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What’s In A Name?
July 20, 2015
Consider yourself lucky if you work for an internal agency these days. Based on a 2013 report by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), the penetration of in-house teams has grown from 42% to 58% in five years. And the trend continues. In fact, more and more companies are reaping the …
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Give Your Clients What They Want
July 15, 2015
Does the title of this blog frighten you? Don’t worry. I’m not going to tell you to make the logo bigger or to infuse neon green into your corporate brand palette. Beyond hearing “yes” to the sometimes-random requests they make, do you know what clients really want? They want to know that the in- …
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The Early Bird Gets the Discount
July 08, 2015
It’s the most wonderful time of the year…at IHAF, anyway! That’s because we’re in the midst of planning our biggest event of the year—the IHAF Annual Conference & AwardsShow. The IHAF program team is hard at work lining up the best speakers, the best breakout sessions, and most opportunities to …
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Stimulating Creativity
July 06, 2015
I was approached to write this blog on stimulating creativity from the point of view of an external agency creative director “out in the field.” Like anyone else confronted with this sort of challenge, I immediately Googled “stimulating creativity.” That brought up a treasure-trove of writing on …
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Creativity Born Out of Structure
June 29, 2015
Yes, you read the title right. The all-important and often overlooked way to stimulate creativity is through structure.
Technology, process, organizational design, and purposeful management trump latte machines, foosball tournaments and in-house yoga classes when it comes to encouraging innovation. …
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Idea-Generating Techniques for the Desperate
June 22, 2015
Here’s a general rule of thumb regarding idea-generation techniques: they’re clunky, dorky and time-consuming. Oh, and they don’t work. You reluctantly resort to one when you're under the gun for an idea, then end up wasting valuable time that leaves you even more frustrated and desperate and …
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The Crystal-Clear Winner
June 15, 2015
Each year, numerous winners leave the IHAF Awards Show with accolades in hand. Only one team, however, walks away with the coveted, crystal Best of Show trophy—the clear stand-out among all of the work submitted that year.
The Best of Show winner is chosen at the end of a day-long process where …
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Building a Creative Environment
June 08, 2015
When I was in third grade, my mom and I ran into my teacher (a grim, severe drill sergeant) in the cereal aisle of the grocery store. I still remember how long it took my brain to recognize Mrs. Strictman. Her face was familiar, but foreign in that environment.
The grocery store was all joy and …
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Let Them Lead
April 21, 2015
One of the keys to leading a successful organization is recruiting and nurturing new leaders within your agency. Finding and cultivating people who could give us “more legs on the stool” became one of the most gratifying achievements for my core group of senior leaders and for me personally.
In …
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Leading Teams by Leading Culture
April 13, 2015
Every organization has a culture built on its behaviors, habits, values and, most importantly, the collective energy of the people that comprise it. In my experience, strong culture is foundationally rooted in the ability to attract and retain the right people with the right energy, the right sense …
