus other advertising holding companies. Additionally, despite failing to consummate the relationship, Lévy continues to express a desire to “develop something new, strong, different.” After a monumental break-up, it’s usually a good idea to reflect and regroup—and avoid making any major decisions too quickly. Yet upon aborting the engagement, Lévy is acting like a stereotypical spurned fiancé. That is, he goes right out and proceeds to hook up with the same types of partners he was bedding before falling in love with Wren. It’s as if Lévy is regressing through a series of rebound girlfriends. There’s absolutely nothing new, strong or different about what he’s doing. It’s all just desperate and pathetic.

The Campaign interview added, “Lévy is looking for a ‘diplomatic’ solution for Publicis’ future—he has asked all the chief executives and their teams to come up with ideas for ‘how the future should be’.” Now he wants to be the benevolent diplomat? After initially playing dictator, informing his troops that he and Wren were merging, Lévy suddenly wants everyone to gaze into their personal Magic 8-Ball® and tell him how things should be? As if any of the CEOs might actually have a clue for the future.

Lévy also proclaimed, “We have today the largest digital penetration of any agency in the world and we will be even more digital in the future. We will be much more an Internet company than an advertising group. That’s clear. The way we will be organising our agencies and the investment we will be making is not something that we have discussed, and it will not necessarily lead to any change in our organisation. It may, but it may also not.” Huh? That sounds like a spurned fiancé who’s spent too much time drowning his sorrows at the local tavern. Wonder how the Publicis advertising agencies—who have always enjoyed the greatest power and authority in the network—feel about the notion of becoming “much more an Internet company than an advertising group.”

Regarding the Nurun purchase, Lévy gushed, “The acquisition of Nurun is another step forward in strengthening our world-class digital operations. Nurun’s expertise, based on a combination of design and new technologies, will not only bring widely-recognized talent and capabilities to our clients, but also strengthen Publicis Groupe’s digital global presence.” Um, has anyone scanned the Nurun website lately? Check out a case study too. The place is as far away from an advertising agency as possible, and it’s not even similar to the shitty digital agencies Publicis brags about (e.g., Razorfish or Digitas). Herein lies an inherent problem with the buying binges that Lévy and his fellow holding company CEOs have conducted over the years. There is simply no evidence of smooth merging and collaboration between companies within the networks. Indeed, digital remains a “below-the-line” discipline across the board. Advertising agencies and digital agencies operate from different business models—and the two are rarely teaming up in a unified fashion. Need proof? Review Team Sprint or compare the Cheerios work done by Saatchi versus the dreck from Digitas. The grand concept of integration is a damned delusion.

There is a Japanese proverb that states, “Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare.” Lévy is a jilted dinosaur doing too much daydreaming and executing too many nightmarish deals.

11981: Collaboration Vs. Committeeism.

“I’ve searched all the parks in all the cities and found no statues of committees.”

The line above has been attributed to Gilbert K. Chesterton; plus, variations of the phrase have been tied to David Ogilvy, among others. Regardless of the originator, the notion is worth examining, especially in today’s advertising and marketing arena.

The rise of digital has ignited use of the word collaboration, usually mouthed by annoying assholes seeking to inspire or mandate team unity. Yet in most instances, what’s called collaboration is really nothing more than committeeism—an increasingly familiar phenomenon in hackneyed enterprises.

True collaboration happens when teammates use their individual skills and expertise to collectively achieve a common goal. Supporting, sharing and supplementing are present throughout the endeavor. Boundaries may be crossed, but trespassing is done with recognition and respect for roles. Everyone ultimately helps each other perform better.

True committeeism happens when teammates are ignorant to the basic concept of teamwork. Even if individual skills and expertise exist, the players fail to collectively achieve a common goal—and the goal is often not clearly defined from jump. Stumbling, stutter steps, spinning directions and secret agendas poison the endeavor. Boundaries are erased as everyone seeks to handle the same responsibilities, whether qualified or not. There are too many cooks—and bad ones at that—in the kitchen. Multiple egos want to assume leadership, and each person ultimately contributes to the chaos.

Authentic collaborators rarely use the term collaboration—they just do it. Committee drones insert collaboration into every other sentence.

Collaboration creates breakthroughs. Committeeism creates bullshit.

11846: Ad Shops Are Sweatshops.

From Campaign…

Under pressure

Agencies must do more to eliminate sweatshop conditions. It is now a matter of life and death, Simon Labbett writes.

I was recently introduced to this bizarre game called Karoshi in which the goal is to die at work. It has several iterations, including the rather disturbing Karoshi Suicide Salaryman. What does Karoshi mean? In Japan, it is the corporate equivalent of hara-kiri. Death by overwork.

It was just before Christmas when we heard of the tragic death of the young copywriter Mita Diran in Indonesia, allegedly due to a combination of overwork and excessive consumption of energy drinks. Her father posted this heart-rending account: “She collap-sed after continuous working overtime, for three days, last night. Working over the limit. I have not slept since.”

I can also recall the loss of an account director many years ago, a young lad who took his own life. What makes it all the more tragic is how utterly avoidable it was.

At the time of these deaths, a real sense of purpose ensued within agencies – a sense that well-being could somehow play a key part in how agencies are structured. Yet nothing has changed since.

We all understand that such is the dedication to secure, and sustain, a job in advertising that graduates will go to great lengths to prove themselves — a behaviour that is all too often exploited by agencies. Add to this the complex, dynamic and ever-changing business that we work in, where we are all setting ourselves elaborate and ambitious goals.

These tragic tales reveal the inadequate framework that the creative industry has built, where we are yet to develop the well-being of our businesses. In a people-led creative environment, why are we failing ourselves? Are we still handing out the T-shirts that Steve Jobs once distributed, with the slogan “Working 90 hours a week, and proud of it”? I hope not, because work should not result in a shattered spine or a broken spirit.

Industry research last year revealed that 70 per cent of marcoms agency employees believe work affects their health and that agency bosses must do more to safeguard the well-being of their staff. Nabs has helped implement a range of services designed to tackle the issue of stress in our industry — focused around building resilience to anxiety, stress and the everyday pressures of work and life.

To change our attitude would require more than re-labelling good management practice. And it is not enough to insist that employees not work on weekends — except for Sundays (and maybe some Saturdays). This is precisely what a memo from Goldman Sachs said last year, weeks after the report of the death of a Merrill Lynch intern from an epileptic fit in his shower after he reportedly pulled three all-nighters at the bank.

There are many in our industry calling for change. Ben Bilboul, the group chief ex¬ecutive of Karmarama, says: “We need to develop a better system of pastoral care and not just look at HR as a way of getting staff out the door as quickly and efficiently as possible.

“Another way of looking at this is to think: what would it take to turn this into an industry that people in their thirties, forties and, God forbid, fifties would want to remain in? There’s a clear value to clients in having more ex¬perienced heads around the table, but very little to keep the best talent retained if we can only promise lost weekends, cancelled holidays and a 24/7 e-mail culture.”

The IPA director-general, Paul Bainsfair, says: “Somebody once said ‘more is worse’ and I think that’s a pretty good thought to hang on to. My own view is that there’s nothing wrong with working ridiculous hours once in a while; in fact, it can be exciting and rewarding. But there’s everything wrong with doing it all the time.”

Nils Leonard, the executive creative director at Grey, believes “energy” is the biggest commodity in this industry and it needs to be nurtured. “It has taken me this many years to work out that my real job is the creation and fostering of energy before ideas, and that those who have energy can conquer any task,” he says. “To those lucky enough to foster the energy of others, I say stay vigilant. Fight for what they won’t — that same light that shines in their eyes when they’re cracking a brief can’t shine that bright forever.”

The well-being of our employees means encouraging a culture that fosters a positive working environment with a sense of purpose and fulfilment to help nurture the next generation of talent. We need the entire food chain in our industry to support this change. Nobody would want their child to be au fait with the Karoshi concept (or the games). And if there is one industry that could take the initiative to guide the rest of the corporate world on how to create happy souls at work, it is the advertising industry. It is not a difficult brief to work on.

Simon Labbett is the founder and creative director of Hometown

11771: BHM 2014—Advertising Age.

The advertising industry seemed to ignore Black History Month this year. As evidence, check out the search results for “Black History Month 2014” at AdAge.com.

11624: Dearth Of Dames Abroad.

Campaign asked, “Why are there so few female creatives?” Advertising agencies in the U.K. have a dearth of dames too? Imagine that. Then again, the trade journal managed to find a handful of White women to weigh in on the topic. Which means on the ad industry corporate totem pole, White women are only a head below White men—and waaaaay above minorities.

11605: Chief Creative Officers Club.

Campaign published an article that sought to define chief creative officers. Based on the spotlighted executives, the definition can be summed up in two words: White Men.

11556: The Crazy Ones Is Shameful.

Didn’t catch the latest episode of CBS series The Crazy Ones, but viewing the online preview video showed enough to confirm the miss was no loss.

Although it took a few seasons, AMC series Mad Men at least attempts to accurately depict the industry. In contrast, The Crazy Ones is to advertising agencies what Hogan’s Heroes was to Nazi POW camps. Exaggerating reality is standard for TV sitcoms; however, The Crazy Ones has yet to deliver a situation or comedy worth watching.

The program claims to be based on the experiences of a real creative director from Leo Burnett. Delusional experiences would be a more precise term. Like TNT series Trust Me—which was also spawned by Leo Burnett employees—The Crazy Ones is an embarrassment to the field. Actually, it embarrasses two fields: advertising and network television. Guess it’s a good thing that neither field has ever shown a sense of self-respect.

The Crazy Ones is shameful. Its creators are shameless.

11528: Best Place For Bad Writing.

Digiday published a column from Agency Exec X, who wondered why certain advertising agencies were recently listed on LinkedIn as being great places to work. The perspective clearly shows that Digiday continues to be clueless about real advertising agencies—as well as the business world in general. For starters, the editors didn’t even bother proofreading the typo-riddled piece. Additionally, if the writer is indeed an “agency executive,” he has the maturity of a 12-year-old. The rant reads like an extended comment left at AgencySpy. The moron should realize that companies usually win such honors via self-promotional puffery and ballot box stuffing by employees. Leave it to Digiday to attempt to validate the uninformed mumblings of a pseudo adman. Then again, the Digiday crew is comprised of pseudo trade journalists.

Are These Agencies Really The Best Places to Work?

By Agency Exec X

If you follow any of the Twitter feeds of some of the bigger agencies you will be aware that some of them were on LinkedIn’s recently published ‘100 Most in Demand’ companies. For a few days there were self-congratulatory tweets here there and everywhere.

But lets look a little deeper into this list. Is that something you should be really shouting about? Of the agencies that made it we have Ogilvy (26), Leo Burnett (43), JWT (46), RazorFish (59), Saatchi & Saatchi (64), Digitas (87) and BBDO (98). Razorfish and Digitas were the only digital agencies. Are we to believe that given the chance a well suited digitally savvy employee wouldn’t rather work at somewhere like R/GA or AKQA? They are certainly the more creative of these types of network.

Google and Apple were Nos.1 and 2 on the list, but 3,4,5 were Unilever, P&G and Microsoft. Now despite what Unilever and P&G would have you think believe (and en masse trips to Cannes) they are still big marketing companies that do things by the book 99.9 percent of the time. For anyone with creative yearnings they are soul crushing places to work. And the stories you hear about Microsoft clients are so evil they would make Dick Cheney blush.

Let’s have a look at some of the other neighbors. Nearby to JWT and Razorfish we have Haliburton. Hey, the job at Haliburton didn’t work out so I’m going to go work in Advertising. It can’t be as bad as being gang-raped then imprisoned or killed in Iraq, right? Actually among the top 100 there are many more energy companies. Not clean energy companies. Dirty energy companies. Really, the most filthy and dirty companies. And then of course there is Goldman Sachs.

Lastly there is the fundamental question of who actually relies on LinkedIn for a job? I’ll give you a clue it begins with an L too. A big fat L on your forehead. It’s basically the place you go if you don’t have any real friends, a portfolio or all else has failed.

So, one way at looking at this would be to say, ‘Congrats guys, you are the most in demand agencies for money-grabbing, bottom-feeding, buy-the-book losers who can’t get a job anywhere else!’ But that’s just one way. I’m sure these are super-nice places to work! As someone once said there are lies, damned lies and statistics.

11505: Miami Meeting Of Morons.

Advertising Age reported bigwigs from Publicis Groupe and Omnicom will hold a secret meeting on October 18 at The Four Seasons Hotel in Miami to introduce themselves to each other in preparation for the inevitable merger. Each key executive is expected to “deliver short presentations explaining their agencies’ unique brand platforms” to the group. Um, any agency in a holding company has pretty much forsaken uniqueness—especially in Omnicom, where no distinctions are made between, say, Goodby Silverstein & Partners and Fathom Communications. Additionally, CEOs representing minority shops will likely be not invited, ignored or mistaken for hotel help.

Top Brass from Publicis and Omnicom to Convene at Secret Meeting in Miami

Gathering Taking Place at Four Seasons Hotel

By Alexandra Bruell

As the folks behind the Omnicom-Publicis merger take the necessary steps to overcome the deal’s regulatory hurdles, key execs from large agencies of both holding companies are quietly preparing for a meet-and-greet in Miami.

The event is taking place at The Four Seasons—which sits on Brickell Avenue and overlooks Biscayne Bay—on October 18.

It marks the first official joint event between the U.S. and French giants since the news of the mega merger broke in July.

Those invited—a select group of no more than 100 execs, according to executives familiar with the matter—will include global CEOs from big agency networks at Omnicom Group and Publicis Groupe. For many who have never met or aren’t well acquainted, it’s an opportunity to get to know one another. But while the weather is expected to be sunny and in the mid-80’s, it won’t be just a meet-and-greet over umbrella drinks. The execs have been asked to deliver short presentations explaining their agencies’ unique brand platforms in preparation for becoming a unified company. Omnicom declined to comment and Publicis didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The attendees, of course, will need to be careful in their conversations. Until the merger passes regulatory tests and the U.S. and French giant officially meld into one conglomerate (it will officially be based in the Netherlands) the agencies within the publicly-traded holding companies are fierce competitors. So, they’ll refrain from presenting anything that smells of competitive information.

According to executives familiar with the matter, the holding companies have advised shops not to present material that hasn’t gotten a legal stamp of approval. The agency execs have been given guidelines outlining what they can and cannot say in the closed-door meeting. The guidelines are meant to remind the execs that they’re not siblings until the closing of the deal and to ensure that they refrain from sharing documents with opinions about the merger transaction or sensitive information about the agencies and their clients.

Right now, executives familiar with the matter say they expect the deal will close sometime in the first quarter of 2014 and are bullish they will secure the necessary approvals for the deal in global markets. A note from Deutsche Bank analyst Matt Chesler in late September following a meeting with Omnicom Group CFO Randy Weisenburger stated: “[Management] said things are going well for a complex, cross-border transaction. Have filed in US, EU, India, Australia, & others, with 6-7 more to go. Since the review of media buying will be on a country-by-country basis and is only 15-20% of combined [revenues], they are not concerned.”

11500: Two Cents On JCPenney.

Advertising Age reported more details on the JCPenney account reassignment to Doner, EVB and Victors & Spoils. MultiCultClassics originally commented that the trio of terrible shops looked like participants on AMC series The Pitch. Turns out the competition actually resembled the reality TV show, as the exclusive review lasted only three weeks. Three-month-old JCPenney SVP-Marketing Debra Berman booted six-month-old AOR Y&R after deciding the agency’s 2013 holiday marketing plan was not “sufficient to build the relationship we want to with our customers.” Merry Christmas, Y&R. Meanwhile, Omnicom’s EVB and Havas’ Victors & Spoils teamed up to win social and grassroots marketing assignments. In other words, pseudo thought leader John Winsor needed to bolster his mystical crowd of freelancers with a mediocre digital shop—and he ultimately got beat by Doner, a traditional advertising agency dinosaur. Of course, there was no mention of minority shops in the mix. Heaven forbid non-Whites might comprise a sizable portion of JCPenney’s audience. Berman and her new agencies recognize the challenge ahead demands staging a major turnaround. Seems as if everyone involved could use a total professional makeover.